Tiger's Hunt
by Xenobia
Summary: Takes place after "Between Worlds". The humans aren't the only threat to Jake and Neytiri's family. The clan's sons and daughters will face dangers of their own as they grow to maturity. Rated "M" for violence and sexual content.
1. Chapter 1

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 1: Coming of age

* * *

**Author's note:** _See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. This story takes place roughly three years after my first Avatar fanfiction: "Between Worlds" ended. You don't have to read the predecessor story to follow this one, but I would highly recommend it to avoid any confusion. This fiction is rated M (mature) because there will be sex and violence throughout the story. I'm also placing an age guide at the end of this chapter, for those (like myself) who have difficulty keeping track of how old Jake and company's offspring are. Consider this first chapter a "stage setter" to get the ball rolling. I can't promise to update as frequently as I did with the last story, because I have other projects I need to try and complete as well and we could be moving to another house soon. I can't say yet whether this story will stretch out over as many chapters as the last one._

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. "The Tyger" belongs to William Blake. His poem inspired the title for this fanfiction.**

* * *

_"Tyger! Tyger! burning bright _  
_ In the forests of the night, _  
_ What immortal hand or eye _  
_ Could frame thy fearful symmetry?"_- William Blake, 1794

* * *

A leaf falling on the ground made more noise than the young huntress' careful steps. She kept to the shadows and stayed downwind of her prey. The target was magnificent. His markings were without flaw or breaks, the pattern of stripes even and pleasing to the eye. He was strong—stronger than most other males of his kind. He was without doubt an alpha male. She remained hidden and she watched him, not daring to so much as breath too deeply for fear of her prey's sharp hearing detecting the sound.

He gave no sign that he noticed her. He moved through the forest with primal grace, his steps carrying him closer to his hidden stalker. Every part of the huntress was telling her that _this_ was the one; _this_ was her prize alone. If she hesitated, she would lose her opportunity and her prey would escape.

She gathered herself, her tail swishing eagerly as he moved within range. She could taste the satisfaction of bringing him down already. Just as she was about to act, a family of prolemuris scrambled in the thick canopy overhead. The simian animals startled the huntress out of her focus and she gasped. She immediately hunkered down behind the twisted roots of a giant tree as her prey stopped and looked around warily. His eyes swept the forest, lingering near her hiding spot. She was sure he would come to investigate but after a few moments of consideration, he moved on.

As she watched her target move out of range, she breathed a sigh of relief and wondered what on Pandora had gotten into her, lately.

* * *

Ni'nat was busy with constructing a new flute in the relative solitude of the mushroom grove, when Grace found her and asked her a peculiar question.

"Mother, what does it mean to start having aggressive feelings toward a boy?"

Ni'nat paused her work and she looked at her oldest daughter curiously. "Explain these 'aggressive feelings' to me. Was this boy teasing you, or being rude?"

Grace shook her head and combed some tangles out of her thick, long hair with her fingers. "No. He was just walking in the forest. I think he was returning to the village after gathering plant foods. He didn't even know I was there."

Ni'nat considered this and her golden eyes searched Gracie's. "What did your feelings tell you to do, daughter?"

Gracie's cheeks grew warm and she lowered her eyes. "I...wanted to pounce on him."

There was a moment of utter silence and Grace looked at her mother warily. Ni'nat was gazing at her with an oddly nostalgic smile on her shapely lips. "_Sa'nok_, what does it meeeaaan?" Grace implored, emphasizing the final word impatiently.

Ni'nat set aside her half-finished musical instrument and gracefully slid off the top of the mushroom. She embraced her daughter and stroked her hair, swallowing before answering the question. "It means that you have begun the first steps of your journey to become a woman," she murmured. "Your body is finished maturing and the aggression comes because it is preparing for you to share it with a partner, some day. Are males the only ones you are drawn to, Grace?"

It took the young woman a few moments to answer, shocked as she was by her mother's proclamation. "I don't get these feelings toward other girls. So far, it only happens around boys...especially a certain one."

Ni'nat pulled back to look at her. There was a twinkle of mischief in her eyes. "Would this boy who draws your attention happen to be the one who has been courting you for so long?"

Grace's flush deepened and she nodded. "Yes. Damn him."

"Grace!"

The teenager flinched guiltily and bit her lip. "I'm sorry, but it's all Tommy's fault!"

Ni'nat's expression of admonishment faded into gentle amusement. "No, my daughter. Males cannot make females become receptive to them, no matter how they may try. Tommy cannot control your urges anymore than he can control his own, so don't blame this on him. I thought your _Sempul_ already had this talk with you, many moons ago."

"He did," Grace sighed. "But he didn't warn me about the pouncing. It felt just like tracking prey, but instead of wanting to put an arrow into him I wanted to roll around on the ground with him."

Ni'nat chuckled softly. "I warned you that your attitude would change, some day. Do you still think boys are so silly for being distracted by mating urges?"

Grace wanted to dig a hole and bury herself. She was surprised that the foliage around them wasn't catching fire from the heat of her embarrassment. "I guess I deserve this, after making fun of them."

* * *

Ni'nat warned her that the new stirrings within her would grow stronger, over time. Unfortunately, Grace's hope that her mother was exaggerating proved futile as the days passed into weeks. It only worsened when she went hunting with Tommy, Tsu'tey and Neytiri. Tommy made his first kill and he conducted it with clean efficiency. He took down a large buck and as she watched him drive his knife into the animal's heart to be sure it was dead, Gracie was horrified by the primal fantasy that invaded her thoughts. She imagined herself dipping her fingers into the blood and drawing symbols representing her name all over Tommy's body.

Without conscious thought, Grace slapped herself in the forehead and groaned.

"Something troubles you, Gracie?" Neytiri asked, her proud smile for her son fading as she caught sight of the action from the corner of her eye. She looked at the young huntress with eyes that saw deeper than flesh. "You are not happy for my son's achievement?"

"Oh, it isn't that," Grace explained hastily. "I'm very proud of him. I'm just...annoyed with myself for losing the trail I was tracking earlier."

Neytiri eyed her suspiciously and Grace prayed she wouldn't see the through the half-truth. It wasn't exactly a lie; she _was_ frustrated over losing the trail, but her gross urges to paint her name all over Tommy were far more disturbing.

"It happens to us all," Neytiri finally said with a calm smile and a shrug. "More so in the beginning. You are improving each day, Grace. Don't judge yourself so harshly."

Grace nodded, her eyes going to Tommy again of their own accord. He had finished sending the animal's spirit to Eywa and he smiled at her. Something in that smile seemed to seek her approval, so Grace returned it warmly. Tommy bent over his kill and with Tsu'tey's help, he began to bind the feet for easier lifting. Grace's heart thudded in her chest as she watched the play of muscles in Tommy's back and shoulders. She forced herself to stop staring and she offered to get the direhorses for the group. When Neytiri gave her leave, she hurried away before the Tsahik could see the blush in her cheeks.

* * *

"Mother, it's horrible! Today when Tommy made his kill, all I could think about was writing my name all over him."

Ni'nat resisted the urge to laugh as she listened to her daughter's complaints. "You have dropped your corner," she warned when Gracie let go of part of her end of the hammock they were weaving for her together. When the teenager hastily picked it back up, Ni'nat tugged to tighten some of the fibers and resumed her work. "Grace, your impulses are not unusual. When your _Sempul_ and I were in our courtship, I made his first loincloth for him and I put my name symbols on it. I wanted other women to know I intended to pair with him. Na'vi women are as territorial as their men, after all."

"But did you want to mark him with _blood_?" pressed Grace, grimacing in distaste.

Ni'nat glanced at her and smiled. "The thrill of the hunt always stirs the body, my daughter. We are hunters. Watching your man show his skill and vigor can awaken feelings as old as our race. Many women enjoy celebrating a kill by coupling with their mates afterwards."

Gracie looked even more uncomfortable. "That's more information than I wanted to hear, Mom. I'm never going hunting with you and Father again."

This time, Ni'nat couldn't contain her laughter. She stopped weaving her daughter's new hammock and motioned her closer. Grace managed a smile of her own as her mother embraced her and kissed her on the cheek.

"You are a spirited young woman, my Gracie," Ni'nat murmured fondly. "If Tommy is the one you want, he will have much work ahead of him."

"I didn't say he's the one," protested Grace. "He's just...the one I notice the most."

"Of course," Ni'nat answered patiently. The glint in her eyes suggested she knew better.

* * *

A few days later, Grace was walking with her sister towards the bathing lake. She heard the sound of splashing just as she and Ralu came to the thick foliage surrounding the water source and her ears swiveled. Gracie preferred to bathe alone or with her mother or sister as company. Like her mother and a select few other Na'vi women, Grace developed more generous bust endowments than average when her body began to mature. The covert, envious glances other girls gave her when she bathed with them made her almost as uncomfortable as the boys' salivating did.

"Usually nobody's here at this time of day," Grace muttered, stopping her little sister on the path.

She always had her full baths at mid-afternoon, between lunch and dinner. When the rest of the clan chose to bathe in the lake instead of using washbowls, they generally did it in the morning or else they did it in the evening to wash the blood away after a hunt. This time of day had become her "safe hour", three times per week.

"Do you think there are boys in there?" Ralu asked uncertainly.

Grace worried her lower lip with her teeth. "Stay here. I'll find out."

Ralu nodded and obediently waited near the cluster of octoshrooms while Grace softly padded over to the concealed lakeside. Gracie hesitated at the edge of the clearing, listening intently. Whomever was in the lake was either alone or not in a conversational mood. Hoping she'd find one of her clan sisters bathing, she crept up to the foliage and pushed a frond of _eyaye_ aside to peer into the lake clearing. When she saw who was there, she froze. Every particle of saliva in her mouth abruptly dried up and her body temperature rose to near-feverish level.

Grace worked some moisture back into her mouth and let go of the frond, yanking her attention away from the sight she'd seen. The mossy ground felt spongier than usual as she walked back to her sister and the dappled sunlight seemed to cast a glow on everything.

"Go back to the village," Grace ordered her younger sibling. "We'll have to wait until tomorrow for a bath."

"Who's there?" Ralu asked.

"One of the male hunters," answered Grace evasively. "One of the un-mated ones. You know we can't bathe with him."

"Okay," Ralu sighed. "I feel icky, though."

Gracie forced a smile. "Tell our parents. They'll warm up a bowl of water for you to bathe with."

"What about you?" Ralu was looking up at her with faint suspicion.

"I'm in the mood for some _tompa_ berries," fibbed the older female. "I'll be along in a little while, okay?"

"Will you pick some for me too?"

Grace ruffled Ralu's hair and nodded. "Of course. Now hurry home so you can get cleaned up for supper. I'll see you in a little while."

"Okay," agreed the little girl. "Gracie, can we chase some fan lizards later?"

"Sure," Grace answered hastily, ushering the younger girl down the trail. "As long as _Sempul_ and _Sa'nok_ say it's okay. Go on, now."

Ralu smiled with delight and took off running. Gracie waited until she was out of sight before turning back toward the lake. She knew that she shouldn't be doing this. She'd practically seen every inch of the male body, due to the lack of cover Na'vi garb offered. Still, there was that one part hidden beneath the loincloth that she had never seen before. The chance to satisfy her curiosity about that part of male anatomy was too compelling to pass up.

Using every hunter skill she had, she snuck back to the lake and made sure she was downwind before looking through the foliage again. Tommy Sully was still there, bathing the sweat and dirt from his body after a long day's tracking and hunting. Grace could tell what he'd been up to by the dried blood on one of the loincloths laying on the bank of the lake. A clean one hung from a branch overhead, ready to be put on when he finished.

Tommy was oblivious to his audience as he scrubbed his chest and arms with a sea sponge and plant extracts. He stood in the shallow end and the water lapped at his waist, beneath his navel. The shimmering water cruelly teased, obscuring the part that Grace was most interested in seeing. She silently willed him to finish and wade over to the bank so that she could get a look at his hidden endowments. In the meantime, she enjoyed the way the water sparkled on his skin and the way his lean muscles rippled with his movements. His queue hung down his back into the water. The few shorter, small braids he kept separate from the queue fell to his shoulders in a style similar to the way his father wore his hair. She thought it suited him.

She sighed and lay on her stomach, propping her chin in her hands. Her tail swished lazily as she admired him, her eyes roving over the pattern of stripes and iridescent spots decorating his cyan body. She'd always known Tommy was handsome but his good looks never affected her this way before. He had plenty of female admirers in the village, but he'd only shown sincere interest in Grace, so far. Before, his determined insistence that they belonged together rankled her. She found it somewhat offensive that he was so sure she belonged with him. Now watching him, admiring him and imagining what it would be like to run her fingertips over his chest, stomach and arms, Gracie had to revise her opinion.

Tommy ducked under the water for a moment and Grace perked up when he emerged again and began wading toward the bank. Her eyes fixated on the receding waterline below his hips. She could see the symmetrical lines of his pelvis and she was fascinated by the "V" shape they made—almost as if pointing in the direction of the part she wanted so badly to look at.

Grace was so absorbed in her spying that she didn't hear the approach of Tommy's father.

* * *

Jake was whistling a little tune as he headed for the lake. The bathing source wasn't his intended destination, but it was a shortcut to the _pa'li_ meadow and he'd cut time by passing through it. He intended to check on the small herd's local food supply to be sure there was enough in the area to keep them from wandering off. He didn't expect to find Grace Spellman lying on her stomach in the foliage, just outside of the lake clearing. His whistling died down as he approached and he tilted his head in perplexity, wondering what she was doing.

"Grace?"

The young woman scrambled to her feet and looked up at him with wide, alarmed eyes. "Oh, Uncle Jake. I...one of my hair beads fell out and I was looking for it."

Jake shrugged. "Well here, let me help you look for—"

"That's okay," Grace interrupted hastily, "I've got plenty more beads to replace it. Thank you, _Olo'eyktan_. I'll go and help prepare dinner now."

She was off in a flash, leaving Jake standing there with his eyebrows raised and one finger pointed up in a "wait" gesture.

"But you're not wearing any beads in your hair today," Jake said—an observation that was lost on the eighteen year old. Grace hardly ever wore her lustrous tresses up or in braids, except for the queue protecting her neural tendrils.

Jake frowned after the disappearing girl, finding her behavior more than a little strange. He heard the slosh of water from the other side of the foliage and he pushed aside some branches and leaves curiously. Seeing his son walking naked and wet to the fresh garment hanging from a dangling tree branch, Jake was struck with a moment of clarity that he could have done without. He blinked, let go of the foliage and turned his back on the clearing. His eyebrows again rose to his hairline as he put two and two together.

He announced his realization in a whisper. "She's a peeping Sally!"

* * *

Tommy was surprised to find his father leaning against the trunk of a tree when he emerged from the clearing and stepped onto the path. "Dad? What are you doing here?"

"I was on my way to check on the herd's food supplies," answered Jake. He levered himself away from the trunk and approached the nineteen year old. "Damn, I still can't believe how _tall_ you are." Tommy was now a head taller than Jake. Not that Jake had ever been a particularly tall individual but Tommy outgrew him quickly after his sixteenth birthday.

Tommy shrugged. "I must have gotten it from one of my grandparents."

"Probably Eytukan," Jake guessed, remembering how short he'd always felt around the great Omaticaya leader, even in his avatar body. "You've got my build, though. Good hunt today?"

Tommy nodded and adjusted his gear. "I got a doe, this time. I made sure there weren't any signs that she had young before I shot her."

"Thatta boy," Jake approved. He smiled. "Man, I've got '_Cat's in the cradle_' stuck in my head now."

Tommy unconsciously mimicked one of his father's most common reactions and tilted his head to the left. "What's that?"

"It's a song from Earth," Jake answered. "A classic. It's all about a father watching his son grow up and realizing one day that he's a lot like him."

Tommy snorted and kicked aside some dead leaves. "I'm not _that_ much like you. Close enough, though."

Jake grinned. "Yeah, you've got some of your mother's redeeming qualities. I can hold off on the meadow inspection until tomorrow. Let's head back to the village and get ready for dinner."

"Okay." Tommy agreeably fell into step with Jake, adjusting his equipment as he went.

His thoughts quickly went to a certain alluring young huntress as they walked and he glanced at his father sidelong. Jake always gave him sound advice when it came to females and right about now, Tommy felt like he could use a bit more.

"Dad, I think Grace has been looking at me differently."

Jake's steps faltered for a split second, but he kept his expression neutral and his eyes remained on the path. "In what way?"

"Well, maybe its just wishful thinking but I kind of get the feeling she's been checking me out. The last time I said anything about it she got angry, though. She said I was full of myself."

Jake snorted. "Just because she said that doesn't mean you aren't right. Some women need a little time to admit they're attracted to you."

Tommy tried not to get too hopeful. "Do you really think so? Mom says I have to be patient but it's not that easy. I keep thinking of the way Emazu keeps talking about her like she's already his."

"Does Gracie ever agree with that?" Jake asked.

"No, but she doesn't protest very much, either."

"She's been raised to be polite," Jake excused.

"She's not afraid to tell me off, though," Tommy protested.

Jake chuckled. "That's because you two are so close, she can speak her mind without worrying about offending you."

"But what if we're too close?" Tommy asked. "What if she just thinks of me as a brother, by now? I...I can't stand the thought of her mating with anyone else."

Jake looked him in the eye and a confident smirk adorned his lips. "Son, I don't think you have to worry about that. Something tells me you're at the top of Gracie's list." He followed up with a wink.

Tommy frowned at his father, wondering what he knew that he wasn't sharing.

* * *

Later that night after supper, Jake took his mate aside and quietly told her about finding Grace spying on Tommy in the lake.

"You are sure she was 'peeping' on our son, Jake?" Neytiri didn't seem particularly worried or shocked.

Jake nodded. "She tried to say she dropped a bead, but she wasn't wearing her hair bound and she had 'guilt' written all over her pretty little face."

Neytiri shrugged. "It is not unusual for young people to seek opportunities like that. Males act on it sooner, but females eventually become just as curious about them."

Jake snickered softly. "I just didn't expect it. I had no idea she was starting to see boys that way."

"Are you offended that she was gazing at our son?"

He shook his head. "No. If anything, I'm glad it was him and not someone else. Maybe this means those two are going to get together someday, like we've been hoping."

Neytiri smirked. "Would you be as pleased if you found a boy watching our daughter bathe, my Jake?"

Jake stared at her. "Uh...Sylwanin is only ten, gorgeous. If I caught a teenaged boy peeping on her, you'd better _believe_ I'd be ready to kill the sick pervert."

"I meant when Sylwanin is Tommy's age," explained Neytiri with an amused smile. "Would you be pleased for her as you are for our son, or would you react differently?"

Jake hesitated. "Girls are different."

Neytiri sighed and nodded. "That is what I thought you would say. Have you told Norm about this?"

Jake raised his eyebrows. "Norm? Hell, no. He would have a freaking conniption if he knew his princess snuck an eyeful of a naked guy. With Gracie's looks, Norm sees every guy her age as a threat to her virtue."

"But Norm is a man of reason," Neytiri reminded. "Surely he would not blame our son for his daughter's actions."

Jake laughed softly and shook his head. "Trust me, Neytiri. When it comes to his daughters, Norm's sense of reason sucks. Let's just keep this to ourselves, all right?"

Neytiri huffed with annoyance. "You and Norm have such odd standards for your daughters."

"Sorry." Jake shrugged. "I know it seems unfair to you but where me and Norm came from, a lot of girls Gracie's age end up trying to raise babies they didn't mean to have, all on their own. Some fathers stick around to help, but others just have their fun and then take off, leaving the mothers to face pissed off parents, public ridicule and broken dreams. It happened to a lot of girls I went to school with and even though I know things are different with the Na'vi, it's hard to shake the feeling that we've got to protect our daughters from that sort of thing."

Neytiri bit her lip. "I cannot imagine a father turning his back on his offspring or his mate. To think that the clan would shame a female for having children is strange to me."

"Well, humans don't need to be mated partners to make babies together," Jake tried to explain. "And the sense of community shared by the Omaticaya and the other clans isn't common on Earth. That's part of why I've got these double-standards, babe. If Sylwanin were human, I'd have to worry about her having a little _too_ much fun with some jerk and ending up pregnant and abandoned by him. Any Dad that loves his daughter would worry about that."

Neytiri traced Jake's handsome features with her fingertips and smiled warmly at him. "Then I can understand why you and Norm feel the way you do."

Jake gave her a soft, grateful kiss on the lips. "As long as you don't think I'm being a sexist pig. So, you agree we can't tell Norm or Ni'nat about this?"

"Why not Ni'nat?" Neytiri wondered.

"Because if we tell her, you know she'll tell Norm and our plan to keep him from exploding will go right out the window with his sense of reason."

Neytiri chuckled and put her arms around him, laying her cheek against his chest. "Very well, my Jake. Because it is such a trivial thing, I will not speak of it to anyone."

* * *

Meanwhile back at Hell's Gate, Dustin Patel was having some difficulties of his own.

"Damn this machine!" He smacked the side of the data logger and an uncommon snarl twisted his lips.

Max glanced over at him, distracted from his own data by the outburst. "What's the matter, son?"

"This...thing," proclaimed the young man with a withering look at the device, "it's not giving proper readings. It's trying to tell me there's no seismic activity to the northwest, but we've been getting reports of minor tremors in that area from our research and gathering teams."

Max put his own work aside and walked across the room to have a look at his son's data himself. "You just _had_ to pick volcanoes as a specialty, didn't you?" He smiled at the young man before checking the readings himself. "You know Dustin, there's still a margin of error when it comes to predicting these things and collecting data. You're literally trying to forecast nature and we have never in human history been able to do that with pinpoint accuracy."

"Yes, but the monitors should be picking _something_ up by now," argued Dustin. He combed his fingers through his dark curls, pulling a few wayward locks away from his forehead. "This is just messed up. The sulfuric readings in the purification plant have gone through the roof this year. I'm starting to worry about the Omaticaya clan. The volcano that might be showing signs of activity is a little too close to their territory for comfort."

"They've already taken that into consideration," Max soothed. "Jake and Norm have a solid evacuation plan that they'll employ the minute there are signs of serious activity. It's entirely possible that these tremors are just a result of minor plate shifts, Dustin. Pandora isn't that dissimilar to Earth...at least, the way Earth used to be until we wrecked it."

"But this equipment should still pick up the seismic activity, even if it isn't related to a volcanic event," Dustin insisted.

Max was about to respond to that, but the doors to the data room opened and Trudy came in before he could speak. "How are my boys doing today?" asked the pilot with one of her customary, cheeky grins. Her hair was bound into a bun but there were loose strands framing her face. She wore a t-shirt and a pair of jeans, looking for all the world like a college student. Max smiled at her and he drew her into a half-embrace.

"Do you ever get any older?" he murmured. He allowed himself a brief nuzzle against her cheek before she playfully pushed him away.

"Whoa there...kid present," she reminded him. Her dark gaze settled on Dustin in a calculating way. "Though I don't think we can call him 'kid' much longer. You're growing up too fast, buddy. I think you're spending too much time in the lab—just like your old man."

Dustin scratched his jaw, all too aware of the skin irritation caused by shaving. "It's okay Ma. I like doing research."

"You might like it, but you've got to give that brain of yours a rest sooner or later," Trudy insisted. She pulled away from max and grabbed Dustin by the arm. The other staff in the room watched with amusement as the small Latino woman physically pulled her taller son toward the door. "Double-time, Dusty. You remember what your Dad said about the trouble with working while your brain is tired."

"But I'm not tired," protested Dustin, "and it's in the middle of the day!"

"So go and do something fun," Trudy demanded, "spend your weekend like other kids your age. Maybe you can go hang out with Savanna and Andrew. Watch some movies or play some video games, for crying out loud."

Dustin stopped arguing with her. It _would_ be nice to do something with his friends and this was the final day of the weekend. Tomorrow they'd all be back in classes again. "Okay, I'm going. Just let me ask Dad about something, first."

Trudy stopped pulling on his arm and waited while he turned to Max. "My face is itching like crazy, Dad. Is there anything I can do about that?"

"I'll get some good shaving gel for you," Max offered with a sympathetic smile. "Maybe the brand I use will work as well for you as it does for me."

Dustin sighed in relief. The one thing he hated about growing up was the shaving that had become an increasing part of it, this year. "Thanks, Dad."

* * *

Dustin got in touch with Savanna through their satellite phones and she agreed to meet him at the bio-dome entrance when she finished gathering some fruit from the native gardens. Andrew was at home and he invited Dustin and Savanna to come over to his place. He sounded a little strange to Dustin when they spoke over the phone and when he asked if anything was wrong, the other boy told him he'd explain when they got there.

Savanna met up with Dustin at the bio-dome some twenty minutes later and the two of them walked in together. Dustin thankfully pulled his exopack mask off and he quickly offered to take Savanna's basket of produce while she adjusted to the change in atmosphere. She handed it to him and turned her head away as she coughed. Dustin grimaced, wondering what it was like to go through that every time she inhaled a different mixture of breathing gases. He decided to ask her as her coughing fit ended.

"What does it feel like?" He looked up at her with concern he couldn't quite veil.

Savanna took her basket back from him and shrugged. "At first, it feels like I'm suffocating but it goes away fast. The worst part is watching my friends worry about me."

He smiled. "Sorry. It's just reflexive."

They were halfway to Andrew's home when one of their classmates spotted them shouted something rude at Savanna from across the street. She stopped and compressed her lips, glaring sidelong at the young man.

"Don't let it get to you," Dustin suggested, "Anyone that thinks you're a 'freak' is just an ignorant bigot. It's their loss if they won't see you for who you are, Sav."

"Hey baby, why don't you come over here and show me what hybrid tits look like?"

Dustin tensed his jaw. It was all well and good for him to advise his friend to ignore rude comments, but it was easier said than done. He was about to contradict his own advice when Savanna thrust her fruit basket at him again.

"Hold this for me, would you?"

He took the basket with a wary look. "What are you going to do?"

Savanna cracked her knuckles. "I've had about enough of this. I'm going to go clean up some trash."

Dustin's jaw dropped and his eyebrows flew up as the tall, exotic girl stalked across the street toward her tormentor. "W-wait," he called half-heartedly, knowing that Savanna was beyond turning the other cheek, this time.

The boy responsible for shouting the obscenities paled when he saw the pretty hybrid marching over to him. He looked around uncertainly, used to Savanna putting up with jibes and taunts. There were a few people of varying ages outside, going about their daily business. Some of them paused to watch the scene as Savanna Thomas stepped onto the sidewalk and glared down at her bully with her fists propped on her hips.

"Is there something you want to say to my face?" Savanna asked in a surprisingly honeyed tone. She stood almost two feet taller than the male.

The teen boy had more guts than wits. He gathered his courage and forced a lewd grin up at her. "You're pretty eager, baby. Why don't you show me what you've got."

She took a deep breath. "Fine. I'll show you _exactly_ what I've got, but not in the way you're suggesting."

Without another word, she grabbed the guy by the back of his shirt with one hand and lifted him into the air. He yelled in surprise and squirmed, reaching up to tug at the young woman's wrist. "Hey, let go of me!"

Savanna carried him with comical ease, like a cat picked up by the scruff of the neck. She walked over to the corner of the street, where a huge recycling bin stood against the wall of a shop building.

"You want me to let go?" she asked the hollering boy, smirking at him. She reached out and pushed the lid open on the bin. "Fine. Join the rest of the trash!"

With that said, she flung him like a sack of garbage. His startled shout was abruptly cut off when his landing in the refuse knocked the breath from him. Savanna slammed the lid shut and started walking away. As she crossed the street to Dustin, the bin lid lifted and her vanquished foe peeked out at her with wide, shocked eyes. Savanna sensed his stare and she looked over her shoulder at him.

"Next time, I'll do a lot more than throw you in a recycling bin," she promised. She kept her level stare on him for a few heartbeats before returning to Dustin's side. She straightened her pink blouse and wiped imaginary dirt off of her jeans, feeling soiled just from touching the obnoxious boy.

"Let's go, Dustin."

The budding scientist nodded. "I guess everyone has limits," he murmured.

Savanna smiled. "Kato and Karyu are always telling me I should stand up for myself more. That felt good."

Dustin smiled back at her but he inwardly wondered if the twins' influence was a good or bad thing. He didn't expect Savanna to just bend over and take the abuse from people but as she had demonstrated, her Na'vi heritage allowed her to physically best most humans with ease. Though she was a gentle person by nature, Dustin worried that some day, one of her teasers would push her too far and end up seriously hurt or killed—and that would eat Savanna up with guilt.

* * *

"Hey guys, come on in." Andrew stood aside and held the door open for the two of them. Dustin noticed the way the taller young man kept running his fingers through his ash-blond hair; which was a typical sign of anxiety for him.

"What's up, Andrew? You sounded nervous over the phone and you said you'd talk about it when we got here."

Savanna noticed the blond's tension too and she gave him a concerned look as she shut the door. "Is everything all right?"

Andrew shrugged and the gesture was stiff. "Yeah. Well, no...I don't know."

Dustin exchanged a puzzled look with Savanna. "Let's go sit down in the living room and you can tell us what's bothering you."

Andrew sighed and nodded. He waited until the other two walked into the small living room and he took a seat beside Dustin on the couch. Savanna eased down onto the floor and sat cross-legged before them rather than sit on the armchair beside the couch. Neither of the boys said anything about it; they were accustomed to her preference to the floor over furniture.

"So what's got you so worked up?" Savanna asked.

Andrew took a deep breath before answering. "My avatar is ready."

Dustin and Savanna raised their eyebrows. Both of them had completely forgotten that the lab was growing an avatar for him to operate. Dustin spoke first, smiling. "I guess that means you'll be going out for your first 'ride' soon."

Andrew nodded. "Today. Mom and Dad are at the lab now, helping to get things ready."

"You look more terrified than excited," Savanna observed shrewdly. "I thought you always wanted to be an avatar operator."

"I did," admitted Andrew. He looked down at his hands, which were resting in his lap. He flexed his fingers and continued speaking in a low voice. "But now I'm not so sure. I've heard other drivers say it feels like they're slipping away when they first start linking. I know it hasn't happened in years, but some operators go brain-dead if the link gets interrupted. I'm a little scared, guys."

Dustin put a supportive hand on the other young man's shoulder. "Andy, I'm sure your parents never would have agreed to it if they thought for a moment you might get hurt. The avatar program has been improved a lot since they joined."

"But what if something goes wrong and I end up stuck in the avatar body?" persisted Andrew, "what if I go into a coma or worse?"

"Okay, first take a deep breath," advised Dustin. "Secondly, I know they used the enhanced process to grow your avatar but they aren't using the permanent transfer process. You aren't going to get 'stuck' in your avatar body. You'll be using a regular link, like all of the other drivers."

The blond swallowed and nodded. "It's just...now that it's ready for me, I don't know if I'm ready for it."

"Well if you're that worried about it, can't you just say 'no'?" Savanna asked.

Andrew shook his head and dragged his fingers through his short-cropped hair again. "I can't do that. I begged and pleaded with my parents until they agreed to let me join the program. They've been growing this thing since I was twelve and it took a lot of resources and effort for the lab to do it. Mom and Dad went through a lot of trouble convincing Dustin's dad and the other scientists to do it, so I can't back out now. It costs hundreds of thousands of dollars on Earth for each avatar they grow."

"But we aren't on Earth and the Na'vi DNA is a lot easier to come by here," Dustin reminded him, glancing at Savanna. "I think Savanna has a point. If you're this scared of going in, you should talk to your parents about putting it off and keeping your avatar in stasis until you're ready."

"Maybe I'll never be ready," Andrew muttered gloomily.

"You won't know if you don't try," Savanna urged. "Andy, there hasn't been a single accident with the linking system since before we were born."

Dustin agreed with her. "They've perfected the process so that there's hardly any risk in the linking process. The biggest danger now is mental trauma from injuries your avatar body might get, but I'm sure your parents aren't going to let you do anything dangerous when you're operating it."

Andrew thought about it for a moment and then slowly nodded. "I guess you're right. Will you guys come with me? I hate to sound like a wimp, but I'd feel a little better with my friends there."

"Of course," Savanna agreed, getting to her feet.

She offered her hand to Andrew and he took it. Dustin got up as well and he patted the other young man on the back. "Just try to stay calm. Nobody's going to let anything go wrong."

* * *

Dustin and Savanna watched as their friend joined his parents in the linking room and prepared to climb into his capsule. Joyce assured him that they would be "going in" with him and they would be there in their avatar bodies when he awoke in his. He looked at his watching friends through the window and Dustin gave him an encouraging smile and a "thumbs-up" sign. Andrew steeled himself and hopped into the open capsule. With Allen's direction, he lay down in the gel mold and did his best to relax as his mother set the device up and closed the lid.

"Okay, now we can go to the recovery observation room and wait for him to wake up," Dustin said to Savanna.

They walked down the short corridor and joined Max and the other supervisors in the observation room. Dustin and Savanna greeted Max before standing at the window to see what was going on in the other room. Behind the glass pane, a newly matured avatar lay on a gurney in a hospital gown. Dustin marveled at how much the avatar resembled his friend. It had the same sculpted features that tended to draw female attention, but with Na'vi characteristics. It was a little odd to see Andy with a long, black braid instead of short blond hair. He was so used to avatar and Na'vi height that he hardly noticed the size difference.

Dustin half-expected the eyes to be blue like Andrew's when they opened, but they were amber like any other Na'vi eyes. Joyce and Allen came into the room and leaned over their son's avatar as the doctors checked his vitals. Andrew blinked and his pupils expanded and contracted for a moment.

Max came up beside his son to watch. "It's looking good so far. Your friend Andrew is the second operator to have an enhanced avatar since we learned how to duplicate the process."

"How many avatars have you made now, Dr. Patel?" Savanna asked, keeping her eyes on the recovery room.

"Four, so far," Max answered. "It's a complicated process and it takes a long time for an avatar to become functional. The first two were standard models, since we didn't have the process for the enhanced models perfected at the time."

Savanna shivered unconsciously in response to hearing the avatars referred to as "models". She knew that without a driver guiding them, they were empty shells. Still, her father nearly died when he arrived on Pandora because Max and the other scientists weren't aware that his consciousness was permanently bound to his avatar body.

"Dad, don't talk about them like that please," Dustin murmured, noticing Savanna's discomfort. "They aren't vacuum cleaners."

Max appeared slightly startled by his son's reprisal, but then he too noticed the expression on Savanna's face and he cleared his throat. "I certainly didn't mean to suggest...they are life forms, of a sort..."

"Making it worse," Dustin warned.

Savanna forced a smile at the flustered biologist. "It's okay, Dr. Patel. I understand and I know you don't think of my father or I that way."

Max wasn't adept at hiding his relief. "You're a very gracious young lady, Savanna."

She shrugged modestly and returned her attention to the room. Andrew was trying to sit up and his father was helping him, while his mother stayed out of the way and encouraged him with words.

* * *

"That's it, Andy. You're doing fine." Allen carefully guided the young avatar into a sitting position and he rubbed his back while his wife looked on in concern.

Andrew drew a slow, deep breath and one of the doctors dimmed the lights a little when she noticed him squinting against the brightness. Everything was blurry and it took a few moments for his eyes to focus properly. He grimaced and put a hand to his stomach.

"I feel sick."

Max's voice came through the intercom. "Just take it nice and easy, Andrew. It's going to take a little while for your mind to fully synch with your avatar. Just don't rush it and take deep breaths."

The doctors began asking him questions but he was too disoriented to answer this soon. "Dad," Andrew warned, interrupting the female doctor's question in mid-sentence, "I'm really going to be...I'm gonna puke!"

The female doctor hastily procured a barf pan just as Andrew lay down and rolled onto his side. Because his avatar was brand new, there was nothing in his stomach to throw up. Joyce winced and squeezed in enough to stroke her son's hair as he dry-heaved for a few moments. When the spell passed, the doctors gave him a chewable anti-nausea lozenge.

"Sorry," Andrew croaked. He looked up to see his friends watching from behind the observation window and his face burned with embarrassment.

"You don't need to apologize," Joyce soothed. "I got sick the first time I synched with my avatar too. You must have gotten that from me."

"Nausea is a common reaction to first-time linkers," Allen agreed. "Most of us don't wake up all chipper and ready to go, kid. It's probably going to take a few link sessions for you to start getting used to it."

Andrew groaned. "Now you tell me."

* * *

They put Andrew through some basic coordination tests and examinations before allowing his father to help him walk around a little. When Allen and Joyce were satisfied that he could walk on his own without blacking out or tripping, they guided Andrew out the door and into the exercise yard. They helped him over to a tree so that he could sit under it and Savanna came out with Dustin close at her heels.

"Visit with your friends for a while and get used to the basics," Joyce encouraged. "We'll give you a half hour before we bring you back in to power down the link, okay?"

Andrew nodded. "Okay Mom."

Joyce shared a smile with her husband and the two of them got up and left, leaving the kids to talk. Savanna and Dustin sat down adjacent to their friend and watched him silently, until he became uncomfortable.

"Look, I know the gown is dorky looking, but you don't have to stare."

Savanna laughed and patted him on the leg. "It's not that. It's just a little weird to see you in an avatar body."

"How do you feel?" Dustin asked, his voice coming out a little tinny due to the exopack he wore.

Andrew shrugged. "Better than I did when I first woke up, but I'm still feeling pretty weak and light-headed. Dad says I've got to try to eat something the next time I link. The avatar body goes into a hibernation state when its not being used but it's going to get malnourished if I don't feed it when I'm using it. At least I was able to drink some water without puking it right back up."

"Is it strange to be looking down at people from such a tall height all the sudden?" Savanna queried.

"You bet it is," agreed Andrew. "I was shocked by how tiny those doctors looked. Dustin, you're so small I could fit you in my pocket...if I was wearing something that had one."

"Hardy-har-har," grumbled Dustin. "Pick on the short guy again."

Andrew laughed softly. "You're not really short. You're about average. You just look a lot smaller right now."

"What about me?" Savanna asked with a smile.

He considered her for a second. "It's not so drastic with you, but you're somewhere between human and avatar-sized, so I guess that makes sense. You're not much shorter to me now than some girls are to me in my human body."

"If you think I look small, those girls are probably microscopic to you right now," Dustin snorted.

Andrew grinned. "I feel like a giant. Fee-fie-foe-fum."

The three of them laughed together, relaxing now that he'd safely made it through the first link synchronization.

* * *

At the Ikran village near the Eastern Sea, Karyu was forced to deal with a little trauma of her own. Her parents told her to go and find her twin when supper was ready and she was sure she knew just where to look. Lately, Kato spent a lot of time by himself in one of the seaside caves. There was a small pool of mineral water inside of it and he had begun bathing there alone more frequently. Karyu walked along the beach, watching the vivid colors of the sunset sidelong as she made her way to her brother's favorite new hideout.

She identified the correct cave and ducked into it. Her eyes didn't need to adjust much, due to the natural bio-luminescence of the lichen growing on the walls. She passed through the short tunnel and she smirked when she heard the slosh of water. Just as she thought, Kato was again indulging himself in a soak and likely pruning up in the process. She could see his head and shoulders sticking out of the water as she approached the pool quietly. His back was turned to her and he didn't seem to notice her approach. His head was tilted back and he sighed.

Karyu rolled her eyes. Her brother seemed to get lazier every day. How he managed to bag his first kill before she did still blew her mind. She parted her lips to order him to quit pickling himself and come to supper, but something in his mannerisms gave her pause. His right arm was moving in a funny way and his shoulders were strangely tense. He was breathing heavily and squirming in the pool.

Her first thought was that he was ill or hurt and she started to take a step towards him, but then he groaned breathlessly and Karyu froze. Her ears perked for a moment before flattening in confusion. Kato moaned softly and his odd movements became more erratic. Much to her horror, Karyu began to understand what was going on. She'd heard her parents and other mated adults moan like that when they joined one another for privacy in their tents. She and Kato had been taught the facts of life as soon as the baby fat was gone from their bodies and adult development kicked in. One such fact was that it wasn't uncommon for young Na'vi to explore their own bodies and find relief from certain kinds of tension through such exploration.

With full realization of what her brother was doing came a sort of panic. Karyu intended to turn around and get out of there as fast as she could, but her mouth blurted out a rather stupid question before she could control it.

"_KATO...WHAT ARE YOU DOING?_"

Kato's startled yell was almost girlishly shrill. He whirled around in the pool to face her and he lost his balance. He went under for a moment and then he came back up, coughing and sputtering. "I wasn't doing _anything_," he lied. The pattern of sensory spots on his face was lit up like stars and his eyes were wide and guilty-looking.

Karyu borrowed a popular human slang that would have had her father threatening to rinse her mouth out with soap, had he heard it. "Bullshit. I _know_ what you were doing."

He stammered before heaving a sigh and averting his gaze. "You don't know what its like. I just needed some relief and this is the most private place I can go to—"

"La-la-la!" Karyu interrupted, covering her ears. "I don't need to hear the details. I wish I could go back in time and not come in here to see...that!"

"But you couldn't have 'seen' anything," he reasoned, his features darkening with a blush. "You were behind me and I was submerged to the shoulders!"

"That doesn't matter," she griped, "it was obvious what you were doing! Now calm yourself down and come on. Supper is ready."

She didn't wait to see if he complied. She was mightily embarrassed herself for walking in on him in the middle of...that. Karyu turned on her heel and barely remembered to duck in time as she reached the mouth of the tunnel. She exited the cave hurriedly but once she was outside, she waited for her brother to be sure he didn't drown himself in humiliation.

* * *

"There you are," Tom greeted as the twins approached the family tent. "I was about to start looking for you both. What took you so long?"

Both of them were silent and they cast an uncomfortable glance at each other. Tom noticed that they were blushing and he frowned, regarding them with concern. "Is something wrong?" He took a bite of roasted fish and began chewing it.

"No, Kato was just busy mating with himself," Karyu blurted candidly.

Tom abruptly spit out his mouthful of food to avoid choking. Tanhi was just about to take a bite of _teylu_ and she stopped, staring at the twins with the morsel halfway to her mouth.

Kato stared at his sister with his mouth hanging open and a mortified expression on his face. "I was not and for Eywa's sake, would you shut up?"

Tanhi quickly diffused the situation before the twin's argument could grow in volume. "Go and get your supper. This discussion can wait for another time."

The twins detected the warning note in her voice and they lapsed into silence and walked away to comply with her order. As they moved away toward the cooking hut, Kato's remark to his sister floated back on the wind to his parents. "Some day _you'll_ be in this situation and when that happens, I'm going to point and laugh."

Tanhi watched them go and her mouth curved into a quiet little half-smile. "My Tom, you should speak with Kato after dinner. He needs his father's guidance, I think."

Tom was struggling to hold back laughter, having just gotten over his initial shock at Karyu's announcement. "It sounds to me like he's got everything well in hand." He burst into laughter at that point, sent over the edge by his own pun. A smack on the back of the head sobered him quickly and he looked at his mate with an offended air.

"You know in some cultures, that would be considered spousal abuse."

Tanhi frowned. "I do not know what that means."

"It means hitting your mate isn't right," Tom supplied, but he was still smiling.

"My mate is being insensitive to his son's difficulties," she excused. "Our Kato has the needs of a man now. True, he will not be granted the privilege of being called one until he completes _Iknimaya_, but his body is mature. You should remind him that there is no shame in that, my Tom. I would only embarrass the boy more if I speak to him about it."

Tom sighed and took another bite of food. "All right, I'll take him into my trailer for a talk after we eat. You're lucky you won't have to worry about giving Karyu this reminder for years."

"For which, I am thankful," agreed Tanhi with a smirk. "Though she may begin having urges sooner than we wish. The clan has plenty of room for more offspring."

"I'd rather not think about our children having children, right now," Tom grumbled.

"If they respect tradition, that will not happen until after they are initiated as adults," Tanhi assured him.

"That could be a rather big 'if', where the twins are concerned," Tom replied, not entirely joking. "Karyu is especially rebellious."

"I believe they will have enough sense to wait," Tanhi said with confidence.

Tom only hoped she was right. While he was looking forward to becoming a granddad someday, he wanted his kids to enjoy their youth for a while before they started families of their own.

* * *

"You don't have to tell me what you want to talk about," Kato said in a low, miserable tone as Tom shut the trailer door and turned on the lights. "I thought it was safe to...take care of things without anyone walking in on me. I'm practically the only one in the clan that ever goes to that cave and Karyu usually says something when she comes in there looking for me."

Tom felt a rush of pity for his son, remembering what it was like to be at the mercy of teen hormones. "Have a seat." He gestured to one of the chairs by the data desk.

Kato obediently sat down in the chair and Tom rolled the other one away from the desk and took a seat across from him. He watched his son for a moment before speaking. "Kato, your mother and I explained to you that it's natural. Most everyone does it sooner or later, regardless of gender or race. You don't need to feel ashamed."

"But does everyone get walked in on by their sister?" Kato grumbled.

Tom hid a smile behind his hand. "Some do. Some of us get walked in on by our brothers too, and we get teased...and teased...and teased...even though we know damned well they do it just as much—"

"Dad," Kato cut in, grimacing.

Tom shook himself out of his own recollections of humiliation. "Sorry. Listen, there's nothing wrong with seeking some relief and finding out what feels good. It may not be as necessary for Na'vi as it is for humans, since they have the advantage of _tsahaylu_, but you may find yourself experimenting with girls long before you're mated to one. Applying what you've learned could be useful in that situation."

"Whatever," Kato sighed, averting his eyes. "So you're encouraging me to make out with girls?"

"No," Tom hastily revised, "but I know how hormones can cripple common sense. If it were up to your mother and I, you and your sister would both wait until after your initiation to even kiss someone. That isn't practical, though. Being curious about females comes with the territory and I'm not going to trick myself into thinking you'll keep your hands and lips completely to yourself until you settle down with a mate. I can only hope you'll practice restraint until then."

"I can't wait to be mated," Kato said vehemently.

Tom raised his eyebrows. "Don't you think you're a little eager to bind yourself to someone for life?"

"Why shouldn't I be? Once I have a mate, I won't have to deal with this frustration all the time."

Tom frowned. "Son, that isn't necessarily true. Being mated doesn't mean you'll have a free pass for sex whenever you want it."

Kato looked disappointed. "Then why do people bother?"

Tom chuckled softly and scratched his chin, considering his next words carefully. Obviously, the talks that he and Tanhi had with the twins didn't sufficiently cover the realities of communication between partners.

"Women are not always going to want sex," he explained, "and believe it or not, you won't always feel like having it either."

Kato snorted doubtfully. "Right."

"It's true," Tom insisted. "Right now, you're at your peak. Once you start experiencing it, you're going to learn that there's more to intimacy than intercourse. There are lots of things other than mating that you can share with your partner and _tsahaylu_ is just one example. Sometimes you might just want to touch one another and kiss. Other times, just laying there with her in your arms is enough. If you expect your partner to automatically accommodate your needs without considering her own, you'll make a very poor mate for someone."

"I didn't say I wouldn't think of her needs," Kato objected, flushing.

"But if you expect her to want to mate with you whenever the mood strikes you, that's what it amounts to. Relationships are about compromise and only selfish brutes expect their women to roll over and give in whenever the mood strikes them. In return, your mate should also respect your boundaries and avoid pushing you when she's in the mood and you aren't. That's how it should ideally work, though even the most cooperative couples have their disagreements now and then."

"Now I'm not so sure I want to get mated," Kato sighed.

Tom regarded him patiently. "Do you want a family some day? It's okay to say 'no', by the way. Not everyone is interested in having offspring and you should never let me, your mother or anyone else pressure you into a lifestyle you don't want."

Kato relaxed. "I appreciate that. You don't have to worry though; I do want a family some day, when I'm older."

Tom grinned and rolled his eyes heavenward. "Thank Eywa. I was hoping you felt that way but sometimes, you and your sister aren't that easy to read."

Kato smiled. "You really want to be a grandparent, eh?"

"Someday," Tom agreed. "Not too soon but it's a relief to hear you're not opposed to starting a family of your own."

"First I have to become a man and find a woman who'll put up with me," Kato said bluntly.

Tom nodded, smirking with amusement. "I'll bet you can think of one or two girls you wouldn't mind sharing your life with, even if it doesn't mean instant gratification every time you're in the mood."

Kato looked away uncomfortably. "I won't say there aren't a few I haven't considered."

Tom chuckled. "I won't press you for names, though I think I can guess who at least one of them might be. Consider yourself fortunate, Kato. You've got the luxury of choosing permanent bachelorhood if you want. Your sister is going to be under more pressure to take a mate and have children."

Kato grimaced. "Because she's going to be the next _Olo'eyktan_?"

"That's right." Tom patted his son's shoulder. "She'll be expected to provide the clan with new blood, according to tradition. Now, that isn't to say she'll be blamed if she can't have children but she's expected to try. If not, she'll have to choose someone within the clan to be her successor in lieu of her own daughter."

"That isn't fair," Kato complained. "What if she just doesn't want kids or a mate? What if she never feels the drive to have them?"

"Life is seldom fair," Tom advised, "but we adjust to it and make the best of it. Sooner or later, your sister is going to have a woman's needs. It could be tomorrow or it could be years from now, but it's going to happen. Whether those needs include maternal urgings to have children can't be predicted, but she has a duty to her people to secure a chieftess' legacy, regardless of how she does it."

Kato raised and then lowered his brows. "I'm glad I wasn't born first...or a female."

Tom thought back to the day of the twin's birth and he remembered how close he came to losing both Kato and Tanhi. "I'm just glad you were born."

* * *

Back at Hell's Gate, Andrew was slowly but steadily adjusting to his avatar body. Each day his parents allowed a bit more linking time, easing him into it with care. Dustin helped him with his homework; which was suffering a bit due to his added responsibilities. Savanna brought his assignments to his home on the occasional days when his linking practice left him suffering with a headache or nausea. After a couple of weeks, Andrew finally stopped having adverse effects from using his avatar. The worst he suffered was fatigue when he spent too much time linking without enough rest.

One day in the dark hours of the morning, Savanna was rudely awoken from dreams she would never dare confess out loud. Her bedroom door slid open and her mother's voice startled her out of her sleeping fantasies.

"Come on honey, get up," Katherine said urgently. She flipped the light switch before Savanna could gather her bearings and the teenager protested, stuffing her pillow over her head.

"What time is it?" Savanna asked groggily.

"It's four twenty-three," answered the botanist. "Get changed, Savanna. We've got to pack a bag for you and get you on a flight out of the colony."

Savanna sat up, her sleepy state rapidly dissolving into alarm. "What's the matter?" She dragged unkempt locks of chestnut hair out of her eyes and regarded her mother with worry as Katherine opened her closet and began selecting clothes.

"Everything is going to be fine," Katherine said calmly, despite her apparent haste. "We're sending you to the Omaticaya village to stay with your friends there for a few days."

Savanna could only think of one reason for such an impromptu trip. "Are the people from the UN colony coming?" She swung her legs over the side of her high bed and straightened her t-shirt as she stood up.

Katherine paused in the act of getting Savanna's duffle bag down from the overhead closet shelf. "Yes. You know your father and I don't want their science and research department finding out about you; not until we can be sure they won't try anything."

Savanna quickly went to her dresser and started selecting clean undergarments and socks to wear. "Where is Father?"

"He's in the base sector at the air hangars, arranging your flight. Please hurry, we want to get you out of here long before the UN visitors arrive."

Savanna had no objections to that. She didn't want those people seeing her anymore than her parents wanted them to. "Mother, can I go to the Ikran village this time, instead?" She cast a hopeful look down at her mother as Katherine came up beside her to help gather undergarments for packing.

Katherine looked up at her and she sighed, her lovely features gentle. "Not this time, Savanna. It's just too far away at such short notice. Maybe next year we can arrange something, preferably on a set schedule."

Savanna sighed with frustration. "I'm sixteen years old now. You keep promising I can travel to the Eastern Sea to visit but you put it off every year! I'll _never_ get to see Kato and Karyu's village at this rate."

Katherine tucked some panties, bras and socks into the duffle bag before taking both of Savanna's hands in hers and squeezing them. She looked up into her daughter's eyes with a stern yet loving expression. "Please, don't argue with me about this. We're trying to ensure your protection and the man we trust the most to do that is Jake Sully. I know how close you are to the twins and I understand your frustration, but now isn't the time to discuss leisure vacations."

Savanna heaved another sigh. "Dr. Sully and Tanhi can protect me just as well as they can."

"The Omaticaya are closer," Katherine insisted briskly. "At such short notice, this is our best option. You have to understand, Savanna. You're a very special young woman and according to everything we thought we knew about human and Na'vi biology, you shouldn't be here. Do you really want to risk being taken away and experimented on?"

Savanna lowered her gaze and shook her head. "No."

She loved her friends at Hometree but she never got to see the twins often enough. She understood her parents' reasoning and concern, though. "Mother, will you _swear_ to me that you'll let me stay with the Ikran clan for a few weeks, next year?"

Katherine smiled at her and reached up to stroke her hair. "I swear. Here, hold out your pinky and we'll make it official."

Savanna hesitantly returned her smile and complied. Her mother's pinky hooked around her longer one and the deal was made. "Be sure you make Father swear too."

"I will. Now help me finish packing your things. We're on a tight schedule."

* * *

Jake and Neytiri were happy to take in Savanna while the UN representatives conducted their business with Hell's Gate. They greeted the unusual family on the outskirts of the village when the aircraft touched down and Norm, Tsu'tey, Ralu and Sylwanin were with them. Tsu'tey was quick to offer to take Savanna's bag and put it in the guest alcove they had prepared for her. He hugged her and greeted her parents politely before taking off with her luggage. Tommy and Grace were still out hunting with Ni'nat and a couple of other learning warriors, so they unfortunately weren't there to greet them.

"Thank you again, Corporal Sully," Sebastian said with a smile at the clan leader when he and Neytiri walked over. "_Tsahik_, your clan is very generous."

Jake gave him an exasperated look. "How many times do I have to tell you to just call me 'Jake'? After all these years, there's no reason why we shouldn't be on a first name basis."

"And you do not need to thank us each time we watch over Savanna," Neytiri added with one of those smiles that lit up her eyes. "She has always been a very helpful and polite guest. We enjoy her company."

"Can we braid your hair later, Savanna?" Sylwanin asked. Beside her, Ralu nodded in agreement.

Savanna smiled bashfully, unused to so much positive attention at once. "Sure. Just as soon as I get settled in."

"All right girls," Norm said gently, "let our guest say goodbye to her parents."

"Go and help prepare dinner," Neytiri advised them.

The girls lingered long enough to say goodbye to Katherine and Sebastian before they took off. Katherine watched them with adoring eyes and she smiled at the three Na'vi adults. "They're both darlings."

Jake shook his head. "You only ever see their best sides. I promise, Sylwanin has a stubborn streak in her to rival her mother's and Ralu thinks she can move mountains."

Sebastian looked at his daughter, smiling with understanding. "That sort of determination will only assure success in life."

"Yes, with Eywa's blessing," Neytiri agreed. She turned to Savanna. "Tonight, relax and rest. We will refuse any help you offer with chores."

Savanna shuffled her feet and smiled. "Yes Ma'am. Thank you."

"We'll let you see each other off," Jake said tactfully, putting an arm around his mate's shoulders. "Supper should be ready in an hour, Sav. Just make yourself at home."

She nodded and gave a smile to him as he turned to leave with Norm and Neytiri. As they walked away, she turned back to her parents. It was a shame that the exopack was in the way of giving her mother a kiss but she hugged her close to make up for it.

Katherine returned the embrace before pulling back to look into her eyes. "We'll send word when it's safe to come and get you. Just try to enjoy yourself, while you're here."

"I will, Mama," Savanna promised.

Sebastian embraced her next and he planted a kiss on her cheek. "You're doing a fabulous job growing up. I don't know what we did to deserve such a child, but please do continue as you have, darling."

Savanna giggled softly. "You can be really dramatic, Papa. Don't worry; I'll be fine here."

He smiled. "I'm sure you will be." The pilot started the engine again and he was motioning at the couple and pointing at his watch. Sebastian waved at him and sighed. "Well, I suppose we should be getting back. We'll see you in a couple of days."

* * *

Later that night, Savanna went swimming with Grace after the younger children were put to bed. They splashed and frolicked in the lake for a while before settling down to tread in the center of the body of water. Grace chose that moment to make a confession to her friend.

"I saw Tommy naked."

Savanna briefly forgot to tread and she almost sank below the water. She quickly resumed before her head could submerge and she stared at her friend. "You two have...did you guys _do it_?"

"No!" Gracie shook her head, scattering water droplets. "I just looked." She gave the other girl a sheepish look. "He didn't know I was there."

"You spied on him?"

When Gracie nodded, Savanna questioned her further. "What was he doing?"

"He was bathing after a hunt," explained Grace. "I didn't mean to do it. I was planning to have a bath with my sister, but he was already here. I was going to go back to the village with Ralu but I was...um...curious."

Savanna grinned. "It isn't like the clothes you guys wear covers much, so you've practically seen it all, anyway."

"But there's one part I've never seen," Grace admitted with a blushing smile.

Savanna nodded sagely. "I understand. So, what did you think?"

"It was neat looking...kind of cute. To be honest though, I thought it would be bigger."

Savanna blurted a laugh and she quickly covered her mouth with her hand. When she regained control of herself, she shared what she knew about Na'vi endowments. "Was it poking out or just hanging there?"

Gracie's mouth fell open. "That's...what difference does _that_ make?"

"Because they aren't the same size erect as they are when they're soft," Savanna answered in a matter-of-fact, clinical tone she must have learned from Katherine and the other scientists on base. "My mother told me a lot about male anatomy and Na'vi guys are a little different from human guys. Some humans are the same size down there whether they're erect or not but Na'vi men get a lot bigger when they're excited. It has to do with the way they evolved and how they live. If it stayed at full size all the time, it wouldn't fit in those loincloths very well. It could also get caught on something, you know?"

Gracie unwittingly imagined Tommy's penis getting "caught on something" and she shuddered to think of how painful that would be for him. "Your mother told you all of this?" She could hardly believe how casual her friend was being about it—especially since a smile from Kato was all it took to make Savanna blush and turn giddy.

Savanna shrugged. "Not right away. When we first talked about reproduction, she only explained the function of male and female parts and how pregnancy happens. When I started drawing nude subjects I wanted to know more about how men's bodies worked, so I asked her. She sat down with me and explained everything. Didn't your mother teach you any of this?"

Grace looked away, feeling horribly ignorant. Savanna was two years younger than her, but she knew so much more about boys and life in general. "My father had 'the talk' with me when I started to develop."

"Well, he's a scientist," reasoned Savanna, "so he should have told you at least some of this stuff. Were you paying attention or were you too embarrassed? I think I would have been embarrassed if my Papa tried to explain it all to me instead of my Mama."

Grace blushed harder and shook her head. "_Sempul_ might be a scientist, but I don't think he wants me to know these kind of details until he's dead and gone."

Savanna snorted. "Oh, come on. I think you're exaggerating. What did he tell you about reproduction, if he didn't explain the male body?"

Gracie pursed her lips, annoyed with her father now that she knew how much he had kept from her. She summarized her father's rather evasive explanation of sex and reproduction. "He said that when a man and a woman become mates, they lay down together and join their queues. They hold each other close, rub their bodies against each other and if Eywa wills it, the man's seed fertilizes the woman's egg and a baby starts growing in her womb, to be born nine months later."

Savanna stared at her expectantly. When Grace said no more, the hybrid girl raised an eyebrow and scratched her shoulder. "That's all? He didn't say _how_ the man's seed fertilizes the woman's egg?"

Grace shook her head. "No. I always thought they came out on their own and joined together before going back into the woman to make the baby."

It was Savanna's turn to drop her jaw. "Oh no...Grace...that isn't how it happens at all!"

"Then how does it happen?" Grace demanded, "Because I'm really getting frustrated by all these new feelings that I don't know what to do with! I'm tense all the time, like something inside down _there_ is all clenched up and I don't know how to fix it. Most of the other women in my situation are older than I am and they are already mated to someone. The girls my age around here don't understand when I try to talk to them about it."

Savanna swam closer to her and gave her a sympathetic look. "Oh boy...and I thought _I_ had problems. Do you want me to tell you what I've learned about it?"

Gracie nodded and her anxiety faded into relief. "Please. If I end up stalking Tommy again I'll never be able to look him in the eye without wearing a sack over my head."

Savanna giggled. "You stalked him? Like you'd stalk prey?"

Grace's expression was miserable. "Not on purpose. At least now I know why I did it though. Sa'nok told me it's a normal female urge to have when a woman's body is telling her she's coming of age. Have you ever wanted to pounce on a boy, Sav?"

"Er...no. Not at all."

The uncomfortable expression on Savanna's face suggested she was fibbing. Grace felt a little better knowing that her friend's greater knowledge didn't prevent her from having the same awkward feelings she was suffering.

"So, tell me everything you know," urged Grace, eager to understand more about the subject.

* * *

The next morning, Norm couldn't shake the feeling that his older daughter was angry with him for some reason. She greeted her mother and sister when she climbed out of her hammock to start the day, but she practically ignored him. When he tried to offer cooking advice at breakfast, she gave him a sour look and asked him if he was sure she wasn't too stupid to understand the instructions.

As the day wore on and Grace's attitude only worsened, Norm approached Ni'nat and asked her if he'd done something to anger their daughter without realizing it.

"You have done nothing wrong that I know of," answered Ni'nat with a curious look. "Though she does seem very hostile toward you, today."

"I don't know why she's so mad at me," Norm complained. "She was fine yesterday!"

"Then you should speak with her," suggested Ni'nat. "You will not discover the reason if you don't ask."

"I get the feeling she doesn't want to talk to me at all," Norm sighed with an unhappy frown.

"She probably fears she will disrespect you and get into trouble, if she tells you why she is angry."

Norm considered this and then he kissed her on the cheek. "You're a genius."

* * *

"Grace, I need to speak with you alone for a minute."

Grace looked up from the painting she was working on with Savanna and she scowled at her father. "Why?"

Norm felt distinctly guilty, though he still had no clue what he had done wrong. "It's between you and I. Its only going to take a few minutes, okay? Let's go to the creek for some privacy."

"Fine," Grace huffed. She washed her hands off in a nearby bowl of water and stood up. Savanna kept her eyes carefully fixated on the painting as her friend stormed off, leaving Norm standing there looking foolish.

"Savanna, do you know why she's so mad at me?"

Savanna looked up at him and bit her lip. "I think so Dr. Spellman, but I don't really want to be in the middle of it."

He sighed. "Fair enough. I won't keep her away for long."

"Take your time," Savanna said softly.

Maybe it was his imagination, but she looked a little guilty. Norm wondered if Gracie's unexpected anger was a product of something she'd discussed with Savanna but for the life of him, he couldn't imagine what they could have talked about to make her so mad at him. He hurried to catch up with his daughter and when they made it to the stream, he searched Gracie's face for clues.

"Let's just get straight to the point," Norm said after a moment when the teenager refused to look at him. "I want this to be an open discussion, so you can say whatever you want and you won't get in trouble, okay?"

Grace shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest. She stared at the flow of water passing by her feet.

"What did I do to make you angry, Grace? Talk to me. If I don't know what I did wrong, I can't fix it."

She looked up at him and took a couple of deep breaths, gathering her thoughts. Finally, she gave him a morsel of input. "You lied to me."

Norm was taken aback and he furrowed his brows. "Lied to you? When? How? Gracie, I've never told you a single lie in your whole life!"

"But you didn't tell me the truth, either," she shot back.

"I don't understand. What do you think I kept from you, sweetheart?"

"The _truth_!" she yelled the word, hurling it at him like a weapon. "Last night, Savanna told me how sex really happens—not your watered-down version of it."

Norm ogled her. "Savanna? Little Savanna has been having sex?"

"No, Dummy! But her parents told her everything about it, so that when she does have sex she'll know what to expect!"

"Grace, I—"

"Don't," she interrupted, her eyes flashing. "Do you know how much I trust you, _Sempu_? How much I look up to you? It never even crossed my mind to ask anyone else about this, until Savanna acted so shocked when I shared your version of it with her! If it weren't for her, I would go through life thinking all there was to mating was kissing, bumping and cuddling!"

Norm felt like a vice was squeezing his heart. Well, he'd encouraged her to speak her mind, so he couldn't be offended now. "I probably deserved all of that," he admitted softly, contritely. "Grace, I told everyone I thought it would be easier to raise daughters, but the truth is; it's not."

"I don't care how hard you think it is," she insisted with a withering glare. "Did you want me to be traumatized when I mate for the first time?"

"No, of course not," he answered earnestly. "I just..."

"Then why didn't you tell me the truth? Why didn't you tell me it might hurt the first time? Why didn't you tell me my mate would have to put his penis inside of me?"

Norm was blushing furiously by now, suffering a bit of trauma from hearing his beloved daughter talk so openly about the mechanics of sex. "Will you _please_ let me explain, Gracie?"

She went still. "You can try."

He took the opportunity while he could. "I _wanted_ to tell you everything. I really did. I made a promise to your mother that if she let me explain the facts of life to you, I'd make sure you would never face any startling surprises. I was so certain I could do it but when you looked at me with those innocent eyes, I chickened out. I felt like I would be telling you too much, too fast—so I explained the basics and I left the other details out. I planned to tell you when you were older but I just kept putting it off. Maybe a part of me was hoping someone else would tell you the rest and now that it's happened, I wish I could go back in time and change the way I handled it."

"If you couldn't cope with it, you should have said so to Mother and let _her_ explain it to me," Grace said after a moment of silence. "_Look at me_! I'm not a little girl anymore, Dad!"

Norm tried his best to keep his voice calm and soothing, the way Tom Sully always managed to do when someone else went into hysterics. "I know you aren't a child anymore."

"Do you? Then you won't mind hearing that I've been having fantasies about boys."

Norm blinked and his mouth went slack. "Grace, no mentally healthy man alive wants to hear that from his daughter."

"Too bad," Grace huffed, "because it's reality. You're always telling me my sexuality belongs to me, but I don't think you mean that anymore because all you've ever done is try to hide it from me."

He lost his composure. "I was trying to protect you! You know what, you can be as mad at me as you want. Here's one reality I think you should know, Grace: You and your sister are _always_ going to be my little girls, even when you're both raising families of your own and I'm old and feeble. I _dare_ you to find any other parent that doesn't feel exactly the same way about their children. Talk to Mo'at the next time you see her, if you don't believe me. Neytiri is still her _child_, even though she's a mother, an adult and the _Tsahik_ of this clan. If you don't like it, tough shit!"

It was Grace's turn to stare, wide-eyed. Norm decided he'd had enough of the conversation—not because he was angry or disappointed with his daughter but because he felt like he was dangerously close to crying. He had failed his mate by promising something he couldn't deliver and he had failed his daughter by neglecting to prepare her for womanhood. He turned around and walked away, not trusting himself to speak any further.

* * *

Grace stood there long after her father was gone from sight. Her emotions were in turmoil and it was on the tip of her tongue to call out to him and beg him not to be mad at her. She compressed her lips and stubbornly remained where she was. _He_ was the one in the wrong, even if he was the parent and she was supposed to respect him. Her vision blurred with tears and she sniffed. She loved both of her parents dearly but her father had always been such a role model for her and his protectiveness wasn't always unwelcome. She had seen the hurt in his expression plainly and it made her heart ache.

"Gracie?"

She was so absorbed in her thoughts she hadn't heard anyone approach. She yelped and turned around to see Tommy approaching from deeper in the forest. "You scared me," breathed.

"I can see that," he answered dryly. His hair was damp and a few droplets of water clung to his skin, suggesting that he was just returning to the village after a morning bath. "What's the matter?

Realizing that her eyes were still tearing up, she hastily rubbed at them and shook her head. "You wouldn't understand."

He cocked his head in a Jake-like manner. "Not if you don't tell me. Come on, who made you cry? I'll beat them up for you."

She managed a shaken little laugh. "You would have to beat up my father, then. Me too, probably."

"Huh?" He scratched his head and looked at her with a perplexed expression.

Grace sighed and looked him up and down through lowered lashes. "What did your parents tell you about mating?"

Tommy's eyebrows flew up. "Mating? Why?"

"My Dad told me that women get pregnant by holding their mates close and rubbing against them."

He looked even more surprised. He blew a low whistle. "Wow...really? That's all he told you?"

She nodded. "Basically. See? _You_ know more about it. _Everyone_ our age does, except for me up until last night! We just had an argument because I found out it wasn't true. I'm so _mad_ at him!"

Tommy shuffled his feet and adjusted the weapon harness on his torso. "Well, you're not exactly 'everyone', Grace. I'm sure your Dad was waiting longer to tell you because...because...well, _look_ at you." He made a sweeping, up and down gesture at her to accentuate his point.

Her first reaction was to be annoyed, because Tommy seemed more sympathetic to her father than to her. She considered him thoughtfully and remembered watching him in the lake. Thoughts of that led to thoughts of the conversation she'd had with Savanna concerning male Na'vi anatomy. Curiosity combined with rebellious frustration drove her next actions.

"I've seen you naked."

Tommy's face froze. "You have? Um...when?"

"Weeks ago," she answered. "You were bathing after a hunt. I hid in the bushes and watched."

"You did?" He stared at her warily.

"I wanted to see you," she explained, taking a step closer.

Tommy took an uncertain step back, unused to being approached by her this way. "You see me every day."

"I wanted to see _all_ of you," she said. With a little shock, she realized she had purred after speaking the sentence. The tension was returning to her pelvic area and the desire to pounce on him returned full-force.

"Uh...okay," Tommy replied, swallowing.

Grace smiled. Usually, he was so confident and persuasive. Tommy always flirted with her, no matter how often she told him she wasn't interested in romance yet. Now she had the upper hand and it made her feel powerful.

* * *

Norm got halfway back to the village before he stopped and rubbed his eyes. "I can't leave it like that," he sighed.

The blame for the entire argument was on his shoulders. Savanna didn't do anything wrong by telling Gracie the truth when he couldn't. The thought of this anger remaining between himself and his beloved daughter ate at him like a cancer and he simply couldn't bear it. Determined to patch things up and put all of this behind them, Norm turned around to go back and apologize to Grace.

* * *

"You say people look at me differently," Grace murmured to the flustered nineteen-year old standing before her. "Maybe you should have a _better_ look."

She shook her long tresses back and began to unlace the beaded halter-tunic concealing her breasts.

Tommy's eyes followed the motions of her fingers and he swallowed again. "Grace, what are you _doing_?"

"I've seen you," she answered. Her fingers trembled the slightest bit but she didn't pause. She looked up at him when the laces came undone and she pulled the garment off, dropping it to the ground. "It's only fair that you see me too."

His lips parted but no sound escaped from his throat. He looked like he'd stopped breathing. His eyes fixated on her exposed breasts and Grace let her gaze drop to his loincloth—which was steadily pushing away from his body. Savanna's information about the change in that part of male anatomy was accurate. Not yet satisfied, Grace hooked her fingers under the straps of her loincloth and pushed it down over her hips. She kicked the scant piece of clothing away when it landed at her ankles and she straightened her shoulders. She pushed her embarrassment away and ignored the heat in her face.

"Do I look like a child, Tommy?"

His eyes flicked from her chest to her loins and he shook his head wordlessly. His loincloth was now poking out severely in the front and Grace wondered if the strings would snap soon. She forced herself not to stare directly at the spectacle. There was no doubt he was much bigger down there now than he had been when she first saw him naked.

"Take your loincloth off," she heard herself say.

~_Eywa, what am I doing?_~

Grace wasn't sure what she intended to do, beyond show Tommy her body and look at his in return. She was just tired of others trying to decide what she was ready for without consulting her.

Tommy stood in a frozen stupor.

It was probably for the best that he couldn't comprehend her command because at that moment, Norm Spellman walked through the bushes to see his daughter stripped naked before a very aroused young man.

Gracie wasn't aware that her father was standing behind her, with his jaw hanging wide open and his eyes bugging out. Tommy noticed him, though. He found his ability to speak again and his state of arousal began to diminish.

"Oh, _shit_."

* * *

-To be continued

**Children's (current) ages:**

Tommy: 19

Grace: 18

Andrew: 18

Kato and Karyu: 17

Tsu'tey: 17

Dustin: 16

Savanna: 16

Ralu: 11

Sylwanin: 10

**Translations:**

**_Sa'nok_** = Mother

**_Eyaye _**= a large native fernlike plant with iridescent blue leaves. Known to humans as a "Warbonnet fern" because of the Na'vi practice of using the leaves for headdresses, ceremonies and other adornments.

**_Tompa berries_** = A tart, wild berry that resembles a large blueberry and grows on climbing vines in tropical and temperate climates.

**_Iknimaya _**= The final and most dangerous rite of passage into adulthood. A young hunter must capture and bond with his or her first ikran before they are initiated as adults into the clan.

**_Tsahaylu_** = The neural bond established when a Na'vi links his or her queue to another lifeform. Between two Na'vi, this bond is highly erotic and it allows them to experience one another's feelings and thoughts.

**_Olo'eyktan_** = Clan leader; chieftain

**_Sempul_** = Father

**_Sempu_** = Daddy


	2. Chapter 2

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 2: Pressure

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Apologies for any grammar/spelling errors I missed. I was operating on only two hour's sleep when I proofread so there's bound to be some mistakes. I will correct those I failed to catch later, after some shut-eye. Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing!_**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

It took a few heartbeats for Norm to fully comprehend what he was seeing. Gracie's clothes lay crumpled on the forest floor and she stood facing her companion. Tommy was staring at her with a stunned expression on his face, as still as a statue except for the steady rise of his loincloth. It was like time was standing perfectly still—until Tommy noticed Norm's presence. The young man's expression went from lusty and enamored to horrified in two seconds flat.

"Oh, _shit_."

Norm agreed completely with his sentiments. "Oh shit" was right. The anthropologist's hands curled into fists without his conscious direction and for a flash of a moment, he saw red. Some rational part of his brain remained functional enough to remind him that this was _Tommy_ he wanted to hit. Tommy, whom he loved like his own. Tommy, whose parents had asked Norm to take care of, if anything should ever happen to them before he reached adulthood. Norm's impulsive rage faded enough for him to think clearly and act.

He crossed the distance to his daughter without saying a word and he grabbed her by the arm and spun her around. Grace gasped and stared up at him in surprise. Her face darkened with mortification immediately when she recognized him and she began to sputter an attempted explanation. Norm didn't wait for her to find her tongue. He bent over and grabbed her discarded garments, thrusting them at her before moving between her and Tommy to block her nudity from the boy's view.

"Get dressed," Norm said in a low, carefully controlled tone. "Right now."

Grace was either too surprised or too embarrassed to argue. She hastily pulled her loincloth up and slipped her beaded tunic on. Norm only spared the occasional glance at her to check on her progress and when she had the top laced back up, he took her by the arm and started directing her to the end of the stream. He looked over his shoulder at Tommy, halting Grace long enough to give the young man an order.

"Tommy, you stay right where you are until I come back."

Jake's son nodded wordlessly, probably too bewildered to say anything beyond his first startled exclamation.

Norm pulled his daughter along with him and when she stumbled, he supported her long enough for her to right herself before resuming his pace. "What's the matter with you," Norm muttered to the young woman. "You were angry with me so you decided to strip down and mate with the first guy you saw? What exactly do you think that would have proved?"

Grace halted and she yanked her arm out of his grasp with such abruptness that he couldn't keep hold of her. "Tommy isn't just 'some guy' and I _wasn't_ going to mate with him!"

"What I just saw tells me another story," Norm countered, glaring right back at her.

Gracie took a deep breath and practically shouted in response. "I wanted him to _see_ me!"

Norm furrowed his brows. "_Naked_? Why?"

She glared at him resentfully. "If we were on Earth, I'd be a legal adult by now and you wouldn't have a say over _who_ I take my clothes off for or _what_ we do together!"

"Well it's a damned good thing we're _not_ on Earth," Norm countered, raising his voice. "We are on Pandora and as long as you live here, you'll follow Pandora rules!"

Grace snarled and started to march away toward Hometree. Norm hastened to her side and sighed, feeling more tired than angry now. "Just explain to me why you couldn't wait. If Tommy's the one you want, he'll see all of you when you two pass your trials and become a mated pair. If he's _not_ the one you want, then you had to have done this just to be intransigent against me."

Grace looked at him sidelong. For a moment, he thought she wasn't going to answer him and he was prepared to give up. Then she spoke. "I saw him. I watched him bathing one day. I wanted him to see me, too."

Norm's jaw dropped again before he could control it. "You...you _peeped_ on him?"

"I was curious! And why are you so surprised, Father? I've caught boys doing it to girls all the time and that's why I take my baths at different times than everyone else."

Norm sputtered but he could think of nothing to say. It was true; the male teens in the village _did_ try to sneak a peek now and then when they knew women were bathing. He'd caught some of them doing it before. Somehow, he thought the girls were better than that—especially his Gracie.

"Well, you've given your last eye-full," he finally managed to say.

They were moving into the village now and he didn't want to continue arguing about it where other people could hear. He spotted Savanna where she was when he left her and he approached her, taking hold of Gracie's arm again to pull her along with him. Savanna looked up from her artwork as they approached and by the expression on her face, she knew her friend was in trouble.

"Savanna, do you happen to have an extra t-shirt?" Norm asked, keeping his tone gentle with her. "Hopefully a long one?"

Savanna nodded. "Yes Sir. I brought two with me to use as nighties."

"Would you mind loaning one to Gracie for a while?"

"_Sempul_, you're being ridiculous," Grace hissed.

"You be quiet," Norm warned her. "Savanna, would that be okay?" He knew that any bottoms the hybrid brought with her were likely too small or too short to fit his daughter, so a long t-shirt would have to do until he could bring some avatar clothing back from Hell's Gate.

"I...I don't mind," Savanna said uncomfortably, her hazel eyes flicking between Norm and Grace uncomfortably. "I don't really need the second one. I can just wash the first each day while I'm here."

"Thank you," Norm said. "Would it be okay if she borrowed the other one now?"

Savanna cleaned her hands off and got to her feet. "Of course. I can go and get it now."

"We'll come with."

Savanna looked at Grace again with a puzzled expression. "Okay."

Norm followed behind Savanna as she walked into the den. Grace grumbled under her breath, having no choice but to go with or be dragged. Savanna stopped before the hide-covered alcove that served as her bedroom and she pushed the concealment aside. Norm urged his daughter forward and motioned her to go in.

"Go ahead and put it on in there," Norm demanded.

Grace narrowed her eyes at him and followed her friend into the privacy of the alcove.

* * *

Savanna unzipped her duffle bag and glanced at Grace. She located her spare nightshirt and she held it out to her friend. Grace took it wordlessly and began to remove her tribal top. Savanna looked into the huntress' eyes and mouthed a question to her, aware that Dr. Spellman was standing at the other side of the hide covering.

"What happened?"

Grace's eyes began to glisten with tears and she shook her head. "I'll tell you later," she mouthed.

She sniffed and Savanna's heart went out to her. When Grace finished slipping the nightshirt on, Savanna reached out and took her hand, squeezing gently. "I'm sorry," she mouthed.

Grace sniffled again and wiped at her eyes with her free hand. "You didn't do anything," she whispered huskily.

Savanna disagreed, but arguing with the other girl would do no good right now. She coaxed Grace into a friendly embrace and she stroked her hair when the taller female began to cry softly.

* * *

Tommy didn't dare move. In fact, he didn't think he could if he wanted to. He was figuratively petrified. The only good thing about Norm's interruption was that it almost immediately cooled his libido and shrank his stuff back to a less obscene size. A hovering, blood-sucking insect landed on his arm and he couldn't even bring himself to slap it away. He hardly felt the sting of the bite. His senses were warring within him, turning into a cesspool of shame, confusion and longing.

He heard someone approaching and he tensed even further, searching the thick vegetation with wary eyes. When Norm pushed through the brush, Tommy didn't relax. He stood stock-still and watched his designated surrogate father approach. He had never truly respected how tall Norm Spellman was. The man was lanky, lacking the muscle definition of the Sully males, but Tommy distinctly remembered Jake's warning about how hard Norm could hit if he thought violence was justified.

Tommy certainly wasn't afraid to take a hit but he didn't want it to come from his "uncle". He tried to think of what to say as Norm came to a stop before him. All he could think of was the simple truth.

"I swear I didn't touch her."

Norm nodded. "I know, Tommy. I don't think you've even budged an inch since I came here. You really took me seriously, didn't you?"

"Uncle Norm, I know what it must have looked like," Tommy said, flushing. "I...I really don't know what to say."

Norm studied him shrewdly. "I can't read minds. I've got no way to know if you would have gone further than staring, if I hadn't shown up. I want to hear your side of what happened."

Tommy took a deep breath. "I'm not really _sure_. Grace was upset about an argument she said you two had. I tried to cheer her up and the next thing I knew, she took off her clothes and asked me if I thought she looked like a child."

Norm listened and stood silent for a moment afterwards. "Did she mention anything about watching you bathe?"

Tommy swore impulsively. "Yes. She said something about wanting me to 'see' her. Did she do this just to get back at you?" His throat ached. The thought of Gracie doing that just to make her father upset was humiliating, as well as heartbreaking.

Norm watched him for a moment and then his expression suddenly softened. "She didn't do it just to get to me. She did it for her own reasons too. You're a big part of that."

Tommy looked down at his feet. "You know I want her."

Norm took a deep breath and Tommy grimaced, expecting a blow. Instead, the older male exhaled and nodded. "You've wanted her since you were old enough to notice girls. You've also protected her since the two of you were barely out of diapers. I'll never forget the day you got into a fight with Emazu for pushing her down."

Tommy relaxed a little, smiling. "I'll never let anyone hurt her. That includes me." He raised his eyes and held Norm's gaze, putting all of his sincerity into the look.

Norm searched his eyes for a moment and nodded slowly. "If it were anyone else, I'd have a hard time trusting them. You're definitely your father's son, Tommy." He laid a hand over the younger man's shoulder. "You love my daughter, right?"

"I think you know the answer to that already," Tommy replied softly.

Norm took a steadying breath. "That's the only reason I was able to talk to you about this. I want you to promise me you'll keep it clean until the day you become a man and have the official right to take a mate."

Tommy nodded. "I promise. I may be a bonehead sometimes, but I'd never want to disrespect your family or disappoint my parents."

Norm nodded, his expression deadly serious. "That's what I was hoping to hear. It's only fair to warn you, Tommy. Even though I helped raise you and care for you, you aren't going to like what I'll do if you don't keep that promise. Are we clear?"

Tommy swallowed and nodded. He wasn't used to seeing Norm in this light. The man was usually so unassuming and non-threatening, but Jake was evidently correct about how quickly that could change if someone crossed him. "I understand, Uncle Norm."

* * *

Jake walked past Grace and he almost tripped over his own feet when he saw what she was wearing.

"What the _hell_?"

The girl looked completely miserable in a jersey-style, extra long t-shirt. It hung down to her mid-thigh and the disgusted expression on her face suggested she knew very well how out of place she looked. His first thought was that the fashion style was a result of a lost bet in a game of "truth or dare" she might have played with Savanna. When he saw the apologetic way Savanna looked at Grace when the two met up and started walking toward the mushroom grove, he revised his opinion.

"Oof!" Jake's breath exploded in an exclamation when a small body suddenly pounced on his back.

"I got you, _Sempu_!"

Recognizing his daughter's high-pitched voice, Jake laughed and he hastily caught up her legs to give her some "piggy-back" support. "Yeah, you 'got me' all right. Get that pouncing practice in early, cute stuff."

"I conquered the _Olo'eyktan_!" Sylwanin hooted, drawing attention from nearby villagers.

Jake smiled tolerantly as those within visual range laughed or smiled with amusement at his plight. "Yeah, you conquered me, all right. Where's your mother at?"

"Gathering fruits in the forest with Tsu'tey," answered the child. She fiddled with Jake's queue, smoothing some flyaway strands back into the long braid. "Savanna is going to paint my face, later."

"Won't that be fun," Jake said with a grin.

He squatted down and allowed his daughter to climb off of his back. He was just about to ask her if she wanted to go on a horseback ride when he caught sight of Norm and Tommy, coming back from the creek. There was something strained about the way the two of them interacted and Jake's ears flicked curiously as he watched them stop and speak to each other. They parted ways and Tommy stood there looking a little lost, as if he had no idea where to go or what to do next. Norm approached Hometree and when he spotted Jake, his footsteps quickened. The look on his face suggested he needed to talk about something, so Jake decided to usher his daughter away.

"Why don't you go play with those children over there for a little while," Jake suggested, pointing at the group of kids playing with toy ikrans made from plant fibers. The clever toys could glide when thrown correctly and the children were sailing them back and forth to each other through the air.

"Where is Ralu?" Sylwanin asked, looking around with disappointment.

"Probably somewhere with her mother," Jake answered. "If I see her, I'll tell her you're looking for her. Now go on and have some fun. I think your Uncle Norm and I have something to discuss."

"Okay, _Sempu_," agreed the little girl. She skipped away and Jake watched with a smile as she joined the others. At least Sylwanin was outgoing and made friends easily.

Norm came up to him wearing a grim expression. "I think we need to talk."

Jake glanced across the distance at his son again. Tommy finally seemed to make up his mind about what he wanted to do. He sat down beneath a tree and began sharpening his hunting knife. Puzzled by what he'd witnessed and Gracie's odd choice of attire, Jake looked at Norm and shrugged. "All right, spill it. What's going on around here, Norm?"

Norm urged him to walk to the other side of the village, toward the western border. When they had put sufficient distance between themselves and the people going about their daily business, he took a deep breath and explained what had happened by the creek. Jake wasn't as surprised to hear that Gracie stripped for his son as he thought he probably should be.

"Huh. Well, were they doing anything else? Did Tommy try anything with her?" As much as he appreciated what their kids were going through right now, he had a duty to set his son straight if he did anything to disrespect Grace.

"No. To his credit, Tommy only stood there," Norm admitted, "though he was probably too shocked to do much else. He hardly moved...well, most of him hardly moved."

Jake frowned. "What does _that_ mean; 'most of him'?"

Norm sighed. "A certain part was definitely active, if you get my meaning."

Jake shook his head but then it dawned on him what his friend must be referring to when Norm cleared his throat and glanced down at his own loincloth. "Ohhh. Listen, I'm not excusing Tommy for just standing there and letting her do it, but you can't blame him because his body reacted to seeing his sweetheart in her birthday suit. You know the kid's been crazy about your daughter since before he even hit puberty."

"I'm not blaming him," Norm assured. "That might have been my first knee-jerk reaction, but I know that if there's one guy her age that Gracie is safe with, it's Tommy. He's not the one at fault for this. Grace is the one that instigated it and I'm the one that drove her to it by trying to keep her from growing up."

He sighed heavily and combed his fingers through his hair. "I'm a terrible father."

Jake stared at him and snorted. "What a load. You're the best father I know, Norm. When you daughters were babies, they barely had a chance to whimper before you swooped in to take care of whatever they needed. I've never met anyone with parenting instincts like yours. I think your problem is you're not willing to admit that some things are better left to mothers. Maybe teaching about the birds and the bees is one of them, where daughters are concerned."

Norm smiled a little. "You're probably right. I can't be the best at everything. Ni'nat would have done a better job teaching Grace about the facts of life."

"Well, if you're worried about being left out, maybe you can do it together when it's Ralu's turn," Jake suggested.

"Are you going to sit down with Neytiri to tell Sylwanin about it?"

"Hell no," Jake answered with a grin. "I took care of the boys so Neytiri gets Sylwanin all to herself. I've got to admire your guts for trying to teach Grace yourself."

Norm grimaced uncomfortably. "I'm glad you feel that way, Jake. It might make the rest of what I've got to tell you a little easier."

Jake gave him a curious look. "Yeah? What is it?"

Norm sighed and looked in Tommy's direction. "Apparently, part of the reason Grace decided to undress for Tommy is because she spied on him bathing in the lake a few weeks ago."

Jake tried very hard to look shocked. "Really?"

Norm narrowed his eyes at him. "That was the most overly dramatic look of surprise I've ever seen on anyone's face. Cartoon characters don't put that much effort into it." Norm briefly smirked and then gave him a sharp-eyed stare. "Did you know something about this already?"

Jake rolled his eyes and sighed. "All right Norm. Yes, I knew about Gracie sneaking a look at Tommy. I caught her in the middle of it, to be honest with you. She tried to tell me she was looking for a hair bead she dropped, but she was wearing her hair loose that day and I figured it out."

Norm did not look pleased. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Jake suddenly laughed. "Are you kidding? Look at yourself. If you were anymore uptight, you'd have Gracie wearing a chastity belt. A few minutes before you and I had this talk, I saw her walking by in a t-shirt that went to mid-thigh. I'm willing to bet you had something to do with that."

Norm inhaled slowly. "Jake, when your daughter reaches Grace's age and strips down for a horny nineteen year old guy, you can make fun of me for trying to cover her up. Until then you just don't know what it's like."

Jake started to respond to that but he noticed the main subject of their conversation returning to the village from the mushroom grove. Ni'nat and Ralu were with her, as well as Savanna. The hybrid girl spoke to the group before hurrying away to the trunk, possibly to see what she could do to help prepare for lunch later on. Ni'nat spotted Jake and Norm. Her eyes stayed on her mate and Jake winced inwardly at the displeased expression on her fine-boned face.

"Uh, Norm...I think we're going to have to put off this conversation for later." Jake nodded in the direction of Norm's family and the anthropologist turned.

All three of the females were staring at him with expressions ranging from accusing to disappointed. Grace had her arms crossed over her chest, Ralu was shaking her head and giving her father a "for shame" look and Ni'nat just looked plain pissed off. It was almost surreal to see the normally patient, generous-hearted singer angry.

"I never knew Ni'nat was even capable of getting mad," Jake muttered. He cast a sympathetic look at his friend, who looked distinctly nervous. "It looks like you might be facing an elimination round, Dr. Spellman."

Norm took a deep breath. "Yeah. They don't look happy with me. All I wanted to do was protect my daughter. Why am _I_ the bad guy?"

Jake felt pity for the taller male. "You're outnumbered by angry girls. That's a bad situation for any guy to be in. Do you want some backup?"

Norm huffed and shook his head. "You'd just get caught in the crossfire. I appreciate the sentiment, though."

Jake patted him on the shoulder. "Good luck, man."

* * *

Norm felt like he was walking the footsteps of doom as he approached his small family. Thankfully, there were no other villagers close enough to the mushroom grove entrance to hear what was said. He stopped before the three females and prepared to have a family talk. Ni'nat demonstrated that even her patience had limits.

"I want to know why you have forced our daughter to wear these human clothes," Ni'nat said before Norm could open his mouth. She gestured at Gracie, who looked as though she couldn't decide whether to be embarrassed or insulted.

It was on the tip of his tongue to call his daughter a tattle-tale, but Norm remembered how he used to pit his parents against one another when one of them forbade him from doing something. He sighed and gathered his wits before responding. "It was an impulsive decision I made after I found her doing something with Tommy Sully that she shouldn't have been doing."

Ni'nat told Ralu to go and play with her friends. When the little girl left, she responded to Norm's explanation. "Grace told me what happened at the creek. Did you think you could change it by making her wear this garment, Norm?"

"No, of course not," he answered. "I just wanted her body covered up."

"I've been wearing Na'vi garb my whole life," Grace reminded sourly. "Everyone's already seen what you're trying to hide, Dad."

"She speaks the truth," Ni'nat said. She turned to Grace. "Even so, you will be respectful to your father. No matter how foolish he is behaving, he helped give you life. He fed you, protected you and taught you as you grew to womanhood and he loves you very much."

"He left out some things when he was 'teaching' me," Grace insisted stubbornly.

"So you have told me." Ni'nat said solemnly. "And he was wrong to keep such important lessons from you, but that is not a reason for you to be disrespectful to him."

Norm was confused by his mate's reprimand to their daughter, but grateful that she wasn't completely taking her side. Unfortunately, his mouth ran away with him and he made the mistake of applying human logic to his actions. "Grace, you tempt boys enough without even trying. You and your mother are exceptional beauties and you draw more attention than most other women. Undressing for Tommy probably tested every ounce of his self-control and who knows what might have happened between you two if I hadn't...come along..."

Norm trailed off, uncomfortable with the way both women were staring at him. Ni'nat looked gravely insulted. Grace just looked plain annoyed. "Look, I'm just trying to explain that males don't always have self-control when it comes to beautiful women. Maybe it's for the best that you wear human clothes until you're mated with Tommy or whomever you choose to pair with. I can go to Hell's Gate today and get some avatar clothes for you—"

"No," Ni'nat interrupted, shaking her head. There was an uncommon, dangerous flash of anger in her almond-shaped eyes. "You will _not_ humiliate our daughter further, Normspellman. She only wears the human garments when she plays ball with her friends. She is not willing to dress as a Dreamwalker and you will not force her to."

"But Ni'nat—"

"No." She flattened her ears and bared her teeth at him, making him stumble back a step with surprise. "You wish to punish Grace for her beauty. You told her yourself that she owes nothing to those who admire her. You cannot expect her to hide herself to stop the male gaze. She does nothing to encourage it and there is no shame in wearing her clan attire like the other females. If the boys cannot control their eyes or reactions, the blame lies with them. Na'vi have more discipline than humans and no Omaticaya would dare try to force his desires on a female—not even a female he desires more than others."

"I'm just trying to make things easier," Norm protested.

"By shaming our daughter?" Ni'nat stepped closer to him and Grace looked between her parents with her mouth slack, as bewildered by her mother's unusual aggression as Norm was.

"Do you wish for _me_ to wear these human garments too, Norm?" Ni'nat questioned. "You call us beautiful and you treat it like a curse. You must think your mate should be hidden from the eyes of other males, too."

In truth, there were times when Norm _did_ wish he could cover Ni'nat with something, but those moments happened the most when they visited Hell's Gate. Just as she said, humans weren't as practiced with self-restraint when it came to admiring attractive people. Every time one of the humans or avatars on base caressed Ni'nat with their eyes, Norm wanted to cover her from head to toe with a sheet.

Saying any of this out loud would have been like jumping out of the frying pan and into the fryer. Norm decided to use evasive tactics, instead. "Did Gracie tell you that she spied on Tommy bathing a few weeks ago?"

Grace huffed and crossed her arms over her cotton-clad chest. Ni'nat merely nodded. "She told me everything, Norm."

"In front of her little sister?" Norm shot a horrified look over his shoulder towards the village, where Ralu was likely playing with other children her age, somewhere out of visual range.

"No," answered Ni'nat. "When I asked her why you made her wear that garment, she took me aside to explain it all. Savanna kept our little one occupied while Grace told me."

Norm only relaxed a little. "And you're not worried about any of this?"

"Norm, how old were you when you saw a naked female for the first time?"

He flushed and averted his eyes uncomfortably. "This isn't about me."

Ni'nat disagreed. "You are punishing our daughter because you believe she did wrong by acting on her natural curiosity. How old were you?"

"I was twelve," he admitted reluctantly.

"Twelve," repeated Ni'nat. She gestured at Grace. "She is eighteen. Did this female you looked at give her permission?"

"Uh," Norm scratched his head. "Technically, yes. It wasn't a real woman. It was a picture of one in a magazine—you know, one of those mini-books you've seen in the avatar cabin. On Earth, they had these special magazines for men, full of naked pictures of women. Most boys had at least one hidden away by that age."

"So because this woman's picture was in the book, she was not real to you?"

"I didn't mean it like that," Norm excused, flustered. Now Gracie looked smug.

"But you say she agreed to let you look at her body," pressed Ni'nat. "How? Did you find her and ask her?"

"No, but she gave consent when she posed for the photo," reasoned Norm. He was painfully aware of where this conversation was heading and he didn't like it one bit.

"But did she know that you were looking at this photo?"

Norm sighed. "The models have no idea who's looking at their pictures, Ni'nat. I see what you're trying to do but—"

"So you believe a male is entitled to look upon naked women whenever he desires, but a female should not look upon naked men? You believe nothing is wrong with a male gazing at a woman's body without her permission, but a female cannot choose to show a male her body of her own free will?"

Norm threw his hands up. "I never said anything _like_ that! I feel like I'm on trial for a felony!"

"You did not say it with words, but it is in your heart," Ni'nat said, lowering her voice to a more gentle tone.

He wanted to deny it. He hated to think that he was being unfair to his daughter and justifying it with human double standards. His mate had him trapped in a logic loop, however. There was no getting around it: He had contradicted everything he'd worked so hard to teach his daughter, condemning her for behaviors he found acceptable in males.

"Okay, you win," sighed Norm. "My paternal urges to protect Grace compromised my judgment, and I'm sorry. Grace? You can change back into your regular clothes, if you want. I know I screwed up, this time. There's a learning curve to being a parent and sometimes it's hard to balance my cultural upbringing with the culture I'm living in now. Try not to think too badly of me, okay?"

The young woman stared at him suspiciously for a moment, absorbing his apology. When it was clear he wasn't trying to trick her, she approached him and stood on her tiptoes to plant a wet kiss on his cheek. She didn't say anything but that one little gesture of forgiveness was like a glass of cool water on a hot summer's day, to Norm. He smiled hesitantly at her as she walked away and when she was gone, he turned back to his mate.

"I owe you an apology too," he murmured. "You've always been so patient and supportive and I think I took advantage of that. I should have come to you and admitted I was having trouble with teaching her about the facts of life, Ni'nat."

Like her daughter, Ni'nat was too fond of him to hold a grudge. She put her arms around his neck and drew his head down, so that she could press her forehead against his. "You rarely stumble, my Norm. When you do, you are wise enough to admit it, even if you don't want to. Thank you."

He smiled sheepishly and put his hands on her waist. "Thank _you_ for trying to stick up for me, even though I was being a goober."

Ni'nat laughed softly. "Children should respect their parents, even if the parent is behaving like a 'goober'. I would not stand for Grace insulting you. I think that I should be the one to lead these talks of mating in the future, my Norm."

He nodded. "Yeah, I agree." He rubbed her back and pulled away a bit to look down at her, feeling the stirrings of desire now that the argument was behind them. "So, can I make it up to you?"

Ni'nat smiled in a teasing, seductive manner. "How do you intend to do that?"

Norm answered with actions, rather than words. He ran his fingertips down her spine and over the top of her tail in a sensual glide, while his lips caressed her jaw and temple. Ni'nat shivered with delight and he smiled. She had always responded well to light, gentle touches. While her tail lacked the erogenous spot typical to male Na'vi, she liked having it caressed. She sighed and arched her neck, inviting his kisses there.

"Yes, I would like you to make it up to me, Norm. Come into the mushroom grove with me."

He was all too eager to comply.

* * *

Jake sat down beside his son under the tree and he watched him silently for a moment. Tommy didn't look up from his task. He continued to methodically run the stone over the edge of his blade with smooth, even strokes. Jake looked at the knife and smirked.

"I don't think it's going to get any sharper than that, son."

Tommy paused and looked sidelong at him. "Uncle Norm told you what happened, didn't he?"

"Yeah, he told me."

Tommy sighed. "I'm sorry, Dad."

Jake waved it away. "Save it. You didn't do anything wrong. From what Norm told me, you were being a perfect gentleman. Kudos. If Holly Maxwell stripped down in front of me and told me to get naked with her when I was your age, I would have done it in a heartbeat and I don't think I would have stopped there."

"Who's Holly Maxwell?" Tommy asked.

"Just a girl I had a huge crush on in high school," answered Jake with a shrug. "You did good, Tommy—staying in control like that."

"I'm not so sure I was 'in control'," admitted the young man. "I think it was pretty obvious what was on my mind, when Uncle Norm showed up."

"Well, you didn't act on it and that counts."

"I guess." Tommy sighed and looked out at the villagers going about their business. "Well, you _did_ warn me about this."

Jake frowned. "You mean about Norm being protective?"

Tommy shook his head. "No, about Gracie letting me know if she's interested in me. You said if she ever started having feelings for me, she'd make it good and clear." He began to grin and his eyes unfocused as he replayed the moment in his mind.

Jake smirked. "Oh, that. Yeah, Na'vi women are usually pretty straight-forward when it comes to letting their men know they're interested."

Tommy sighed. "Na'vi women are awesome."

Jake sputtered with laughter and nodded. "No arguments here."

* * *

Parker Selfridge was just finishing his breakfast when he was paged from the control room. He glanced at his watch and hastily wolfed down the last of his oatmeal before cleaning up his mess and leaving his office. He walked the tiled hallways, watching the reflection of the overhead lights as he made his way to the restricted wing. He used his keycard in the security slot when he reached the control room and the doors unlocked and slid open. When he stepped through the doorway, he saw administrative staff and military staff standing around the large holographic map in the center of the room.

General West motioned to Selfridge from the other side of the holomap. "We're having a shortage of resources and the synthetics factory isn't producing fast enough."

"So what do you want me to do about that?" Parker asked.

"The resource staff did some scanning," answered Commissioner Archer, "and they've pinpointed where the richest unobtanium deposits are on this continent. One of the most impressive ones is located between Hell's Gate and the Omaticaya territory."

"We need you to have a look and tell us if you know about that area," West explained. "Since the tenets of the treaty won't allow blasting or drilling, we're going to need to find deposits that are close enough to the surface to dig out what we need. Since the Omaticaya are on friendly terms with Hell's Gate, the plan is to try with them first."

"The representatives visiting Hell's Gate will negotiate with the Omaticaya if the largest deposit is in a suitable location," said Commissioner Archer, "otherwise, we'll have to choose another harvesting site."

Parker had a sinking feeling about the location of this "impressive unobtanium deposit", but perhaps he was wrong. "Let's see it," he sighed.

General West motioned to a woman on the tech staff and she entered the coordinates into the control panel. Selfridge narrowed his eyes as the hologram scanned over the continent and came to a stop in the designated location. He tensed when the virtual map confirmed his fears, revealing a humongous tree stump that had decayed and was slowly being reclaimed by the jungle. There were younger trees in the area, most of them only a few years old. The broken trunk of the once mighty _keltural _that the Omaticaya people used to call home lay decaying on the forest floor.

Selfridge shut his eyes and saw the destruction of the village all over again, so clearly he might as well have gone back in time to watch it in person. The screams of the natives and the frightened wails of their children echoed in his mind. He shook his head and dragged his fingers through his graying hair.

"Don't even bother asking them."

One of the development administrators misunderstood his meaning. "You're saying we should just collect what we can without telling them?"

Parker opened his eyes and glared at the man. "Try listening to what the hell I'm actually saying, instead of looking for an alternate meaning. No, you _don't_ gather the unobtanium from that site without asking the clan first. You don't gather it _at all_ and you don't bring it up to the Omaticaya, get it?"

"Can you tell us why?" General West asked.

Parker shrugged. "That's where the old Hometree used to stand. I acted in the best interest of the company and blasted it down to get the village out of our way. The natives wouldn't leave and there were...casualties."

"So _that's_ where it happened," murmured Commissioner Archer thoughtfully. Her dark eyes settled on Selfridge, making him want to squirm. "Even asking those people for permission to harvest the minerals there would be a great insult."

"Why?" asked one of the MP's. "They don't live there anymore. It's not like they're using the land."

Archer glared at him. "Because it's the equivalent of sacred burial ground. You might as well ask them to let us dig up a cemetery full of their deceased loved ones. A lot of Omaticaya died that day, in that very spot."

Parker wasn't surprised by the commissioner's attitude. Archer had only arrived from Earth this year, as a representative of the Cherokee nation—or what remained of it, anyway. She was a tall, attractive woman in her late thirties, with long raven hair, copper skin and piercing black eyes. From what Parker understood, she had come to study the Na'vi culture and help with negotiations. Coming from a race that once lived in a similar fashion to Pandora natives, she would likely make an excellent negotiator.

"We're trying to get some resources, not dig up Na'vi bones to make ashtrays and knife handles," argued an engineer.

Selfridge winced inwardly as Archer narrowed her eyes on the man.

_~Good one. Just rub some salt into the damned wound by bringing up ancient history, you moron. Maybe you can tell a little joke about the Trail of Tears, while you're at it. ~_

Not that Parker was innocent of making prejudiced remarks against the Na'vi. He wasn't the most politically correct bastard in the world, but the last thing they needed was some idiot stirring trouble with someone they were supposed to be cooperating with. It was obvious that Commissioner Archer empathized heavily with the Na'vi. The Native Americans had long memories and they had never forgiven the US government for what they did to their ancestors.

General West intervened before the exchange could get ugly. "We're obligated to honor the treaty with these people and that's exactly what we're going to do. Offending them isn't acceptable and neither is sneaking behind their backs like thieves. We'll pick another location and go from there. That's the end of it. This meeting is over, for now."

Selfridge didn't think he could get out of there fast enough. He nodded and walked out of the control room, eager to get back to his reports for once. He needed a distraction from the memories of the destruction of the Omaticaya village. He didn't even make it to the first corridor intersection before a woman's voice called out from behind him.

"Mr. Selfridge, wait."

He sighed and stopped, turning to face Commissioner Archer as she approached. "Look, if you want to know more about what happened that day, you can look it up on the RDA logs. I don't want to talk about it."

"I already know what happened that day," she insisted. "I didn't know the exact location of the event until a moment ago, however. I'm curious about your reactions in there. According to everything I've heard and read about you, nobody could accuse you of being a champion for the rights and dignity of the natives on this world."

Parker chuckled without humor. "Naw, I can't be accused of that. Sorry to disappoint you."

She gazed at him curiously. "Then why were you so staunchly against asking the Omaticaya for digging rights in that area? Why do you care whether it insults them or not?"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "First, you tell me why you're _really_ here and I'll answer your question."

She locked her gaze with his. "I'm here to make sure history doesn't repeat itself."

He nodded. "That's what I figured. Well, to answer your question, I know what the Na'vi can do if they get provoked. I don't want to see history repeat itself either. See you later, Commissioner."

He turned back around and resumed walking to his office, leaving her staring after him with a thoughtful look on her face.

* * *

The time for another visit to the Omaticaya village came around again and Kato was visibly eager to go. Tom found it amusing, guessing that part of the reason his son was so excited had something to do with a certain human/Na'vi hybrid girl. From what Jake said over the transmission, Savanna was currently staying at Hometree while representatives from the UNEC conducted business with the people at Hell's Gate. While her stay was unlikely to last for long, at least the twins could see her right away when they arrived, instead of waiting to travel to the base to do it.

* * *

When they arrived at Hometree, Karyu immediately noticed the way her brother greeted Savanna. There was awkwardness to it—a tension that seemed to grow stronger; each time they saw one another. Upon comparing the glances between the two of them and the ones exchanged by Tommy and Grace, she deduced that there was indeed chemistry there. Kato might not want to admit it and Savanna might be too shy to do so, but it was most certainly there. Speaking of Tommy and Grace, she noticed there was something different about the way they looked at and interacted with each other as well. Every time their eyes met, they quickly looked away.

That night after supper, the three young women walked a short distance away from the village to watch the stars and talk about everything that had been going on in their lives since they last saw one another. There was little doubt that Kato, Tsu'tey and Tommy were doing the same somewhere else. Grace was being tight-lipped about Tommy and Karyu noticed that the older girl kept exchanging looks with Savanna.

"That's it...what are you two hiding?" Karyu finally asked. "_Something_ must have happened and it must have been really interesting. I don't have to be boy crazy to see the sparks between you and Tommy, Grace."

The eighteen year old flushed and looked away. "You wouldn't understand."

"Try me," challenged Karyu. "Like I said, I might not feel the same things you feel yet, but I'm not an idiot."

Gracie cast another uncertain look at Savanna, who smiled and gave her an encouraging nod. "Karyu's our friend," reminded Savanna, "She's not going to judge you."

"I don't have the right to judge anyone," added Karyu with a shrug. "It can't be as bad as some of the things I've gotten up to. Come on, Gracie."

Grace heaved a sigh and nodded. "Okay, but you have to keep it to yourself. I don't want this getting out to the rest of my clan _or_ yours, understand?"

Karyu snorted. "Why would I tell anyone? You guys are the only real friends Kato and I have here and our handful of friends back home have nothing to do with your lives."

Grace nodded. Karyu might be a lot of things but disloyal wasn't one of them. "Okay, here's what happened."

Gracie explained everything and when she was finished, Karyu's delicate features looked almost annoyed. "That's it? You saw each other naked?"

Grace nodded. "That was enough to traumatize my _Sempul_, apparently. He made me wear one of Savanna's sleeping shirts after that, until _Sa'nok_ talked some sense into him."

"Well, he needed some sense talked into him." Karyu rolled her eyes. "Lots of people our age are starting to explore these things. Just the other day, I caught Kato...er...never mind."

"What?" Grace and Savanna asked the question at the same time and the latter leaned closer to Karyu with interest.

Karyu regarded them warily for a moment before speaking. "You've got to promise not to tell anyone...especially my brother. He's already threatened to disown me if I talk about it again."

Savanna and Grace looked at each other with intrigued expressions. "Of course we won't tell," Savanna assured the future chieftess. "What did you catch him doing?"

"I walked in on him masturbating," answered Karyu.

Savanna's eyebrows rose. "That must have been...awkward."

"It was," agreed Karyu. "But he was up to his shoulders in a pool of water, so I didn't actually _see_ anything—thank Eywa. I could tell what he was doing though."

Grace frowned in confusion. "What's masturbating?"

Both girls stared at her.

"Are you serious?" Savanna blurted. She hadn't covered that little nugget of information with her friend because she assumed she already knew at least a little about self-pleasuring, by now.

Grace's cheeks darkened and she sighed. "I've never heard of it, before."

"Unbelievable," muttered Karyu. "That was one of the first things Mother discussed with me. She insisted that it was important to know, in case I haven't found a suitable mate when I start to feel those 'womanly urges'."

"So it's supposed to help with the...frustration?" Grace asked, becoming intrigued.

"Once you get the hang of it," answered Savanna with a nod. "It's just a word for touching yourself for pleasure. When you do it right, you should have one of those orgasms we talked about and you'll feel a lot better."

Grace sighed. "I'm definitely going to ask Mother about these things when I get the chance. Dad kept so much from me. So, how do you do it?"

"Uh...I'm not the one to be asking about that," Karyu admitted with a sidelong glance at Savanna. "It sounds like only one of us has any real experience with it."

Savanna sighed. "Okay, I'll tell you what I know, but it's going to be different for every girl. What works for me might not work for you, so you'll have to be willing to try different things."

"I'll try almost anything, if it will get rid of these feelings I'm having," Grace answered vehemently.

"It won't 'get rid of them'," corrected Savanna, "but it'll make them ease up for a while. All you have to do is rinse and repeat when you start getting restless again. It won't hurt anything."

She went on to explain the mechanics of the activity and by the time she was done, both she and Gracie were blushing like mad. Karyu was bored by the discussion, having no drive to do something like that yet.

"Are we finished?" Karyu asked when Savanna finished explaining.

"Yes, thank goodness," agreed Savanna.

"Great. Now let's go to my family's tent and give you a new look."

Savanna blinked at Karyu. "What's the matter with my regular look?"

"Nothing," answered the Ikran huntress, "but Uncle Jake said they are going to have music and dancing tonight. Wouldn't you like to try on some tribal clothing and wear a veil for it?"

Savanna hesitated. "I do love to dance to the Na'vi music. I've always wondered what I would look like in native clothes too, but I'm not sure I could go through with it. No offense, but Na'vi clothes don't hide much."

"I don't think you have to worry about getting stared at," Grace encouraged. "Everyone here is used to it."

"If anything, you and my father stand out more in your human clothes," added Karyu. She stood up and offered the hybrid teen her hand. "Come on, it will be fun! I have a veil you can wear around your shoulders and that will give you a little more coverage."

"We should get Ralu and Sylwanin in on it," suggested Grace. "They love to braid and style hair. We could have you looking like one of the People in no time, Savanna."

Savanna still had some reservations, but she couldn't pass up the opportunity to experience a traditional Omaticaya dance in appropriate clan wear. "Okay. I guess I can at least try it."

"You'll have to borrow a top from Gracie," Karyu mused, glancing down at her small, necklace-concealed bust. "If you try to wear anything of mine, you may as well be bare-chested."

Grace chuckled as the hybrid blushed. "Don't worry, see?" She pointed out her comparatively modest beaded leather top. "We're about the same size in the chest so it should be fine. Just think of it like a bikini."

* * *

"We'll all go hunting in a couple of days, after you're settled in," Tommy said as he sat down in a circle with his cousin and brother.

"I'm up for it," Kato agreed.

The adults were on the other side of the fire pit, discussing tribal matters and misadventures in childrearing. Nectar was being passed around and some of the clan began to provide music with drums, flutes and voices. Ni'nat's lovely singing joined in and Norm smiled at her with delight, always a fan of her voice. Neytiri got up to lead a dance in the center of the den; her graceful steps and motions drawing an admiring stare from Jake. Others began to join her and the festivities were well underway.

"Hey, this will be our first hunt together," Tsu'tey realized aloud. "It's going to be great. I'll be a lot more relaxed around you guys than I usually am."

"You're not comfortable hunting with your clan mates?" Kato asked.

Tsu'tey glanced over at Emazu, who sat several feet away with his group of friends. "Not with all of them."

Tommy compressed his lips and leaned closer to Kato. "That jackass over there has started putting Tsu'tey down because he hasn't made his first kill yet."

"He only does it to get to you, Tommy." Kato didn't seem particularly bothered. "I'm just the bait. He probably doesn't really care whether I hit the target or not but he knows how much it pisses you off when he puts me down. Think about it: you're equal to or even better than he is at tracking and hunting; plus, everyone knows he'll never have Gracie while you're around. That eats him up with jealousy."

Tommy shifted uncomfortably at the mention of Grace. They had discussed what happened with her, of course. He respected her too much to go into details about what her body looked like but his expression gave away that he thought she was a goddess in the flesh.

"Well, maybe this time you'll make your kill and he won't be able to pick on you about it anymore," Tommy muttered.

"People like him always find some excuse to make insults," Kato remarked in a low voice. "I'd say he needs to be taken down a notch or two, but you've already kicked his ass more than once, Tommy. I think next time, you should aim for his pride instead of his face."

"I'll have to get some pointers from you and Karyu," Tommy said dryly after swallowing a sip of juice. "If anyone knows how to draw blood with words, it's you two."

"Where _is_ my sister, anyway?" Kato looked around with a puzzled frown. "Or the other girls, for that matter? I'd have thought Savanna would be in here dancing as soon as the music started."

"I saw them all go into the tent your parents put up outside the trunk," Tsu'tey supplied. "Girl Talk, you know."

"I wonder what they're talking about," pondered Kato aloud. A child approached with a plate of snacks and he took a handful of berries from it and thanked her.

"Us, probably," Tsu'tey answered. "Or at least, you and Tommy."

"I don't think they're talking about me," Kato denied. "Tommy, sure."

"Like you haven't noticed Savanna's sweet on you," Tommy snorted. "Come on, everybody sees it."

Kato popped a berry into his mouth and shrugged as he chewed it. He pocketed the morsel against his right cheek before answering. "I think she's just aware that everyone _thinks_ she's got a thing for me and it embarrasses her. Besides, she's not really old enough yet to start noticing guys."

"What are you, dense?" Tommy smirked at him. "She's sixteen and she's half-human. She's been noticing guys since puberty, like most of the human girls on base. Besides that, she's allowed to date now. Don't tell me you aren't even a _little_ interested. You don't compare any other girls to flowers."

"Just because I think she's pretty doesn't mean I want to jump her," Kato protested. "She's got a lot to deal with already, without some guy crowding her for attention." The others didn't seem to understand how complicated Savanna's life really was—possibly because they had no trouble fitting in. He sometimes thought they deliberately turned a blind eye to the looks she sometimes got from the Na'vi, even though the People were more gracious about it than the humans were. At least the twins, their cousins, Grace and Ralu could pass as full-blooded Na'vi. Savanna could not.

"Maybe having a boyfriend would make things better for her," suggested Tsu'tey.

"We live half a continent away from each other," Kato reminded, "and who says she would want me as a boyfriend anyway? I think you guys are just making her uncomfortable with...your talk about...things..." His words trailed off into meaningless babble and his eyes locked on something across the den, near the northern entrance.

Tommy and Tsu'tey exchanged a puzzled look before twisting around to see what had rendered Kato into a state of stupidity. The question of what the girls were doing in the tent was now answered.

Grace and Karyu were walking into the den with Savanna. Her rich brown hair had been fashioned into multiple braids and decorated with dyed beads that complimented her coloring. The sides were pinned back with bone hair combs to keep the braids away from her face. She was wearing a soft leather breast tunic that she must have borrowed from Grace. It was dyed a deep blue color and the loincloth she wore matched it. A thin, ornamental belt was strung around her slender waist, dangling semi-precious stones of various colors. There was a semi-transparent lavender mantle around her shoulders, spun from the silk of a native insect. The light material was unique to Pandora and prized for making such ceremonial garments.

Kato wasn't the only one whose jaw dropped in response to the sight of her. The sheer surprise of seeing Savanna Thomas dressed that way rendered all of the boys mute and dumbstruck. Other villagers stared at the girl as well and when Savanna tried to turn around and leave, her two taller companions stopped her and whispered reassuringly.

Ralu and Sylwanin came bounding in and they began to push Savanna from behind, helping the older girls drag her into the den. Grace spotted Tommy and the others and she murmured to her friend, pointing at them. When Savanna saw Kato staring at her, a rosy blush immediately spread over her cheeks. Together, the four girls manhandled their hybrid friend until they made it across the earthen floor to the boys.

"What do you think?" Gracie asked with a smile, gesturing to Savanna as if displaying a work of art.

"Doesn't she look beautiful, Kato?" Karyu asked her brother, who was still attempting to trap flies in his mouth.

Kato climbed to his feet and stared Savanna up and down. All tact went out the window and he utterly failed to hide his fascination. Still seated on the floor, Tommy and Tsu'tey glanced at each other and then snickered softly behind their hands.

"Hey! Don't laugh at her!" Sylwanin marched over to her brothers and popped both of them on the back of the head.

"Ow," complained Tsu'tey. "We weren't! We're laughing at Kato."

Kato didn't seem to hear any of it. His eyes continued to rove over Savanna and his mouth worked silently. Karyu grinned slyly, pleased by the humorous reaction.

"You don't like it?" Savanna asked Kato shyly, lowering her eyes.

"That isn't it," he murmured, pitching his voice just loud enough to be heard over the music. "I'm just surprised, that's all. I've...never seen you like this before."

_~And I've never seen so much of your body before, either.~_ He didn't need to speak the thought aloud for his friends and sister to hear the underlying admission in his words.

Savanna looked up at him. "You don't think I look stupid?"

"Stupid? No. You look...you look..."

"Like a flower?" supplied Tsu'tey helpfully, barely checking his grin. He looked very much like a male version of Neytiri at that moment. His expression of suppressed amusement was very similar to the ones often worn by the _Tsahik_ when she tried not to laugh at something silly her mate did.

Kato shot a warning glance at his cousin before turning his attention back to Savanna. "I was going to say you look very pretty. You also look self-conscious."

Savanna glanced around the den. Only a few of the younger villagers were looking at her now. The adults and elderly had either lost interest or were too polite to maintain their curious stares. "I'm _very_ self-conscious."

"Don't be," suggested Tommy casually. "People are only looking because they're used to seeing you covered in human clothes. You look great, Sav."

"You don't have any reason to be embarrassed," agreed Kato. He leaned over a little to one side and a semi-worried expression bled into his features. "Uh, I'll be back in a few minutes. I've got to...you know...find a bush."

Understanding his meaning, Savanna nodded and she watched as he hurried away out of the den. "I think he was just being nice," she sighed to her friends when he was gone.

Karyu coughed behind her hand and shook her head. "No, he wasn't. Trust me, he liked it."

"Are you using 'twin telepathy' to know that?" asked Savanna.

The Ikran huntress shook her head. "I don't need to. I know my brother. Come on, let's dance." She grabbed Savanna's hand and started pulling her away. "Once you get into the music, you'll forget all about being shy."

* * *

Kato returned to the den nearly twenty minutes later and he scowled at Tommy when he asked if he "fell in". He wasn't about to admit to his cousin that his trip into the brush had nothing to do with relieving his bladder or bowels. He was just thankful he'd gotten out of sight before his reaction to seeing so much of Savanna's body became too obvious. It evidently didn't matter that he saw so much of other female bodies on a daily basis. He wasn't prepared to see that much of Savanna and now the vision of her feminine curves, long legs and smooth thighs were dominating his thoughts.

Needing a break from Tommy's comments and Tsu'tey's sly glances, Kato took a seat on a log beside his father near the fire pit. Tom was alone and he watched Tanhi dance with the others. There was no sign of Jake or Neytiri and Kato assumed they had sought some privacy somewhere, as mated couples often did during these festivities. Norm and Ni'nat were sitting together against the far eastern wall. Ralu and Sylwanin were napping beside them on the floor.

"Enjoying the evening?" Tom asked after taking a swallow of nectar from his cup.

Kato nodded.

"Then why aren't you with your friends over there?" Tom pointed at Grace, Tsu'tey and Tommy, who were engaged in a deep conversation where he'd left them.

"I just needed a break," Kato said—truthfully enough.

He looked up as a flash of gauzy lavender attracted his attention and he stared as Savanna twirled by, followed closely by Karyu. He sight of her graceful motions and the flash of lilac-striped, powder blue skin dazzled him. He stared helplessly as she went through the traditional dance steps like she was born and raised amongst the Omaticaya.

Tom watched him thoughtfully and when the moonshine came around, he took an empty cup and filled it before handing it to Kato. "Here. Enjoy it."

"Really?" Kato stared at the alcoholic beverage in his hands.

Tom smiled faintly. "I think you're old enough for _one _cup. You look like you could probably use it, too."

Kato glanced sidelong at his father and the look in Tom's eyes left little doubt he knew what was really bothering him. "Thanks, _Sempul_."

* * *

Sometime after the music died down, Kato went noticed that Savanna had disappeared. Even in his slightly buzzed state, he became concerned and he went outside to look for her. Usually the girls always went to relieve their bladders in pairs for safety, but his sister and Grace were still in the den. To his surprise, he found Savanna standing outside the den, looking up at the stars. Her stance was somewhat stiff and he wondered if someone had given her a hard time. He debated silently for a moment before approaching her.

"Hey, what are you doing out here all alone?"

"I can take care of myself enough to take a few steps outside without company," she said in a tense voice.

Kato paused, his ears flicking uncertainly. "You're angry about something."

She sighed and turned to look at him. The soft light of Polyphemus cast her pretty features in a soft blue glow. "I'm not angry. I'm just frustrated."

He stepped closer. "Why? Are you still upset because of the way I reacted when I saw you earlier?"

"No, it isn't you." She managed a little smile. "I felt better after you explained."

"Then what's wrong?"

She rubbed her arms, unused to facing the slight chill of night air in such sparse clothing. "I was having a really good time, but then Corporal Sully came to get me because he got a transmission from my mother. The visitors from the UNEC are leaving tonight and my parents are coming to get me, first thing in the morning. I was looking forward to staying for a few more days—especially since you and Karyu are here."

Kato smothered his own disappointment and forced a smile. "Well, we're going to be here for a few weeks. We'll come and visit as much as we can. Maybe all of our parents will let us come and stay at the colony the whole time we're here, if we ask nicely."

She brightened. "You think so?"

"It won't hurt to try," he answered, smiling more genuinely. "Maybe this time I can convince you to join in one of the baseball games, instead of just watching."

She faltered and looked away to the left. "I'm not so sure about that. I'm probably too small."

He rolled his eyes. "No, you aren't. We have younger players on the teams that are smaller than you and if they can play, you can. I mean, unless you really don't want to."

Savanna shook her head. "No. I mean, yes...I do want to try, if nobody minds."

"They won't," he assured her. "I can practice with you in our spare time, if you want."

She smiled up at him and hesitantly took hold of his hands. "I would like that."

His gaze latched onto her parted, soft-looking lips and he threaded his fingers through hers. He purposely avoided allowing his eyes to wander, though her cleavage ruthlessly begged for a peek. "Then it's settled. I'll talk to Karyu and our cousins. With all of us badgering them, the adults are sure to cave in."

Savanna giggled softly and nodded. The motion made her braided hair sway and Kato's gaze briefly went to the queue draped over her shoulder down the front of her body. He imagined what it would be like to connect it to his own and he wondered when her parents would consider her adult enough to mate. At least _she_ wouldn't have to climb the floating mountains and wrestle with an ikran to become an adult. However, from what he knew of humans, some of them guarded their daughters to the point of imprisonment.

Trapped within these thoughts, he began to lower his mouth to hers without even consciously realizing it. She tilted her head back and her fingers tightened around his. Her warm breath sighed over his lips as the distance between them lessened. Her ears—set a little lower on her head than his—rotated back and curved down in a gesture that signified anticipation. Kato's tail flicked from side to side and he felt some warning tension below his navel. Their mouths were just inches apart. He could practically taste her lips already and he imagined they would be as soft as the petals of the flowers he so often likened her to.

"There you are!"

Kato immediately let go of Savanna's hands and jumped back, putting some distance between the two of them. Karyu was striding their way from the den entrance. The glow of the glow lanterns inside backlit her slender form. Kato truly hoped she hadn't seen how close he'd come to kissing Savanna. Her expression was disturbingly neutral.

"We were starting to get worried," Karyu said, her golden eyes sweeping over the two of them. "I thought for a moment you might be getting into trouble."

Kato's face burned with embarrassment as his sister's gaze lingered on him for a moment. "No, I just found Savanna a moment ago. She got a transmission from her parents and they're coming to get her tomorrow."

Karyu frowned. "So soon?"

"The UN visitors are leaving," answered Savanna. "So they want to bring me home. I _do_ have assignments to make up for but I wish I could stay longer. Kato came up with a good plan, though."

"I thought we could talk to our parents with the others and convince them to let us stay at Hell's Gate while we're here," Kato informed, glad to keep the subject away from how close he and Savanna were standing together when his twin interrupted.

"That's a good idea," approved Karyu. "And they're all a little muzzy from the drink right now, so they should be amicable."

"Let's go talk to them now," urged Kato.

He gave Savanna a look that was laced with regret. He had really wanted to kiss her, but maybe it was a good thing his sister had interrupted them. He'd spent so much time insisting that she needed room to grow and decide what she wanted, he didn't know how to think differently yet. He had been fighting stirrings of desire for the girl already. When he saw her dressed like that, the battle was lost and the strength of his longing shook him to the core. Perhaps he needed a little time, too.

* * *

The adults discussed the twins' proposal and because they had compassion for their kids, they agreed with it. They made plans to journey to Hell's Gate at the end of the week, where they would stay until it was time for Tanhi and Tom's family to return home. Savanna felt better about having to leave after she was told the news that her friends would be coming to stay for a while. Karyu and Grace insisted that she keep the clothes and adornments they had let her borrow, for which she was very grateful.

Savanna's parents were a little surprised by her braided, beaded hairstyle when they arrived the next afternoon to collect her, but they thought the style looked nice on her. Since un-braiding it would be a requirement for proper washing and combing, Katherine promised to help her style her hair that way again whenever she liked.

Savanna appreciated how accommodating her parents were being, but she kept the Na'vi garments to herself, not wanting to push her luck. She thanked Jake and Neytiri for having her as a guest and she exchanged hugs and fond farewells with her friends. Kato's embrace was last and he held her a little tighter and lingered in her arms for a few heartbeats longer than the others did. The close contact made Savanna's pulse quicken and before she knew it, she tilted her head back and kissed him softly on the cheek. Behind her, Katherine raised her eyebrows a bit and Sebastian hid a smile behind his hand. They gently reminded her that they needed to get going and Savanna reluctantly pulled out of Kato's arms.

The teens and kids watched the aircraft lift up and carry their friend away. They waved goodbye and stayed until the transport chopper flew out of range and when Tom heard his son sigh, he patted him on the shoulder and softly reminded him that they'd be seeing Savanna again in a few days.

After seeing their friend off, they went about their daily business. Tommy and Gracie began training with Jake and Neytiri for the final task of their trials. Though they couldn't by tradition participate in _Iknimaya _until the age of twenty, their parents wanted them good and ready for it. Grace inwardly dreaded the approaching day of Tommy's _Uniltaron._ The Dream Hunt was the last barrier to overcome before a hunter was deemed ready for the grueling task of taming an ikran and though it was rare, some Na'vi died in the ceremony. Tommy was due to undergo his in a couple of months and though Grace would face the same trial in a year, her fear was reserved for him. Neytiri had to get onto her several times during training to keep her focused on her practice.

* * *

Three days later, the teenagers prepared to go on their first hunting trip with all of them together. Tsu'tey was surprised and dismayed when he met up with his hunting party. For some reason, Emazu was there. He gave his older brother a confused, questioning look as he selected his _pa'li_ from the meadow and slipped his lead over the mare's head. Tommy looked quite unhappy with the presence of his rival and Emazu didn't look particularly pleased, either. Grace came into the meadow with Savanna and the twins. Her presence distracted Emazu's attention long enough for Tommy to walk his stallion closer to Tsu'tey and explain.

"I didn't want him along either, but he found out we were going and Mom insisted we invite him to make a good example."

Tsu'tey groaned softly. "Why is it always _us_ that has to set the good example? Why not him? He's the one that causes trouble all the time."

"Because we're the sons of the _Olo'eyktan _and the _Tsahik_," answered Tommy mechanically. "We've got a responsibility to rise above this sort of thing. I hate it too but I'm not about to cross bows with _Sa'nok_ over it. She'd waste me."

Tsu'tey regarded his brother thoughtfully. With each day, he saw more of their parents in Tommy. He increasingly spoke more like an adult than a teenager, too. When the girls came with Kato into the meadow, Tsu'tey noticed the way Tommy's eyes settled on Gracie and he suspected she was part of the reason he was shedding his juvenile skin. Her eyes met Tommy's for a moment before she quickly averted them. She wasn't fast enough to disguise the admiration and desire in her gaze.

Tsu'tey smiled softly to himself; excited at the thought of the two of them pairing up. The frown on Emazu's face suggested he had noticed the exchange of looks too and his obvious disappointment only brightened Tsu'tey's day more. Maybe it wasn't gracious of him, but Tsu'tey was glad that the self-assured Emazu was now aware that Grace had no interest in him. The only problem was, his chances of making his first kill weren't as good as they would have been without Emazu in the group.

"We've got him outnumbered," Tommy whispered, apparently sensing his unease, "nobody's going to sit back and cheer him on if he starts putting you down. This time, he won't get away with it."

Tsu'tey took heart in the reminder and he mounted up on his direhorse without another word. The others did the same and soon, the party of young hunters rode out of the village borders and into the forest.

* * *

They rode west, towards the mountains and hills. The sky was overcast, portending rain. After a couple of hours, they found one of the main water sources for the wildlife in that area. They followed the river for a while and they paused to have a drink. They crossed to the other side of the river before the water became too deep and turbulent and they made their way up an incline, skirting around the waterfall to make it to higher ground. The trails were unusually cold this morning, which everyone in the group found strange. Usually, someone would have found at least a bent blade of grass by now, but their search for a game trail kept taking them deeper into the forest.

"Are you _sure_ this is the best territory to hunt in?" Karyu asked Tommy after they left the waterfall and the river behind.

"Usually," Tommy answered in a low voice. His keen eyes searched every shadow, moss bed and plant for signs of game passage. "Something's off, today."

"It's almost like the wildlife migrated somewhere," Tsu'tey agreed.

Emazu's ears were perked with alertness. "It is too quiet," he said. "We should turn around and go somewhere else."

"Backtracking would take even longer," Karyu pointed out. "There's bound to be game further in somewhere."

Tommy agreed with her. "We'll keep traveling for another half-hour or so. If we don't find anything, we'll change course and look somewhere else."

Emazu grumbled over having his idea vetoed, but he didn't argue. Tsu'tey hid a grin. It seemed Emazu wasn't so confident without his pack of followers supporting him. In fact, he looked like he was regretting joining this trip more with each passing minute. His eyes kept straying to Grace, leaving little doubt that she was the reason for him requesting to come along. Maybe he thought he could impress her with a kill or maybe he just hated the thought of Tommy hunting with her.

As they drew closer to the mountain range, a deep rumble in the distance gave the riders pause. Their mounts snorted and pranced in place nervously and Kato was nearly thrown from his. Tommy hastily reached out and grabbed the animal's lead, speaking softly to it to calm it down.

Kayru's ears rotated and she looked up at the sky with narrowed eyes. "Was it thunder?"

"It must have been," Tsu'tey agreed. "Look at how dark those clouds are over the mountains."

"Let's keep going," Tommy suggested.

The others followed his lead and went on ahead; except for Gracie. She stayed where she was and she stared at the darkened sky further to the northwest, tuning into more than just physical senses. Her expression grew troubled as a feeling of urgency made a shiver go up her spine.

Tommy noticed that she'd fallen behind and he motioned the others to go on while he rode back to get her. "Hey, are you okay?"

Her eyes stayed on the mountains and she patted her stallion as the animal stomped a hoof in agitation. "Something doesn't feel right, Tommy."

He followed her gaze with his own and he directed his mount closer to her. He allowed himself the brief pleasure of reaching out to stroke her soft, shiny hair. "It was just thunder. I think we're all just a little spooked because we haven't found any game, yet."

"But that's just it," Grace murmured. "We haven't seen or heard _any_ animals at all since we left the river. No birds, no prolemuris, no predators...not even insects. Can't you sense it? It doesn't feel like _anything_ has passed through this part of the forest for days."

Tommy listened and looked around with narrowed eyes. "Well, I've got to agree there's something weird. Maybe a thanator passed through here recently and scared all of the other wildlife away."

"That's not funny, Tommy." Gracie shivered. Thanator territory was far from where they were hunting, but the fierce, huge jungle predators didn't always stick to their common hunting grounds; especially if the population of prey wasn't high enough.

"I didn't mean to scare you," he apologized. "I'm just saying that there's probably a really simple explanation for the cold trails."

Another rumble barreled in from the mountain range and Tommy caught hold of Gracie's mount's lead, just in case. Both animals whinnied and pranced. Tommy sensed his stallion's desire to leave this place and he stubbornly overpowered it with his will, reminding the _pa'li_ that he was in charge.

"Just thunder," Tommy insisted.

Grace looked at the mountains again, her eyes settling on the growing darkness above the middle peak. "I'm not sure those are clouds."

"What else could they be?" Tommy inquired.

She shook her head, uncertain. "All I know is thunder doesn't usually make the ground tremble. Didn't you feel it?"

"I felt something," he admitted, "but really strong thunder can cause some vibrations. Gracie, if you really want to, we can turn around and start heading back. I don't want to try and force you to keep going and I'm not leaving you to head back on your own. Even if we haven't seen any signs of predators, nobody travels by themselves."

She looked at him uncertainly and then looked at the others up ahead. "No...I don't want to ruin it for anyone else. You're probably right; I'm just nervous because it's so quiet here."

"Are you sure?" He looked at her searchingly. "I think the others are getting tired and annoyed. They might not mind heading back early."

"I'm sure," she insisted. "Let's keep going for a little while. Maybe we'll get lucky and your brother can finally make his kill."

Tommy flashed a comely smile at her, briefly making her forget about her reservations. "Okay. Just remember, I might be leading this hunting party but you're leading me."

She furrowed her brows. "What does _that_ mean?"

"It means you're the boss," he answered, grinning. "I'll turn this group around in a heartbeat if you ask me to. Mom thinks a lot of your instincts and so do I, so you just tell me if you really think we need to leave. Deal?"

She managed a smile for him. "Deal. Let's catch up with the others."

As they urged their mounts into a trot to rejoin the group, Grace's eyes continued to stray to the mountains and the mass of clouds that seemed to hover over the large one in the middle of the range.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Sempul_** = Father

**_Sempu_** = Daddy

**_Olo'eyktan _**= Clan leader, chieftain

**_Keltural_** = Hometree

**_Tsahik_** = Spiritual leader

**_Sa'nok_** = Mother

**_Iknimaya_** = The final rite of passage into adulthood for a young hunter, in which they must capture and bond with their first ikran.

**_Uniltaron_** = Dream Hunt. A meditative trance similar to the Vision Quest practiced by Native Americans on Earth.****


	3. Chapter 3

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 3: Angry mountain

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

"Seems like the kids are behaving themselves," Jake said to Norm as the two of them walked back to Hometree. They had gone fishing together—not only to provide for the tribe, but also to discuss the growing romance between their oldest children. "I've got to agree with you though; we might have to speed up their hunter's trials and get them initiated as adults a little sooner than average."

Norm nodded, his expression mirroring his pensive thoughts. "They're both good kids, but I've accepted the fact that two more years of waiting might be too long. Gracie came of age sooner than average—probably because she has a little human DNA in her."

"Well, I think the last thing we all want is for them to get desperate and bond behind our backs. Some kids have more self control but we're talking Na'vi sex drives, here."

"I agree," Norm answered with a sigh. He adjusted the string of fish flung over his shoulder. "I keep having these nightmares about Gracie coming to me one day to tell me she's expecting a baby."

Jake was about to tell him that wasn't going to happen, but he stifled his response instead. Who was _he_ to say whether it would happen or not? Hormones were hormones and if Grace and Tommy decided they simply couldn't wait to become a mated pair, there was a good possibility she would become receptive and get pregnant.

"I guess I'd feel the same way, if it was Sylwanin. I'm going to be doomed when she gets older, aren't I?"

Norm smirked at him and parted his lips to respond, but a loud, distant rumble reached their ears and he stopped to look up at the sky instead. Jake did the same, his first instinct associating the sound with thunder.

"Doesn't smell like rain," Jake remarked after an experimental sniff.

"It sounded like it came from the west," Norm answered. He turned around and peered in that direction, trying to see the cloud cover through the canopy. "Yeah, it looks a little darker over that way."

There was another rumble and after a moment, a third one. Jake tensed, feeling anxious for reasons he couldn't explain. "It's probably just a storm heading our way."

A colony of _riti_ suddenly burst from the canopy deeper into the forest and they swarmed through the air with a great ruckus of screeches and flapping wings. Jake and Norm instinctively crouched down as the cloud of native bat-like creatures flew over their heads, going in an eastern direction. Ordinarily, such a flock would pose a danger to any warm-blooded creatures traveling within range of the animals' perception, but they showed no interest in converging an attack on the two men below them.

Jake and Norm watched as the cloud of aerial predators flew out of range, over the village and out of sight.

"Huh...they don't usually come out in the daytime," Jake observed with a frown as he straightened back up.

"Or in such great numbers," Norm agreed. He looked up as families of prolemuris scrambled through the branches overhead, going in the same direction. "Jake, I've got a bad feeling about this."

* * *

Neytiri was tutoring her young daughter on horseback riding in the meadow. She held the _pa'li's_ lead and walked it along, while Sylwanin directed the young mare to follow her mother. It was a delicate process and supervision was necessary until the ten year old learned to be subtle in guiding the animal.

"Very good, Sylwanin," Neytiri approved. "You must always consider your commands before telling the horse what to do. You must be ready to adjust to change of motion, or you could fall off when she obeys."

She heard the distant rumble and she stopped, ordering her daughter to tell the direhorse to stop as well. The sound was very similar to thunder but Neytiri's spiritual attunement with the land told her something wasn't normal. The herd began to get restless and the lead stallion started to circle around the others. Another resounding noise followed the first and the horses' anxiety increased. Sylwanin's mount started to pull away from Neytiri, trying to free herself from the hold on her lead.

Not one to ignore an animal's behavior, Neytiri reached for her daughter. "Come, Sylwanin—quickly!"

The child didn't hesitate to lean over and put her arms around her mother's neck. She disconnected her queue from the direhorse as Neytiri pulled her off. The _Tsahik_ secured her daughter in her arms before releasing the mare's lead. She hastily backed away as the animal snorted and took off to join the herd. Neytiri sprinted a safe distance away as the lead stallion reared up on his hind legs and whinnied to his herd. In seconds, the entire population of domesticated _pa'li_ galloped away to the east, urged on by their patriarch.

"_Sa'nu_, what's happening?" demanded Sylwanin in a shrill, worried voice.

Neytiri had no immediate answer for her, but when she saw the colony of _riti_ darken the skies overhead her instincts warned her to get inside. "Hold tightly to me," she instructed her daughter.

When she was sure the child had a good hold on her and vice-versa, Neytiri ran for the great _keltural _and the shelter it provided. On her way through the clearing, she passed other Omaticaya and she hollered for them to get into the den. Some of them stood there looking confused, while others immediately gathered their families and complied. Sylwanin was asking questions non-stop but every one of Neytiri's senses warned her not to waste time, so she ignored the inquiries. She saw Tanhi coming out of the den with a puzzled, tense frown on her face and she called out to her as she made it to the entrance.

"The ikrans have flown away," Tanhi informed as Neytiri paused to catch her breath. "It was so sudden...I don't know how thunder could have disturbed them so badly. Only mine and a few others remained behind, and they may flee at any moment."

"I don't think this is thunder," Neytiri warned as another rumble came from the west—louder, this time. "Tanhi, I must take my daughter to safety first but I need you to help me get our people inside. I feel that something is coming."

Tanhi had a healthy respect for the intuition of a _Tsahik_, so she didn't question Neytiri's judgment. She nodded and went to carry out Neytiri's request, while the other woman carried her daughter into the den. Ni'nat was already inside with Ralu, who was looking around with wide eyes at the growing activity around her.

"Have you seen our mates, sister?" asked the singer anxiously.

Neytiri shook her head. "Not yet. Take the little ones up to a higher level and keep them inside. I will search for our men."

By the look on her face, Ni'nat wanted to help her search but the safety of her youngest daughter was paramount. Trusting the matriarch to bring Norm to her if she found him, she led Ralu and Sylwanin up the ascending branches leading to higher levels within Hometree. Satisfied that her friend would keep the little ones safe, Neytiri went back outside to help Tanhi urge families to shelter and search for Jake and Norm. She knew that the teenagers were out hunting together and she prayed to Eywa that they were safe from whatever was causing the strange behavior in the animals.

* * *

Max carefully manipulated the cell specimens under the microscope and prepared to inject the fertilized ovum with the DNA solution necessary to begin the process. If his theories were right, they could accelerate the growth rate to create avatars within a year's time, rather than five or more. It was a very delicate procedure and considering whom this particular embryo was for, he didn't want anything to go wrong.

Just as he pierced the outer layer, the door to his private lab slid open.

"_Dad! You have to look at this!_"

Max was so startled that he knocked his microscope over and spilled the sample. He turned to face his son with wide eyes, supremely frustrated by the unannounced interruption and regretful over having given Dustin and Trudy access to unlock his lab. Dustin was holding a holopad in his hand, waving it around as he ran into the room. He was out of breath and clearly alarmed.

"Congratulations, son," Max said as calmly as he could. "You've just set back the progress of your avatar by another year."

Dustin stopped in his tracks and blinked. "_My_ avatar? You never said anything."

Max sighed and rubbed his eyes beneath his glasses. He glanced down at the spilled, ruined specimen on the table and shrugged. "It was supposed to be a surprise for your birthday next year, if I managed to succeed in accelerating the growth process."

Dustin looked at the Petri dish and winced. "Sorry Dad, but this is really important. My avatar can wait. Look at these readings! I was right!" He thrust the holopad at his father so that he could read the data.

Max adjusted his glasses with one hand and held the thin data pad in the other. His dark eyes swept over the readings before he raised his gaze slowly to meet his son's. "Oh God...we have to get in touch with Hometree."

* * *

Jake and Norm's footsteps hastened as they walked toward Hometree. They could see people moving about in an anxious manner from their vantage point; which indicated that they weren't the only ones to find the animal activity alarming.

The first thought in Jake's mind was that someone in the UN betrayed the peace treaty. He imagined dozers cutting through the forest, but that would have caused quite a ruckus even if the machines were operating over a mile away. He couldn't hear any engines, saws or crashing trees. The only thing his ears were picking up was the sound of what could easily pass for rolling thunder from the west. There was no pattern and when Jake caught a glimpse of the horizon in that direction between the foliage, he saw no lightning. The sky seemed to be growing increasingly dark over the mountains far in the distance, though.

Jake paused and frowned when the next rumble didn't fade away. It grew steadily louder as the seconds ticked by and Norm paused as well, glancing back over his shoulder to the west. A popping, rending sound reached the two men's ears and Jake turned around to look in that direction inquisitively. The vibrations beneath his feet grew stronger as the noise increased. There was movement in the foliage and small trees bowed under pressure or broke from some unseen force.

"Bulldozers?" Norm asked, inadvertently echoing Jake's original suspicions.

Jake cocked his head to one side and narrowed his eyes, listening intently as he watched the disturbance deeper in the forest. There were no birds left in there to be disturbed by the ruckus; they had already taken to the sky and flown away, shortly after the stingbat colony took to the air. When he heard a familiar sounding deep bellow, he realized what was happening. He took a few steps back, shaking his head.

"No...stampede. Move your ass, Norm!" He grabbed the anthropologist roughly by the arm, turning him around. He shoved him towards Hometree and fell into old military habits, barking: "Move! Move! Move!"

Feeling an odd sense of déjà vu, Norm was spurred on as much by Jake's shouting as by the herd of titanotheres that broke through the underbrush of the forest. The huge animals were Pandora's version of a rhinoceros, except that they boasted a hammer-like ridge of steel-hard bone on their snouts instead of horns, had six legs instead of four and four eyes instead of two. The colorful plumage on the back of their heads was lowered in fear. They seemed to have no care for Jake or Norm, but both of the fleeing men were quite aware that the animals would trample them without a second glance if they didn't get out of the way.

* * *

Neytiri heard the noise of the approaching stampede and she and Tanhi both paused in their task of ushering families to safety. She looked to the western borders of the village and she recognized Jake and Norm sprinting toward Hometree. Behind them, an entire herd of titanotheres trampled the ground and brought up a cloud of dirt and flung moss.

Her eyes widened and she shouted. "Jaake!"

He couldn't have possibly heard her over the animals' bellows and hoof beats, yet his ears flicked forward in response to her call and his eyes settled on hers. He noticed the confusion around the base of Hometree and he began waving his left arm back and forth, while shouting at the top of his lungs. He pointed up with his free hand as he and Norm barreled into the village.

"Get inside and go _up_!" Jake was yelling at everyone.

Whatever doubts the Omaticaya remaining outside had before were laid to rest at the sight of their chieftain running toward them at full speed, with a huge herd of titanotheres not far behind him. Mothers and fathers snatched up children without ceremony and ran for the trunk. Young people aided or outright carried the elderly.

"Where are Sylwanin and Tom?" Jake yelled when he and Norm reached Neytiri and Tanhi.

"Up top," answered Tanhi, "by the ikran nests. They are safe."

"Ni'nat?" Norm panted, "Ralu?"

"I sent them up," Neytiri assured him. "Come! We have no time!"

They piled into the den entrance and ran for the spiral of branches leading up. Norm almost lost his balance halfway to the top and Neytiri caught him and steadied him. Other villagers were climbing up with them and the frightened wail of children could be heard over the approaching stampede. They kept climbing until they reached the highest point of Hometree. Jake sighed in relief when he found his daughter huddled up against Ni'nat with Ralu, against the living wall near the exit. He and Neytiri both hastened to check on her with Norm close at their heels. Tanhi examined the small group for a moment and once she was satisfied that nobody was injured she ran outside onto the huge branch.

"It's okay," Jake assured as he and Neytiri embraced Sylwanin together. She was full of questions and fear, but she held her tears back. Jake looked at Ni'nat and her daughter as Norm went to his knees and hugged them. "Are you okay?"

"We are unharmed, _Olo'eyktan_," answered Ni'nat. "The girls are only frightened."

"Stay in here with them," Jake told Norm and Ni'nat. "I'm going outside with Tom and Tanhi, to see what's happening."

He got to his feet and walked out onto the branch. Tommy was standing there with a pair of binoculars in one hand. His arm was around his mate's waste as he watched the titanotheres charge into the village below. Fortunately, the beasts weren't completely oblivious to the presence of the enormous _keltural_ and their ranks parted to move around it. Jake stopped by his brother and he grabbed hold of a sturdy vine hanging from overhead as the herd trampled through the area. The ground shook with their passing and the tents of the Ikran guests got crushed in their wake, along with one of the smoke racks and several clothing drying racks standing outside the trunk.

"I hope you didn't have anything important in those tents," Jake called to his twin and the Ikran chieftess.

Tom shook his head and indicated the backpack lying on the branch at his feet. "Everything important is in there. The rest is replaceable."

Neytiri came out and she looked down at the stampede with a frown. Jake drew her closer to his side, guessing she was distressed over the damage being done to the few domesticated plants and everyday utility structures that were out in the open. "We can rebuild all of it," he said to her. "At least the herd didn't ram into the tree or rampage through the den."

Neytiri shook her head and turned it, watching as the last of the animals passed through and out of the village. "My concern is not for the simple things we lost, Jake. The behavior of the animals and the strange thunder in the distance worries me more."

* * *

At the Tree of Souls, Peyla stood with her mate and son, watching Mo'at with puzzled concern. The matriarch remained kneeling beneath the willowy branches of the great tree, deep in a trance brought about by _tsahaylu_.

"She has not moved from that spot all morning," Peyla whispered to E'quath. "The strange thunder coming from the southern mountains worries me. Should we bring it to her attention?"

"It would be disrespectful to interrupt her meditations," answered E'quath in a low voice. "We should leave her be, unless there is immediate need to disturb her."

Mo'at finally moved and the couple hushed, wondering if their quiet conversation had disturbed her trance. Tsanten wasn't quite old enough to have learned subtlety. "Is Wise Mother ill?"

Peyla smiled at her son. The Guardian clan had begun referring to Mo'at by that title years ago. Every child loved the matriarch like his or her own grandmother. "She is only speaking with Eywa, little one. Go and play, now. Your father and I must see to Wise Mother's needs."

Having taken after his E'quath in mannerisms, Tsanten was a well-behaved child and he didn't question Peyla's instructions. He left with one last concerned look at Mo'at and E'quath smiled with quiet pride as he watched him go.

Mo'at disconnected her queue from the strands of the great tree and she reached for her staff. "E'quath, these old bones of mine require some aid," she called out, aware of the couple's presence without needing to look at them.

E'quath went to her side and helped her to her feet. Knowing that too much of his help would be offensive, he released her once she had her balance. "Do you require anything else, Mo'at?"

She shook her head and clutched her staff with one hand. With the other hand, she reached up and pressed her fingers against her forehead. "I have felt something building for days now," she explained, shutting her eyes. "This day, Eywa gives birth to fire and smoke. Gather the clan and contact my daughter and son. We must pray for our people—most of all, our loved ones at Hometree."

* * *

As the dust cleared on the ground, Tom peered through his binoculars at the far-distant mountain range. A frown curved his lips and his brows were drawn together. The "thunder" to the west was occurring more often now and growing louder. The dark clouds grew heavier with each moment and they were spreading over the horizon in a manner that was definitely not cloud-like.

Tom was about to suggest that they try to contact their friends at Hell's Gate to ask if they were getting any suspicious readings from that area, but his transmitter suddenly crackled from an incoming signal.

"Dr. Sully? Tom, if you're there, please respond." Max's voice was tense, muffled inside the bag containing Tom's transmitter unit and medical gear.

Jake reached for the bag and Tom didn't protest when he opened it and dug out the transmitter. If the urgency in Max's tone was any indication, he was probably trying to get in touch with Jake in the first place. The older twin liberated the transmitter from the confines of the bag and secured it to his throat and ear.

"Jake here. What's going on, Max?"

Max's voice was relieved. "I've been trying to reach you for an hour now, Jake. I think you need to consider evacuating the village. We're getting readings of seismic activity west of Hometree."

Jake frowned and looked at his brother, who was still looking through his binoculars at the western mountain range with an increasingly grim expression. "Earthquakes?" Jake guessed.

"That would have been my first guess," explained Max, "but the sulfuric readings are up too."

Tom put his binoculars down, having heard Dr. Patel's comment since Jake kept the transmission on open speaker. "It's volcanic activity, Jake. Here, look for yourself." He handed his binoculars to his twin and Tanhi exchanged a worried look with Neytiri.

Jake brought the device to his eyes and peered through it in the direction his brother indicated. He could now identify the "dark clouds" as smoke, and another ominous rumble added to the seriousness of the situation. He lowered the binoculars slowly, his eyes fixated on the darkening horizon.

Still looking to the west, Jake spoke into his transmitter. "Max, I've got to cut this short. Our kids went hunting in that territory."

Max sounded just as anxious about this information as Jake was. "I'll talk to Trudy and we'll send out an air search to help find them."

"We'd appreciate that," Jake answered. "I've got to get the clan moving and send out a search myself. We'll be in touch, Max."

Jake ended the transmission abruptly and he immediately launched into action. He called for his ikran and the others did the same. Only Tanhi's mount answered the call.

"Most of the ikrans fled," Tanhi announced as she soothed her winged companion. "I will search for the children while you lead the people to safety, _Toruk Makto_."

Jake shook his head. "I don't want you flying alone."

"Neither do I," Tom agreed, though his eyes went anxiously to the west.

"Everything has fled," Tanhi reminded them. "Any aerial predators I encounter while searching will be more concerned with escaping the smoking mountain than challenging me. We must find our sons and daughters quickly!"

Norm heard some of the conversation and he came outside to ask what was happening.

"Mt. Pizayu is active," Tom explained to him. "It's going to erupt."

Norm looked in the direction of said mountain and swore. "I was afraid of that, but I hoped something a little less drastic was behind the animal migration."

"It's worse than that," Jake said. "Our kids went into the western territory to hunt. They'll be in the blast radius if that thing erupts."

Norm's eyes widened and he called out for his ikran. Jake put a hand on his shoulder when the anthropologist got no response. "The banshees took off when it started acting up, Norm. It looks like Tanhi's mount was the only one that stuck around."

"Then I'll get a direhorse—"

"The _pa'li_ have fled as well," Neytiri informed him. "We cannot rely on our mounts to help us find them."

"But I can't just leave my daughter out there!" Norm protested.

"We'll find her," Jake assured him, sounding more confident than he felt. "The rest of you need to evacuate the village, in case the lava reaches our borders."

"I don't see _your_ ikran anywhere," Norm said with a glance at Tanhi's nervous mount. "How are you going to get the kids if you're taking up room on Tanhi's banshee?"

Jake took a deep breath. "I'm hoping I've got another option." With that said, he tilted his head back and cupped his hands over his mouth. Using a deeper, more primal tone than before, he called out. He did it again after a moment and he searched the skies with expectant, hopeful eyes. "Come on, Shadow."

A few moments later, there was an answering shriek and a huge, familiar winged form burst out of the canopy to the south to fly over to Jake. The chieftain smiled as the Great Leonopteryx landed before him and he reached out to pat the creature's neck gratefully. "I knew you had the balls to stay, old pal."

Jake looked to Neytiri. "I know you want to come, but—"

She shook her head. "The more room you have to carry the young ones, the better. Just find them, my Jake. Bring them back safely and be careful."

He drew her into his embrace and nuzzled her cheek with his lips. "I promise. Just make sure you take care of yourself and Sylwanin, too."

"We can't go to the usual emergency hideaway," Norm announced tensely. "It's too close to the danger zone."

"Then go where the animals are going," suggested Tanhi. "They know where it is most safe."

* * *

"Damn it," Tommy growled, struggling to keep his own horse in line while simultaneously trying to help Tsu'tey with his. The sky was almost pitch-black, now. They had agreed to turn back when Grace's anxiety became too much for her to bear. Now, it was all they could do to keep their mounts from bolting out from under them.

Kato's stallion reared up and the young rider fell off with a grunt and a curse. He rolled away swiftly to avoid the prancing hooves and then his direhorse galloped away, leaving the group behind. Karyu started to reach down and offer a hand-up to her brother but her mare squealed and danced anxiously. She gave up trying to control the animal and she hopped off, smacking the mare in the flank.

"Go on, you stupid beast," Karyu shouted at the horse as it chased away after Kato's mount. She helped her twin to his feet and brushed him off. "Are you okay?"

He nodded. "Yeah, but now we're short _two_ mounts instead of one."

Emazu snarled and struggled to remain aboard his bucking mount. "You can each ride behind one of us," he muttered—surprising, since everyone knew he had little love for the twins. In pressing times, it seemed lifelong grudges could be put aside by even the most obnoxious people.

"To hell with the horses," Tommy snapped, finally admitting defeat. "We'll move faster on foot, at this rate." He followed Karyu's lead and dismounted. He reached out and caught hold of Tsu'tey and Gracie's horses' leads to keep them from bucking their riders off. "Climb down while you still can!"

Tsu'tey didn't hesitate, but Grace wasn't quite fast enough to release her queue from the bond. Her horse reared and pawed at the air, hitting Tsu'tey in the shoulder with one of its four front hooves and knocking him to the ground. His cry of pain was drowned by the panicked scream of the animal. Tommy caught Grace in his arms and pulled her away as the animal wheeled around and took off in another direction. He gave her a quick examination with his eyes before turning his attention to Emazu, who was still stubbornly trying to regain control of his mount.

"You've got to let it go," Tommy shouted. "It's useless to keep fighting with it and whatever has the horses so frightened is coming down on _us_!"

The debate was ended abruptly when a tremendous boom echoed through the forest, followed by an earth-shaking roar. Emazu's direhorse reared up and lost its balance. He dove off of it and lurched away before the animal could fall on top of him. The young hunters backed away as the horse righted itself. Nobody gained any pleasure in seeing Emazu thrown, because all attention was drawn to the sky.

The source of the terrifying noise was blocked from sight by the canopy, but they didn't need to see the billowing mountain to know it was the cause. The black clouds overhead were lit up underneath by a fiery orange glow. Karyu and Kato looked at each other as they both realized the truth of the "clouds" they had spotted over the mountain earlier.

"We've got to move," Kato shouted. The ground trembled beneath their feet and he struggled to maintain balance. "The mountain we saw is a volcano! It's going to start—"

A peculiar fizzling sound reached their ears at that moment, followed by a whistling noise. Tommy helped Tsu'tey to his feet and the younger teen cried out in pain and grasped his injured shoulder. There was no time to be gentle with him, though. The rest of Kato's words were lost as a fiery ball of pyroclastic rock crashed down through the trees. Someone screamed—nobody could tell who—and the teenagers scattered desperately.

Tommy reacted with sheer, protective instinct. He shoved Grace and Tsu'tey out of the way and dove on top of them, shielding them with his own body as well as he could. Emazu took shelter behind a tree trunk and hunkered down low. The twins chose a more direct method and they dove into the nearby pond of water. The volcanic projectile hit the ground with violent impact, causing an explosion of dirt, rock and moss as it gouged a deep groove into the earth and came to rest several yards away, near a natural formation of rocks.

Tommy grimaced at the burn as several bits of hot pebbles landed on his back but he held his defensive position over his brother and Grace until he was sure the immediate threat was ended. He raised his head and coughed, looking around for the others. Seeing that the vegetation around the flaming rock was beginning to smolder and catch fire, he climbed to his feet and hastily wiped his body off to rid himself of clinging ash.

"Guys? Is everyone okay?" he called out as Gracie and Tsu'tey helped one another to their feet.

Emazu came out from behind his tree, his eyes wide on the burning mess and the charred gouge in the earth. "This came from the mountain?" The ground shook again and he braced himself for balance.

Tommy ignored him. "Karyu! Kato! Where are you two?"

A dark head emerged from the pond and another soon followed it. "We're here," Kato coughed, spitting muddy water out of his mouth. "It's not as deep as I thought it would be."

Karyu stood up and waded back to the shore. "We have to go, _fast_! That volcano is going to spit out more of those rocks and the lava will catch up to us if we don't keep ahead of it."

"Why didn't you two _say_ it was a volcano before?" Tommy demanded, glancing warily up at the orange-red sky.

"We thought it was dormant," Kato excused, "and neither of us has ever _seen_ a real volcanic eruption before, either."

"Why didn't _you_ know?" challenged Karyu. "You've got no excuse either!"

"It doesn't _matter_!" Tsu'tey shouted. "Gracie's the only one that knew something really bad was happening and we should have listened to her to start with!"

"Let's just go," urged Grace. "We're as good as dead, if we just stand here arguing!"

Tommy nodded. "You're right. We've got to make a run for it and try to get to Hometree. Come on, guys!"

Karyu shrieked in spite of herself when another burning hunk of rock crashed through the trees. This one landed further away and wasn't as impressive as the first. She was off running before anyone else, having seen quite enough. The others charged after her and Tommy kept an arm around his younger brother's waist to support him. He panted encouragement to Tsu'tey, urging him to block out the pain and focus on keeping his feet moving. He had a dreadful suspicion that his brother's shoulder was dislocated or fractured, but there was no time to stop and examine it.

They ran downhill, sliding and slipping in the moss as they went. The ground began to crack beneath their feet and Tommy shoved his brother away toward the twins as the fissure opened up. He, Grace and Emazu got separated from the others. Karyu rudely caught hold of her brother's queue and yanked him back, just before he would have tumbled into the crack. Hot, molten lava flowed within the fissure and the teenagers stared in terrified fascination as the jagged crack spread and progressed further ahead of them.

Tommy was about to suggest they run along the crack and try to reach the end of it before it opened wider, so that they wouldn't get split up. He nearly lost his balance as the ground a few feet behind him began to break open as well. There was little time left before he, Grace and Emazu got trapped and surrounded by fissures. The twins and Tsu'tey were shouting on the other side of the first fissure, urging them to jump across. The split was growing wider by the second and their opportunity would be gone within heartbeats.

Tommy looked at Grace and he was growing increasingly desperate to at least get _her _out of this situation. Without a word, he grabbed her and threw her across the widening crack in the ground.

"Catch her," Tommy shouted to their companions on the other side of the rift. Tsu'tey stared with huge eyes, while Kato half-crouched with his sister and reached out for Gracie.

The beautiful young huntress didn't look a bit dignified or graceful as she flailed through the air, just as the crack separating them from the rest of the party began to widen at an accelerated rate. Tommy paled and for a terrible moment, he thought he had thrown her to her death. Fortunately, Grace made it to the other side and knocked the twins down in the process of landing.

Kato got to his feet first and he helped the girls to their feet before gesturing urgently to Tommy and Emazu. "Jump! You can still make it!"

Emazu gathered his muscles to do just that, but another tremor shook the ground and the crack split even further. Tommy grabbed the other warrior's arm and shook his head. "It's too wide! We won't make it now!"

Emazu looked as though he was about to try anyway but he lost his nerve. On the other side of the rift, Gracie had regained her senses from the abrupt, unexpected tossing and she yelled Tommy's name. He looked back at her helplessly and shook his head.

"Keep going!" Tommy shouted. "We'll try to meet up with you further down! Get out of here while you can!"

"Tommy, no!" Grace tried to gather herself to leap across to him but the twins stopped her. "Tommy!"

"We'll be fine," he urged. "Just go!"

As if to prove him wrong, the crack behind he and Emazu broke open further and snaked around to meet up with the larger chasm. Tommy and Emazu were now on an island of earth in the middle of a growing fissure of lava.

"Jump _now_," Emazu shouted, directing Tommy to turn around. He pointed at the other side of the crack behind them. "We can make this one if we move quickly!"

Tommy wasn't about to argue. Their little island of dirt was beginning to crumble away and the crack was widening. He took a running leap behind his companion and he rolled when he touched down on the other side. He glanced at Emazu to be sure he had made it unharmed and then he looked across the ever-growing fissure separating them from the others.

"Keep moving downhill," Tommy hollered, pointing to the east. "Whoever makes it to Hometree first can send help!"

They hesitated for just a moment before complying. Grace's eyes met Tommy's across the distance and for the first time, he knew she loved him as more than a childhood playmate.

Not that the revelation would do either of them any good, if he and Emazu didn't get moving themselves and find safer ground.

* * *

Dustin was good and ready to join the search for his friends, when his mother came to him with the disastrous news that the search and rescue mission was postponed. He stared at her, standing stock-still by the door leading into the hangar area.

"Pardon me?"

"I said, we can't fly that territory in these conditions," Trudy explained with a regretful look on her face. "Dusty, we've got reports of magma bursts and flaming balls of pitch spewing out of that volcano. Visibility's reduced as it is because of the ash and smoke. Trying to find those kids in that mess would be suicide."

"But Ma, they're my _friends_," Dustin protested. "They're the children of _your_ friends! You and Dad promised you'd help find them!"

"And we will," Trudy assured him. "As soon as flying conditions are out of the red zone. Listen, those kids are smart. I know it and you know it. They've learned all the survival tricks from their Na'vi upbringing and they've got some human education in the mix, too. I'm betting the twins knew something was up way before that thing blew its top and they're probably out of the danger zone and a few clicks away from Hometree already."

"You don't know that," argued Dustin. "Our aircrafts are tough; they can handle the turbulence with the right people flying them."

Trudy shook her head regretfully. "I wish I could say that was so with any guarantee but we just can't risk it right now. I want your friends safe and sound just as much as you do but I can't wave a magic wand and make the skies clear to go look for them. You're just going to have to hold tight and have faith that they can get themselves to safety, at least until someone can pick them up."

Dustin opened his mouth to argue his case further, but he could tell by the look on his mother's face that he wouldn't get anywhere. "I guess you're right. I'm going to visit Savanna's house, if that's okay."

Trudy's expression softened into sympathy. "Sure, kid. I'll let you know as soon as the skies are clear enough to start a search and rescue, okay?"

"Okay," Dustin sighed.

* * *

Both of Savanna's parents were absent from the apartment, which suited Dustin just fine. Katherine was helping to monitor the volcanic activity and Sebastian was currently up in the Star Chaser ISV, upgrading communications and security measures. The privacy might give him the opportunity he needed.

"I can't believe our friends are out there in that mess," Savanna said pensively. "The twins, too?"

"Yeah, them too." Dustin spoke absently, because his mind was on concocting a plan.

"Well, aren't you worried?"

He nudged himself out of it and frowned at her. "Of course, I'm worried! But it's not going to do them any good for us to sit here wringing our hands."

Savanna got up from the floor and planted her hands on her hips. "Do you have a better idea?"

He looked up at her and adopted a Trudy-like smirk. "As a matter of fact, I think I do."

Her stance relaxed a little and she gazed at him with intrigue. "Like what? We can't exactly go out looking for them ourselves, Dusty."

"Don't be so sure about that." He reached into his pocket for his phone. "I'm a pilot, remember?"

Her jaw dropped. "Dusty, the flight simulator isn't quite the same as piloting a real helicopter!"

"I've flown a couple of times with Mom," he answered. "I'm good at it too, if I do say so myself. Ma says I've got the instincts for it."

"So what are you planning to do?" she demanded, "sneak into the hangar and steal one of the Samsons?"

"That's the idea. I might need someone to provide a distraction for me if the guards ask too many questions. That's where you and Andrew are going to come in."

"You're crazy," she proclaimed, but her voice lacked conviction. "Your mother said that the flying conditions are too dangerous. If seasoned pilots can't handle it, what makes you think you can?"

"Mom's stuck in a bad position," Dustin insisted. He activated his phone and began to enter a number. "She's an authority figure and she's responsible for anything that happens to her people under her orders. She can't proceed with the operation until she can be sure the conditions are safe enough, but that doesn't mean flying is impossible."

Savanna watched him put the phone to his ear and her expression was worried. "I really, really hope you're right about this, Dustin."

"Just trust me." Someone on the other end picked up and Dustin sat a little straighter. "Hey Andrew, it's me. You heard about the volcano? Yeah...they're putting rescue operations on hold until the activity settles down enough for the sky to clear a little. I know...that's why I need yours and Savanna's help. I want to go out looking for them. No, I'm not 'off my nut'. I know how to handle turbulence in bad conditions—have a little faith. If my Mom is right, our friends should be able to get out of the red zone and I should find them at the edge of it or further. If not..."

Dustin paused and swallowed. "If they haven't gotten to a safer location by now, we'll probably never find them. There's a good chance they're all still alive though, and the longer it takes someone to find them, the smaller their chances are. I'm not leaving them out there. So are you going to help me do this or not?"

There was a moment's pause as Andrew responded. Dustin rolled his eyes. "Andy, I promise in these conditions, there won't be anything out there to attack me. I don't _need_ someone operating door guns. What I need is for someone to help me get to a Samson and take off before anyone can stop me. Are you in? Great. Sav and I will meet up with you in the supply warehouse."

"What do you need from the supply warehouse?" Savanna asked when Dustin ended the call and put his phone away.

"Rations," he answered. "I may be confident about my flying skills but I'm not a moron. I don't want to end up like my mother did after the fight for the Tree of Souls, wandering in the woods tripped out on Pandora food."

Savanna sighed and swallowed her misgivings.

* * *

Dustin formulated an excuse that their parents asked them to take inventory of the agricultural and preserved food supplies, to keep their minds off of the volcano. He told the guards that Andrew would be coming along to help and they allowed access to the warehouse, knowing who the kids' parents were.

Andrew was in his avatar body when he met up with them. Dustin was a little surprised by this, but he thought it might be useful. He started stuffing packets of dried fruit, beef jerky, oats and dehydrated mini-meals into his backpack while his friends searched the supplies for any other foodstuffs he could easily carry.

"Do you really need that much?" Andrew asked.

"I'm not taking any chances," answered Dustin. "I'll just return it all when I come back."

"_If_ you come back," muttered the young avatar operator under his breath.

"Don't think like that," chastised Savanna. "We have to stay positive."

"That's right," agreed Dustin. "Just stay focused on getting me out there and I'll keep my mind on finding our friends. The more we worry, the sloppier we're going to be."

Andrew muttered beneath his breath about mad scientists and suicidal tendencies. Savanna shared a grin with Dustin, amused by the young avatar driver's comments despite her own misgivings.

They finished packing emergency rations for Dustin and they left the warehouse, heading for the airport hangars. Savanna was puzzled when her friend grabbed some avatar-sized exopacks and ordered she and Andrew to do the same. "What are these for?"

"The guys are probably going to need them when I find them," Dustin explained, glancing around to be sure there weren't any military personnel close enough to take notice of how many breathing filters they were taking. "The magma and pyroclastic rocks spewing out of that mountain aren't the only danger. The air's going to be full of sulfuric toxins, smoke and ash. The exopacks will filter that stuff out. I just hope I can find them before they've breathed too much of it."

"Why are we taking six?" Andrew questioned. "There are only five of them, right? Don't tell me one of their little sisters went on the hunting trip!"

"According to what Uncle Jake told my dad, one of the other hunters their age went with them. I just hope I've got a proper headcount."

"This is going to be pretty conspicuous," Savanna announced, looking between her friends and the exopacks clutched in their arms. "How are we going to sneak all of these onto a chopper without making anyone suspicious?"

"Easy," answered Dustin with a shrug. "I'm just going to tell the guards we've been assigned to load them onto the aircrafts that will be participating in the rescue mission later. They aren't going to question me, seeing as my mom is head of security."

Savanna exchanged a shrug with Andy. It seemed like Dustin thought of everything in a very short time. He definitely had his father's knack for dealing with crises and keeping a cool head under pressure.

* * *

"Where are you kids going with all of that?"

The teens stopped and looked at the inquiring guard. "Steady, guys," Dustin muttered to his friends, hoping they didn't look guilty. He didn't dare glance at them for fear that it would make him appear uncertain. With confidence he didn't quite feel, he approached the guard and schooled his features into what he hoped was a righteously surprised expression.

"You didn't get the order from my mother? She sent us to stock a couple of the tiltrotors with additional exopacks for the targets of the rescue mission. I'm supposed to inspect the assigned crafts to be sure they meet standards for the conditions the pilots will be flying in, too."

The guard was a young man in his late twenties or early thirties. He looked at Dustin uncertainly, then at the other two teenagers. "I haven't gotten any such information. The aircrafts have already been inspected today."

Dustin refused to let the response deter him. He shrugged. "Maybe she's been too busy organizing things to remember to send word to you. I think Ma's just trying to keep us busy, if you want to know the truth. We could just go and when she asks you about it, you could just tell her we did as we were told." He could sense his friends shifting uncomfortably behind him and he silently willed them not to blow it.

The young guard seemed to weigh his options. Dustin wasn't known for lying. As a top-ranking student that stayed out of trouble, he had credibility. Finally, he nodded and Dustin couldn't be sure whether he was allowing it because of his reputation as a "model teenager" or because he was too afraid of the consequences if Trudy found out he disrupted a task she sent her son to fulfill.

"All right, go ahead. Just don't mess anything up."

"I'll ask someone for help if I need it," Dustin assured him, relieved. He walked away with his burden and he nudged his taller companions as best he could. "Come on, guys. This shouldn't take long. Mom said to check the Samsons near the flight exit." He looked meaningfully at the crafts closest to the open exit, which also happened to be farthest away from the guards and most of the activity happening within the hangar.

Savanna and Andrew followed Dustin to the aircraft of his choice. He opened the cargo bay and they handed up the exopacks to him. Savanna still had misgivings and she couldn't help but voice them aloud when she realized her friend was really going to do this. "Dustin, maybe you should think about this for a minute. This is a pretty rash thing to do."

He paused and adjusted the breathing mask over his face before giving her a level stare. "Kato's out there too. How much does his life mean to you?"

Savanna paled and bit her lip. "That isn't fair, Dusty."

He sighed and reached out to pat her on the shoulder. "I'm just putting it into perspective. Every minute we wait could be a minute too late for all of them. Now keep an eye out while I climb into the cockpit and check things out. If this chopper is ready to fly, I want to take off before anyone can stop me."

He hopped out of the back and opened the cockpit door to climb into the pilot's seat while his two companions stood helplessly torn. After taking a few moments to check the instruments, he took a deep breath and gave his friends a nod before buckling himself in and shutting the door. Savanna and Andrew backed away to the wall as Dustin started the engine, both of them looking around nervously for signs that anyone in the hangar were starting to catch on that it wasn't just a simple test.

* * *

"Are we really going to let him do this on his own?" Andrew had to shout over the noise of the rotaries. His yellow eyes remained fixed on the aircraft housing his closest friend.

Savanna looked up at the taller avatar, then back at the helicopter. There were only moments to decide, if they were going to do something. Once Dustin got the Samson moving, the personnel in the hangar were going to realize he meant to take off and he wouldn't be able to stop and wait for anyone else. Savanna spotted an exopack supply wrack on the wall a few feet away and upon seeing that four of the breathing apparatus' were designed for avatars and Na'vi, she made her decision. She raced to the supply wrack and snatched two of the filters off for herself and Andrew, just in case. His eyes flicked between her face and the exopacks in her arms, questioning and apprehensive.

"Come on!" Savanna urged, nudging him as she circled around to the copilot side of the cockpit.

Andrew stood hopelessly confused for a moment, but then he seemed to make up his mind as well and he yanked open the cockpit door behind the pilot seat. The two of them piled in and Dustin stared at them both with wide eyes, his attention diverted from takeoff preparations.

"What the hell are you _doing_?" exclaimed the young prodigy.

"What's it look like?" Andrew shot back. "We're jumping off the bridge with you, man."

"This might be a crazy plan," added Savanna, "but you can't expect us to stay behind and worry about you _and_ our friends."

Dustin shook his head and compressed his lips, tugging his earphones aside temporarily. "No, I don't want you two more involved in this than you already are."

"Uh, I hate to break it to you, but you don't have time to try and throw us both out with your puny human arms," Andrew said, looking out the window behind them. "You'd never get us out the door before those MP's got here."

Dustin and Savanna both twisted in their seats to peer through the window and confirm the older teen's observation. It appeared that someone had worked out what they were trying to do—or at least, suspicion was raised. A handful of military personnel were running through the hangar toward their vehicle, looking grim with determination. A transmission came through the Samson's radio, startling all three of the conspirators.

"HG Samson seven, you are _not_ authorized for an engine start. Cut the engine now and step out of the aircraft."

Dustin turned back around and looked at the control panel. Beside him, Savanna was squirming urgently in her seat. "If you're going to take off, you'd better do it now, Dusty!"

Determined to do whatever it took to help his Na'vi friends, Dustin needed no further prompting. "Make sure you've got your safety belts fastened. I don't have time to worry about making this a smooth takeoff!"

* * *

"Trudy, are you sure about this?" Max walked alongside his partner, skipping a little now and then to keep up with her hurried footsteps. "If the conditions aren't clear enough for the other pilots, you probably shouldn't be going out there either."

"I said the conditions were too risky for them, not impossible," she corrected. "I'm not putting my people out there until I'm sure I won't have deaths on my conscience that could have been avoided. If I go out, the only one I'm responsible for is myself."

Max caught hold of her arm to stall her before they reached the doors leading to the hangar area. "You're no more expendable than they are."

She stared at him with a stubborn expression on her face. Other than the faint laugh lines around her mouth, she had barely changed since her arrival on Pandora, years ago. "Max, this isn't up for debate. Those are our friends' kids out there. We've watched them all grow up and become best buds with our son. I'll be _damned_ if I'm going to leave them out there alone for any longer than I have to. Jake and the others are going to need help finding them, if they aren't dead already."

Max was aggrieved. "I know that, Trudy. I don't want to see those kids get hurt any more than you do, but how many times have you flown through volcanic ash and super-heated air currents? This isn't just a storm you'll be going into and it's not like any of the fights you've participated in."

"I know what I'm doing." She reached up and stroked a loose curl away from his forehead, smirking a little. "Stop being a nanny, okay? I've been doing this for so long I know all the tricks and you know I keep spare rations in my Samson, just in case. Now scoot aside so I can grab one of those exopacks."

Max grumbled under his breath, but he complied with her request and got out of her way. "I hope you like grey hair, because you're determined to make sure mine spreads."

She paused and smiled at him, her dark eyes examining the sparse streaks of silver in his curls. "Hey, it makes you look more distinguished. Besides, even if it's got some gray in it, you've still got a nice, full head of hair. Count your blessings, Maxi."

She gave him a swift kiss on the lips before slipping her mask over her face and handing one to him. He sighed and took the breathing device, prepared to walk her to her favorite aircraft and see her off, even if he disagreed with her risky decision. They barely took two more steps before he noticed the activity in the hangar, visible through the window. There were men and women running toward the takeoff exit, shouting. One of the female MP's came through the door and stopped short when she saw the couple.

"Lt. Chacón! I was just going to contact you, Ma'am. Someone broke protocol and took one of the tiltrotors out."

Trudy swore. "Any idea who the idiot was? I want to know who I'm going to toss in the brig for insubordination, when I get my hands on them."

The woman looked excessively uncomfortable. "We're pretty sure it was your son, Lieutenant."

Trudy and Max were both brought up short with surprise. "'Scuse me?"

"He came in with two of his friends," explained the MP in a rush. "They said you sent them to stock the mission aircrafts with extra supplies and exopacks but nobody could confirm the order. They were seen boarding the Samson just before it took off, Ma'am."

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Trudy charged passed the younger woman to the doors and Max hastily situated his exopack as he followed behind her. Together, they ran down the stairs into the hangar, just in time to see one of the Samsons disappearing into the distance.

They came to a stop when they reached the exit and Trudy threw her hands up. "That little shit!" she wheezed between pants. "If that volcano doesn't burn his ass, _I_ will!"

Max grimaced. "He gets that reckless streak from you, you know."

Trudy didn't deny it. She spotted a familiar figure across the distance and she waved. "Wilson, get over here!"

The soldier heard her shout and he jogged over to her, out of breath himself. "I just got here a couple of minutes ago," he panted. "Didn't see who was on that bird myself, but people are saying it was Dustin and a couple of his friends."

"Yeah, that's what I've been told," she growled. "Come on, you're flying with me and we're going to chase after them."

"What about the other pilots?" asked Wilson.

"Their orders still stand. All flights are grounded until the conditions are more stable."

Wilson didn't look very happy about the situation, but he nodded. He followed Trudy and Max as they ran to her Samson of choice and when Max tried to get on board, Trudy shook her head and pulled him aside.

"You stay here, Max. I need someone competent to stay here and keep an eye on the readings and call the shots."

He frowned at her. "He's my son too."

"And that's why we need you _here_, get it? You do your best work behind a monitor and you can track any changes going on with that spewing rock and let me know what to expect. You'll be a lot more help to our kid and his friends if you stick with what you do best."

Max parted his lips to argue but he sighed and nodded, agreeing with her logic even though it was brutally unfair. "Please, just be careful and keep communications open. I want to know everything that's going on, understood?"

"Yeah, yeah...I know the drill. We've got to get going, Maxi."

Max stepped away and watched as his lover boarded the Samson with her co-pilot. He heard Wilson's only complaint just before the door shut.

"Man, I'm getting too _old_ for this shit!"

"Quit whining, you big baby," Trudy's voice replied.

Max almost smiled, despite his anxiety for Trudy and Dustin's safety. Some things never really changed. At least Trudy would be flying with someone reliable, someone that worked well with her even though they argued like siblings. It was a shame Harris wasn't with them, but there was no time to locate him and get him involved.

* * *

"Dustin José Patel, you turn that fucking bird right back around and come back to the base this minute!"

Dustin winced at the sound of his mother's angry voice coming through the transmission. Savanna gave a little start and behind them in the passenger seat, Andrew leaned forward and peered at the console with wide eyes.

"Wow, 'Mama Trudy' sounds really pissed off."

Dustin grimaced and nodded, dividing his attention between flying and contemplating over what to do about the communication transmission. "I have a feeling you guys aren't going to be seeing much of me for a while, when this is all over."

"If we don't make it through this, that won't be an issue," Andrew muttered.

Savanna looked uncertainly at the console. "Dustin, aren't you going to respond to her?"

He shook his head. "Not right now. Anything I say other than 'yes ma'am' will only make her angrier. I'm going to shut down communications for now."

"Should you be doing that?" Andrew looked at the dark, orange-lit skies ahead of them. "I mean, what if we get in trouble?"

"I can turn them back on if we need help," Dustin assured him. "I just need to concentrate on flying and searching the ground. I can't do that with Ma yelling at me over the frequency."

His statement didn't comfort either of his passengers, reminding them that he was still an amateur pilot.

* * *

Unaware of the efforts being made by friends and family on their behalf, Tommy and Emazu navigated the forests as best they could. Their sense of direction was confused by the change of the landscape and atmosphere. The planimal life that they ordinarily would have used as a compass system to get their bearings wasn't behaving normal, due to the conditions. The increasing amount of smoke cover overhead made astrological navigation useless and the terrain damage caused by the eruption made their surroundings unfamiliar.

Frustrated and blaming each other for their predicament, they began to take it out on one another.

"_Kea'eltu_," Emazu coughed at Tommy, shoving aside vegetation as he followed him.

"Jerk," Tommy shot back in English. He hopped over a decaying log.

"_Txim teylu_!"

Tommy clenched his jaw and shot a glare over his shoulder at the other young man. "Dick head."

Emazu glared back. "_Meyp 'alpo_."

Tommy stopped and opened his mouth to give a scathing retort that would have made a sailor blush, but he inhaled a lungful of smoke and he ended up coughing instead. When he regained some control over his breathing, he shoved aside his resentment for the other teen and made a slashing motion in the air with one hand.

"Look, this isn't getting us anywhere! I don't like it anymore than you do but if we're going to make it back to our clan alive, we are going to have to grow up and work together, okay?"

Emazu stood tensely as he considered Tommy's words. Finally, he nodded. "I am glad that Grace is with the others," he finally admitted in a low voice. The ground trembled with another small eruption and he braced himself against a tree, looking up at the canopy warily.

His statement gave Tommy pause. If nothing else, he could agree with his rival about that. Grace stood a better chance of making it through this mess with the genius twins on her side and Emazu evidently shared that viewpoint. "You really care about her, don't you?"

Emazu nodded curtly. "She is the perfect woman, to me. She is generous, beautiful and clever. She sees only you, though."

Tommy felt a wave of pleasure at the observation, despite their dire circumstances. "I don't know about that," he said modestly, resuming his trek.

Emazu followed suit and grunted. "Then you are a fool. I saw the way she looked at you when the fire river separated us. She will accept no other man as her mate, I know."

Tommy was about to answer that when a fierce rumble shook the ground. It was such a violent tremor that he lost his balance and his heart leaped when he felt the earth parting beneath his feet. He swore and he tried to get to his feet to dive away but the crack opened too quickly. He clutched desperately at the moss and dirt as he started sliding into the break, his fingers digging grooves in the soil. He felt the searing heat beneath his feet and as he started to slip into the crevice, his young life literally flashed before his eyes.

A strong hand grabbed hold of his wrist and Tommy looked up to see his rival's sweat-streaked, tense face staring down at him. Emazu held him by the forearm with both hands and he dug in with his heels to keep from slipping as well.

"I could let go," Emazu informed him in a level tone. "Nobody would know."

"_You_ would," Tommy said through clenched teeth, refusing to beg.

Emazu seemed to consider that for a second and then he nodded. "Yes. Your death would make many females sad—Grace, more than any. I would not wish to win her that way."

Tommy swallowed in relief as the other young man began to help him up. Once he was safely away from the crack, he did his best to catch his breath in the smoky air and he looked at his companion warily. Emazu stared at him with a grudging look of respect.

"Your father is tainted but he is a good _Olo'eyktan_. You at least have his sense of honor, if nothing else. I would act as a noble Omaticaya warrior, not as a cowardly Sky Person. This changes...nothing...between us." His last words ended in a coughing fit.

Tommy nodded in understanding and agreement, deciding not to waste his breath on meaningful dialog. If they made it out of this alive, he would offer Emazu proper gratitude for saving his life. Right now, they had to get further away from the blast zone. The forest behind them was burning and the lava was flowing more freely, creeping steadily toward them. He got to his feet and offered his hand to Emazu, who accepted it after a brief hesitation. Together, they resumed loping through the forest, heading in the direction that they hoped would lead them to a safer area.

They struggled through the brush for twenty minutes before they were forced to take a break. The poisonous fumes in the air burned their lungs, nostrils and their eyes, handicapping their breathing and vision. Tommy looked around for something they could use to put over their mouths and noses, to filter out some of the smoke. When he didn't see any plant life that could serve the purpose, he gave up and got to his feet again, urging his companion to do the same.

"Come on, Emazu. We can't rest for too long. We're just barely ahead of the lava flow and if the wind shifts, the forest blaze is going to catch up to us and burn us alive."

Emazu groaned and got back to his feet. Tommy could say one thing about him; he didn't complain much when it counted. They trudged on, growing more fatigued by the moment. Another ball of flaming rock struck the ground somewhere behind them and they stumbled for cover, coughing and hacking. Their efforts to outpace the fumes, flames and lava weren't proving very successful, due to their disorientation. Emazu fell on his stomach and slid partway down a hill after another thirty feet, prompting Tommy to fall to his knees beside him. He tried to drag him back to his feet but Emazu seemed to be spent.

Tommy wiped at his reddened, watering eyes and coughed, looking up at the smoke-filled sky hopelessly. Leaves were falling from the trees, big and small. There was no sign of animal life in their part of the forest, save the two of them. He whispered a prayer to Eywa that the others were safe, because he had a sinking feeling that he and Emazu were finished. Some stubborn instinct drove him to grab Emazu's arm and tug him when another ominous rumble filled the air. The other young man was so much deadweight at first, but when he realized what Tommy was doing, he began to struggle to his knees...then to his feet.

Tommy parted his lips to urge him on when a sound reached his ears—a sound that wasn't natural but all too familiar. He cocked his head and frowned in concentration, listening carefully. The rhythmic beating of rotary blades sounded like it was coming closer by the minute, from somewhere to the southeast. He looked up at the sky, trying to locate the source of the sound. The hot wind stirred the canopy and he spotted the Samson flying low overhead. The aircraft bore the Na'vi markings that identified it as a Hell's Gate tiltrotor. It was moving slowly, as if searching for something—or someone.

He didn't particularly care what the flying machine was there for; it provided a chance of escape. "Emazu...stay here," he said, swallowing to work some moisture into his parched, sore throat, "I'm going to climb this tree and try to get that chopper's attention."

Emazu leaned against said tree and looked up at the aircraft dubiously. It would soon pass them by and the odds of Tommy catching the pilot's eye before it was out of range weren't very good. He said nothing though; either too exhausted or too dispirited to argue.

* * *

"Wait...Dustin, circle back around to the right!" Savanna was tugging on the pilot's sleeve while peering out the window through the smoke cover.

"Did you see one of them?" he inquired as he complied with her advice.

"I thought I saw someone moving down the hill below," she agreed. "It could have just been my eyes playing tricks on me but I could swear it looked like a Na'vi."

Dustin slowed down the forward momentum of the Samson and descended a little as he circled back around. He was looking out the window too, trying to spot whatever Savanna thought she saw. In the passenger seat behind them, Andrew was likewise searching the ground. He spotted something first and he hollered with excitement and jabbed a finger against the window.

"Right down there! See! There's a guy in a tree. I can't tell who it is from here but it could be one of the people we're looking for."

"I hope so," Dustin muttered as he spun the vehicle in a slow circle, hovering over the canopy.

He saw the small blue arm waving back and forth beneath them and he squinted, trying to see the owner of the appendage. Even if it wasn't one of their friends, he wasn't about to leave the poor guy down there. He hastily reached up to the overhead compartment for the pair of binoculars stashed there and he put them to his eyes with his free hand. He did his best to keep the aircraft hovering steadily in place with one hand as he made use of the device with the other. The Samson tilted precariously in the air, fighting the unstable currents. Dustin stubbornly searched the canopy and zoomed in when he saw the cyan-skinned figure in the tree again. It took a moment for him to identify the soot-smudged face, but once he was certain of the identity, his heart soared with relief.

"It's Tommy! We've found him!"

Savanna smiled, but it was a tempered expression. "So the others must be somewhere on the ground, right?"

Smoke obscured the view again for a moment and Dustin was forced to grab the stick with both hands to steady the aircraft. "I can't see who's with him. He climbed to the top of that tree but the others must be down there too! Savanna, turn the communication transmitter on so we can tell my mother we found them."

Andrew hooted and Savanna grinned from ear to ear as she complied. Dustin was in the process of slowly descending and he became immediately distracted when Trudy's voice came through the frequency, shouting in his ear.

"...Coordinates, dammit! Dustin, I swear if you've gotten yourself killed, I'll—"

Dustin grabbed for his mic and positioned it to speak. "Ma, I'm here. Look, we've just found—"

"Dustin? Why the hell haven't you been responding?"

"Because I needed to concentrate! Mother listen...we've found Tommy and the others! We're about to lower a ladder down and get them out of here, okay? I promise, we'll go right back to Hell's Gate as soon as we've got our friends safely on board."

It took a few tense seconds for Trudy to respond. "I want to know where you are, son. We've got some flux interference keeping us from locating your ass."

Max checked his equipment and gave her the coordinates as accurately as he could. Andrew warned that he was about to open the door separating the cockpit from the cargo area and Dustin eased his exopack over his face again to avoid choking on the atmospheric mixture that was about to invade the front part of the aircraft.

"I'm not going to tell you to stay where you are," Trudy was saying over the transmission, "I'd rather you haul your ass back to the base as soon as you've made your pickup, but I'm going to be tracking you, boy. You're in serious trouble for this stunt."

Dustin winced. "Sorry Ma. They're my friends. I'll face the music as soon as I've gotten them back safe."

* * *

Tommy would have shouted with exuberance, if his throat weren't so raw. It was obvious that the passengers on the Samson had spotted him and the craft was now descending. He saw the cargo hatch open and an avatar leaned out. He appeared to be preparing to unravel a boarding ladder—which made sense, considering the lack of clear landing space. Tommy looked down through the branches at Emazu's upturned face and he shouted to him that help was on the way. Emazu actually grinned with relief and he said something in response that was lost in the roar of another volcanic eruption. The tree that Tommy was perched in rocked as the ground trembled and he quickly secured a tighter hold on the branches to avoid losing his balance.

Tommy looked up again and turned his attention to the fiery mountain in the not-so-far distance. An impressive, erratic gout of lava spewed from the uneven peak of the volcano and more black smoke billowed out. Tommy squinted against the fiery light and he blurted a startled oath as several bursts of pyroclastic fireballs ejected in different directions, trailing through the sky like comets. One of the bursts was heading straight their way and he abandoned his perch without hesitation, leaping from the top of the tree.

"Emazu, get clear!"

Tommy couldn't tell if his companion reacted to his warning or not. It was all he could do to slow his fall to the ground with the jungle vegetation. It wasn't the most graceful landing he'd ever done, but he made it to the forest floor without causing more than bruising and scraping damage to himself. He spotted Emazu a few meters away behind a tree and he ducked behind it with him. He looked up and hoped that his would-be rescuers saw the danger and would take appropriate measures to steer clear of it.

* * *

Dustin smiled modestly as Savanna patted him on the arm and congratulated him on a job well done. "Save it for when we've gotten our friends to safety. You're the one that spotted Tommy first, anyway."

"But if you hadn't been so brave and determined, that wouldn't have happened," Savanna insisted. "You should get a medal!"

"Careful with the ego-stroking," Andrew advised teasingly from the cabin, "If his head expands too much, there won't be any room in here for the passengers." He dropped the ladder over the side and frowned when he looked down. "Huh? The guy just vanished."

"Maybe he's just helping the others get ready," Dustin guessed hopefully. The volcano was having another strong eruption and he grunted as he fought to keep the Samson steady. He focused on the control panel, checking the readings to be sure everything was holding together well.

Savanna looked out at the horizon with concern, cringing at the sound of the angry volcano releasing more of its fury. Her eyes went wide and she grabbed Dustin's arm urgently. "Dusty, look out!"

He glanced up from the control panel and saw a fireball shooting toward them. Though his mind was temporarily frozen with horror, his instincts took over and he shouted for the others to hold on while he tried to evade the burning projectile. It was half the size of the aircraft and a direct hit would mean swift, painful death for them. He vaguely heard Andrew shout in surprise and swear as he banked the Samson swiftly to the left. The sound of his friend's tall body hitting the deck in the back at least assured him that Andrew hadn't tumbled out of the craft.

Dustin thought they might make it without getting hit at all, but the fireball struck the edge of the right-side rotor in passing with a horrible scraping noise. Savanna screamed as bits of sharp, flaming rock struck the copilot window. Thankfully, the reinforced glass didn't break but fractures spread over the surface. The fireball landed in the forest far behind them, rending trees and other plant life in its wake. The stricken rotor sputtered and with an awful screech of metal, it began to fail. Dustin swore as he tried to keep the aircraft from spinning out of control, but with one of the main rotors damaged, there was no way to properly balance the trajectory. The Samson began to spin and lose altitude.

"My ma's going to _kill_ me," Dustin shouted, hardly aware that he was speaking the thought out loud.

"Not if you're already dead," Savanna yelled. She was pale with fear but she kept some of her wits about her. "Dustin, we've got to jump!"

"You two don't have parachutes strapped to you!"

"We should be close enough to the trees to make a safe landing," she insisted.

"What the hell are you two talking about?" Andrew shouted from the back.

"Jumping," Dustin answered. He was getting dizzy, losing more control of the aircraft with each moment. It spun faster and soon it would crash into the forest below. "Andrew, grab the exopacks and put one on yourself! We don't have a choice!"

"Are you nuts? I'm not jumping!"

Savanna fit her exopack over her face and twisted around in her seat to look at the avatar operator as she unbuckled her safety belt. "Would you rather explode?"

"Good point." He hastily put one of the avatar-sized exopacks on and gathered the rest in his arms. He had to scoot on his bottom to the open hatch, because maintaining standing balance in the spinning Samson was next to impossible.

Dustin unfastened his safety belt and made sure he had his transmitter and pack of supplies before he released the catch on the pilot door. He gave Savanna and Andrew one last, worried look before the three of them abandoned the falling tiltrotor.

* * *

Tommy saw the predicament that the Samson was in and he watched tensely as the aircraft spun away to the south. He felt a tiny bit of optimism when he saw three figures jump out of the doomed aircraft. One of them floated down to the forest via a small parachute, while the other two simply dropped into the trees. Tommy clenched his jaw and winced when the Samson crashed through the trees several yards from where the passengers landed.

"Come on, we've got to find them and help them," he urged to his companion.

He didn't wait to see if Emazu complied. He sprinted through the forest as fast as his aching body could carry him, jumping over obstacles and plowing through undergrowth. He heard Emazu behind him, gamely keeping up. Tommy stuck with the direction he saw the passengers land at and after several moments of searching, he spotted someone dangling from a tree.

"Look for the other two," Tommy urged Emazu. He paused to cough behind his hand. "I'm going to climb up and get that one."

Emazu nodded and began to search the area while Tommy dragged himself up the tree. Thankfully, his target was on one of the lower branches so he didn't have to climb far. He crawled out over the branch and he grabbed hold of the human's parachute straps. He heard a startled exclamation muffled behind the exopack worn on the man's face as he began pulling him up. The human was clutching a supply pack of some kind in his hands and he looked around this way and that as Tommy steadily pulled him up.

When he hauled his catch onto the branch with him, Tommy blinked in startled surprise. "Dustin? What are _you_ doing here?"

Dustin gave him a wan, dry smile. "Rescuing you. So much for _that_, eh?"

Tommy's lips quirked. "It's the thought that counts. Who's with you?"

"Andrew and Savanna," answered the young scientist. "Did you see where they fell?" He searched below anxiously.

"Emazu's looking for them now," Tommy began. A holler interrupted his next statement and he looked down to the left to see the other hunter walking towards the base of the tree with two other people. Savanna was limping slightly and the avatar walking beside her carried an armload of exopacks. "Where's Andrew? I thought you said he was with you guys."

Dustin pointed at the avatar. "He is. That's him right there."

Tommy's eyebrows shot up with surprise. He knew Dustin's friend was training for the program but he didn't realize his avatar was already functional. Now that he knew who the driver was, he could see the resemblance between the remote-operated life form and its driver. "Come on, let's get out of this tree," he said to Dustin.

Not one to give into foolish pride, Dustin didn't argue with Tommy as the Na'vi urged him to climb onto his back. He held on firmly as Tommy climbed down with him and he hurried over to his companions as soon as his feet touched the ground. "Are either of you hurt?"

"I think I sprained my ankle," Savanna answered with a glance down at her right foot, "but other than that, I'm okay."

"I'm fine, but I lost one of the exopacks," Andrew replied.

"Where are the others, Tommy?" Savanna was looking around searchingly, her expression worried behind the clear visor of her exopack.

"We got separated," answered Tommy. "The last time I saw them, they were heading southeast." He took the exopack offered to him by Andrew and he fitted it on gladly, thankful for the filter.

Savanna was extremely dismayed. "Were they hurt?"

"Try not to worry," Tommy assured her, though his own gut cramped with concern for his friends and family members in the group. "They got out away and I'm sure they'll make it somewhere safe before long. Tsu'tey's got a great sense of direction, Gracie's attuned to the land and the twins are geniuses. They're a lot better off than we were."

"Let's hope so," agreed Dustin. "For now, we should probably move in the same direction they were going. You should probably put on that exopack. It will help you breathe easier." He addressed Emazu with his last sentence. The hunter was staring at the object handed to him by Andrew with mistrustful confusion on his face.

"I don't like human things," Emazu said stonily.

Savanna was at the end of her rope. She chastised the warrior in a tone that warned of impending hysteria. "Do you like _breathing_? Put it on, put it on!"

Emazu took a step back from the female, wary of her sudden outburst. Unused to seeing the normally gentle and stoic hybrid in such a frantic state, he slipped the mask over his face as he'd seen Tommy do. "It is on. Are you happy?"

"I won't be happy until we've found the others and gotten out of this mess," she huffed. "Now let's get out of here!" She started limping off—in the wrong direction.

"Uh, Sav," Dustin called out, "that way leads back to the volcano."

She stopped and turned around. "Well, point us in the right direction, Dusty!"

He turned on his transmitter and started walking to the south. "This is a start, but I've got to contact Ma and let her know what happened."

The others fell into step behind the human as he fiddled with his communication device to tune into his mother's frequency. "Ma, do you copy?"

"I copy, Dustin," came the crackling reply. "What's the situation? Did you make your pickup?"

"Not exactly." He cringed. "We ran into some trouble and the Samson's kind of...totaled."

"What do you mean, 'totaled'?"

"We got hit by some flying debris and we had to eject," answered Dustin. "But nobody's seriously hurt. We're with Tommy and...uh..." He looked at the tall, grim hunter in their party helplessly, not familiar enough with him to know his name.

"Emazu," supplied Tommy.

Dustin repeated the name. "They got separated from Grace, Tsu'tey and the twins when the volcano erupted. We don't know where the others are but we're going south on foot."

"You keep heading that way," Trudy advised. "You have a compass with you?"

"Yes ma'am. I've got a flare gun and some rations, too."

"Good boy." Trudy sounded relieved. "I've got your last coordinates and I'm flying that way now. You keep moving and don't stop for more than a couple of minutes to rest, kid. When you hear my bird coming, you shoot one of those flares every five minutes."

"What about the others?" Dustin asked.

"Jake's out searching with the Ikran chieftess," Trudy informed, "after we get you kids loaded onto the Samson, we'll keep looking for the others. If they've got any smarts they'll be moving the same direction you are, so at least we've got a rough idea of where to search."

"You're not mad about the Samson I took?"

Trudy chuckled roughly. "Son, you're a little more important to me than a chopper. I'll be mad when this is over. Right now I just want you kids alive and safe, got it?"

"Got it. I'm sorry, Ma."

"You can be sorry later," she insisted. "Just keep moving."

The transmission ended and the small group continued traipsing through the forest as quickly as they could. Dustin stumbled a couple of times, unused to navigating the thick, wild jungles of Pandora. Andrew didn't fair much better but in his avatar body, he was more suited to the environment. He helped his smaller friend through the forest, while Tommy aided Savanna when she had difficulties. They were forced to move in an easterly direction when they came across a stream of lava and eventually, they made it to the river.

"We can cross here," Tommy said in a relieved tone. The water was muddy brown and steaming, but a little heat wouldn't hurt them if they were fast.

Dustin reached out and grabbed Tommy's tail before the future chieftain could set foot in the water. "Don't!"

Tommy stopped and gave him a puzzled look. "Why not? It should be just like a hot bath. It's not boiling or anything."

Dustin looked at the dead fish floating along the river and he pointed one of them out as it drifted by. "Unless you want your flesh burned off, I would strongly advise against it."

Tommy looked at the fish and grimaced. The creature's body was half dissolved and charred.

"Sulfuric acid," explained Dustin. "The water's tainted with it and even short-term exposure is going to cause chemical burns. We'll have to just follow the bank until we find another way across or get to safer ground on this side."

Having no argument against that considering what he'd just been told, Tommy agreed and the group made their way further down the river. The only good thing about the situation was that the further they went, the less smoky the air got. The ash cover powdering the forest thinned out and eventually, they made it to the edge of the village territory. They could still hear the volcano sputtering and rumbling but they seemed to be out of the immediate danger zone. Still, there was no sign of the rest of Tommy's hunting party and that ate at him.

"I was hoping we'd find the others this way," he sighed, sinking down on the ash-dusted moss to rest for a moment.

Dustin heard the sound of approaching rotors and his own relief was tempered with the knowledge that the rest of his friends were still out there. Looking at the morose expressions on Tommy and Savanna's faces, he counted himself fortunate that his love interest wasn't among the missing.

"Mom is going to help find the others after she picks us up," Dustin reminded them, trying to boost their spirits. "And as soon as the conditions are better, she'll have a whole team of pilots out helping with the search. I'm sure our friends have found somewhere safe, even if they haven't navigated outside of the blast zone."

Emazu looked back, his gaze traveling upward toward the sky. "Those twins had better be as smart as they think they are."

"It's not completely on the twins' heads to get everyone to safety," Dustin reminded the hunter angrily. "You're heaping all of the responsibility on them. By the way, they don't 'think' they're smart. They really don't think about it at all and I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't make snide comments about my friends—especially since we may never see them again."

Savanna nodded and glared at Emazu, sniffling suspiciously. It seemed she had run out of things to say or else, she didn't trust herself to speak without bursting into tears. Dustin was surprised by the urge he felt to punch Emazu but most of it was just stress and anxiety. Perhaps Kato and Karyu put off a superior air around the hunter. Considering what little he knew of Emazu, his friends had little enough reason to like him and vice-versa.

The sound of the Samson drew closer and Dustin put aside his personal feelings and dropped his pack to the ground. He squatted down and dug through it until he procured the flare gun. Checking to be sure it was in satisfactory condition to use, he aimed up at the sky and fired. Emazu gave a start and instinctively reached for his bow, eyes wide on the human.

"Relax," Andrew said, putting his body between Dustin and the Omaticaya hunter just in case Emazu decided to shoot. "It was just a flare. Look up and see—it's going to show the pilot of that approaching chopper where we are."

Emazu cast a suspicious glance at the sky and when he saw the glowing flair lighting up the treetops, he stared with awe. Seeing that the danger of a fight over a misunderstanding had passed, Andrew's stance relaxed. Dustin gave the older boy a look of mixed gratitude and annoyance, unsure of how he felt about his friend risking injury on his behalf—even if he wasn't in his real body. He walked over to Savanna and had a look at her ankle while they waited. He could hear that the Samson was getting closer and he checked his watch, marking the time so that he would know when to fire another flare if needed.

* * *

The little visors that flipped down from his headband diverted the wind from his eyes, but they weren't doing much for the smoke. Norm had the sense to fashion hasty masks made of woven fibers for Jake and Tanhi before they left. They were nothing more than makeshift bandannas that fit over the mouth and nose and tied together in the back, but they did filter out the worst of the fumes and smoke. Jake blinked away tears born of smoke irritation and circled back around to meet up with Tanhi. They had scouted nearly the entire eastern edge of the territory surrounding the volcano and so far, he hadn't found any sign of the kids.

Tanhi's ikran shrieked a protest as she met up with Jake and brought the animal to a halt over the forest, making her hover. The banshee was obviously tiring and Jake could feel his toruk's increasing fatigue as well. Shadow was getting old and he didn't have the stamina he once had. Jake patted the toruk on the neck and praised him before tugging his mask down to speak with Tanhi.

"Any sign of them?"

She shook her head, her eyes still scanning the ground as if in hopes that the kids would magically show up while they talked. "None yet, _Toruk Makto. _I will not rest until they are found."

Jake grimaced. He appreciated her determination and he shared her desperate need to bring their offspring safely home, but their mounts couldn't go on much longer without refreshment and rest. He was trying to think of the best way to remind her of that fact when his transmitter beeped and Trudy's voice came through.

"Jake, you copy? It's Trudy, here." There was interference but the transmission came through clear enough to understand.

Jake pressed down on the response button and answered, raising his voice to be heard over the buffeting, hot wind. "I copy you, Trudy. How's it looking on that search and rescue operation? Can you send them out soon? Tanhi and I aren't having any luck on our own."

"Well, I've got good news and bad news for you," Trudy answered. "The good news is we've found your oldest boy and his friend Emazu. Actually, my stubborn, fool-headed kid found them and he ended up crashing the Samson he stole to go looking for them."

Jake shared a confused but hopeful look with Tanhi. "Is everyone all right? How's Tommy and where are the others?"

"Tommy's going to need some breathing therapy and so is his friend, but they'll be okay after they get some medical attention. The others are just a little banged up. According to Tommy, the group got separated when the top blew off that mountain. He said Tsu'tey was a little hurt but the others were fine, the last time he saw them. I'm going to take these kids back to Hell's Gate to get looked after and then I'm going to come back to keep looking. As soon as the volcano calms down, I'll give the go-ahead for the rest of the search teams too, okay?"

Jake shut his eyes. He was relieved to hear that his oldest son was safe but he couldn't block the terrible images of everything that might have happened to Tsu'tey and the other kids. "I appreciate it, Trudy. I'll...send word to Norm. Tell Tommy we're going to do everything we can to find the others. The docs have my permission to dose him up if he doesn't cooperate with them."

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Trudy said grimly. "I'll get back in touch with you when I'm on my way out again. Hang in there, Jake. Those kids are too sharp to go down easy. We've just got to figure out where they're at, is all."

Jake saw how tense Tanhi was and he wished he could offer her some comfort. "All right Trudy. We'll keep looking in the meantime."

When the communication ended, Jake looked over at Tanhi again and wracked his brain for something to say. A thought occurred to him that made him frown. "I think we've been looking in all the wrong places," he shouted over the rumbling noise and wind.

She gave him an incredulous, sour look. "Our failure to locate them makes that clear, Jakesully!"

Jake ignored her sarcasm. "I mean we're looking in places we'd expect the other kids to go, but your twins don't exactly think like everyone else. Chances are the others are following their lead. You've got to _think_ like them, Tanhi. You know them better than I do. What would Karyu and Kato do in a situation like this?"

She looked around helplessly. "They would try to return to Hometree, unless another path offered a better chance of survival."

Jake nodded, thinking it made sense. Ever practical, the twins would put common sense over emotion and put off reuniting with loved ones in favor of surviving longer. "If they thought the way back to Hometree was too dangerous, where do you think they'd go instead?"

She considered the question and scanned the horizon with watery, red-rimmed eyes. Her gaze settled on the floating masses of land to the north and she fixated on them. "If they could not safely travel on the ground, they would go _up_ to escape the fury of the fiery mountain." She said it with the confidence of a mother that knew her children well and she pointed at the Hallelujah Mountains in the distance.

Jake saw the logic in it and it sounded just like something the twins would think of. Up in those mountains, they would be safe from the lava flows. They could find shelter, untainted water and food until the crisis ended or someone found them. The ikrans that fled from Hometree probably went there, too. They only had a couple of hours to go before sunset and Jake didn't want to waste any daylight—choked off as it was by the smoke clouds.

"Let's go, Tanhi. If they aren't already in those mountains, they're probably close to them by now. I'll contact Norm on the way to let him know what's going on and get an update on the clan's evacuation."

Tanhi nodded and she directed her ikran to fly in that direction. Jake tuned into Norm's frequency as he followed, hoping against hope that they were right and the other kids were still alive.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Riti_** = Stingbat

**_Pa'li_** = Direhorse

**_Sa'nu_ **= Mommy

**_Pizayu_** = Ancestor

**_Kea'eltu _**= No brain (a synonym for "moron")

**_Txim teylu _**= Ass larva

**_Meyp 'alpo_** = Weak one


	4. Chapter 4

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 4: Necessity

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. I'm juggling a lot between quitting smoking and preparing to move next month, so my concentration is too divided to write quickly or as often as I'd prefer to. Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing! _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

Ignorant of the efforts being made to find them, the twins did just as Tanhi predicted. They directed their group to the foot of the Hallelujah mountains and fashioned masks out of local plant leaves to filter out the poisons in the air. With great effort, they climbed up to one of the lower floating land masses and found a cave behind a waterfall to hole up in. The waterfall provided a natural filter, keeping the toxins out and providing fresh air within the cave. They had to carry poor Tsu'tey, as his left arm was useless for climbing.

Kato sniffed the water cupped in his hands before taking a drink. He tasted it experimentally before nodding to his sister. Karyu uncorked her waterskin and dipped it under the waterfall to collect some of the life-giving fluid, while Kato went back to Tsu'tey to check on him. Grace was sitting alone by the cave entrance, either silently meditating or thinking of Tommy and Emazu.

"How is your shoulder?" asked the male twin, squatting before Tsu'tey.

Tsu'tey glanced down at his arm, which was suspended in a sling that Grace had fashioned for him. "It hurts, but not as bad as before. That tea you and Gracie made for me seems to be doing some good."

Kato nodded and checked the plant fiber wrappings they had soaked with herbal medicines and wrapped around Tsu'tey's arm. "The swelling is going down a little, but I think it's dislocated and it's going to need to be reset, at some point."

"Do what you have to do," Tsu'tey said with a grimace, bracing himself for more pain.

Kato shook his head. "It's going to have to wait. We could just make it worse if we try to do it ourselves."

Karyu came over with the filled waterskin and she offered it to Tsu'tey. "Here, it's clean. Keep yourself hydrated."

Tsu'tey took the offered container and drank with a hefty thirst. His eyes went to Gracie, who hadn't moved from her spot. "I'm worried about her," he said when he finished drinking. "She hasn't moved or said anything since we got here."

Kato glanced over his shoulder at the despondent young woman and he frowned. "She's worried about Tommy. We really should have listened to her from the beginning."

"Tommy's going to be fine," Tsu'tey said stubbornly. "I know my brother and he's too stubborn to die. I'll bet he's already made it to Hometree by now."

"Let's hope so," Karyu sighed. "I don't really care whether Emazu makes it or not but Tommy better live through this."

For the first time since climbing, Grace spoke up. "He will. He has to." She didn't turn around or move from her spot. She sat stiffly, like a statue.

Karyu guessed the time of day as well as she could by the dull, muted light. "We've only got a couple of hours at most before nightfall. Kato and I will go outside and gather plant fibers to make some bedding in here. Maybe we'll find something to eat, too."

"I wouldn't count on finding any prey," Kato said. "Everything living in these mountains has either hidden away or left, except for the banshees at the top."

Karyu narrowed her eyes thoughtfully, making Kato instantly suspect she was planning something that might not be good for her health. "We can make a decent meal without meat. We can dig up some roots and find some fruit and nuts. Gracie, you and Tsu'tey should try to set up a fire while we're out. Otherwise we'll eat our supper raw."

Grace nodded absently, as if she only half-heard the other girl's suggestion. Exchanging a pitying look between them, the twins left the cave and began scavenging the landmass for food.

* * *

"I'll bet I could climb up to the ikran nesting grounds before it gets dark," Karyu said, looking up at the floating islands above them contemplatively.

Now Kato was beginning to understand why she had climbed and plucked fronds from the razorpalm tree they found growing on their island. He didn't much care for the direction her thoughts seemed to be heading in. "Karyu, we've only just started training for ikran capture and we still have three years before we're due for _Iknimaya_. If you're thinking what I think you're thinking, don't."

She continued to weave the plant fibers into a long bola as they walked and she picked up a stone the size of her fist to weigh the end of it. "Nobody is going to know to look for us here, Kato. We have no idea how long that volcano is going to keep erupting or how much worse it's going to get. We can survive up here for a little while but sooner or later, we'll need to find a way to get back to our families."

"I understand that," he said as calmly as he could, "but you're thinking about doing something that's killed more than one hunter before—_trained_ hunters. Grace has more experience with this than we do."

"Grace is practically useless as she is now," Karyu pointed out candidly. "She's so depressed she couldn't concentrate to _make_ a banshee catcher, let alone use one. This is an emergency and it's more important for us to get everyone to safety than follow the age rules. I know I can do it."

He hesitated. The last thing he wanted to do was imply he didn't have faith in his sister's abilities but this was no simple feat she was considering. He looked at the bola she was in the process of weaving and he wondered if he should try to make one for himself. It wasn't going to be as sturdy as a bola made with sinew thread but it only needed to hold up to one task. The thought of returning to their families on the backs of ikrans was appealing, but he didn't want delusions of grandeur to send either of them to an early grave.

"I guess I should gather some fronds too," he said hesitantly.

"No, you aren't ready," Karyu told him.

Kato scoffed. "How do _you_ know? You think you're ready but I'm not?"

She nodded. "Exactly. Kato, you don't have the confidence to do this yet and I'm not going to watch you get yourself killed. Just keep scavenging food while I take care of this, okay?"

He crossed his arms over his chest and his tail lashed with agitation. "If you're really going to do this, I'm coming with you. I can't just sit back and wait to find out whether you've been killed or not. Besides, if you start losing I can help protect you from the banshee."

She studied him thoughtfully and finally, she nodded. "All right, let's hurry and bring some food to the others so we can go."

* * *

Grace and Tsu'tey managed to get a small fire going by the time the twins returned. Kato speared some of the vegetables they'd found on a stick and handed it to Grace. "Here, roast these. Karyu are going back out again and I don't know how long we'll be gone."

Tsu'tey frowned suspiciously. "What are you going to be doing?"

Kato started to answer with the simple truth, but Karyu cut him off with a fabricated version of it. "We're going to be hunting. If we're lucky, we'll come back with a good catch."

"You've actually seen prey in these mountains?"

The twins exchanged a look. "Something like that," answered Kato. "Just take care of each other while we're away. If you see or hear any signs of our parents or Hell's Gate choppers, do what you can to signal them."

With that thought, Kato remembered something he'd brought along on the hunt. He took the two firework-rigged arrows out of his quiver and handed them over to Gracie. "I was going to fire these off after our hunting trip, before we went back to Hometree. I didn't expect to use them this way, but if someone does happen to come looking for us, these will work like flares. You light the wick just before you shoot the arrow. Don't wait too long to shoot it once it's lit, okay?"

Grace examined the two projectiles before slipping them into her quiver. "I understand. You make it sound like you two are going to be gone for days."

"We could be gone for a couple of hours, at least," Karyu explained. "We're just trying to cover everything before we go. You'll be okay in the meantime, won't you?"

"Of course," agreed Gracie. "I've got to change the herbal tincture on Tsu'tey's shoulder soon to keep the swelling down. Other than that, there isn't much to do except wait."

"We'll try not to be gone for too long," promised Kato. "Just rest as much as you can. If the volcano gets much more volatile, we may have to climb higher. Keep your strength up."

* * *

"Are you sure that's going to hold?" Kato asked with a meaningful glance at the looped bola his sister carried.

"It will hold for long enough," she insisted. "We don't have the time or the means to make a perfect banshee catcher. If I'm going to do this, I need to stay confident, keep focused and move fast. I don't plan to give the ikran much time to fight me."

Kato sighed. He accepted that his sister was determined to do this and if he continued to voice his doubts and concerns, it would only make her doubt herself and put her at greater risk. His task in this was to be supportive and come to her aid if she got into too much trouble. He only hoped Karyu's abilities measured up to the challenge.

* * *

Jake and Tanhi circled around the floating mountains, searching for any sign of their missing offspring. As the last of the dim light began to fade into night, Jake despaired that they were wrong to search in this area. For the first time, he began to contemplate the sickening possibility that Tsu'tey, Grace and the twins didn't make it to safety at all. The thought of their young lives being snuffed out in fiery, painful death made him want to vomit. He swallowed hard as he met up with Tanhi again to report his lack of success.

"Anything yet?" Jake shouted.

She shook her head and he suspected the tears in her eyes were no longer caused by the stinging fumes in the air. "Nothing. I might have been wrong. The children could be trying to return to Hometree after all."

Jake sighed. He'd gotten word from Trudy that she was on her way back but he was beginning to think that if they hadn't found the kids by now, they weren't going to find them at all. "Maybe we should split up," he suggested. He patted Shadow on the neck, knowing the animal was practically spent. "You search the territory around the village while I keep looking here."

Tanhi nodded and waved before banking away. Jake forced his attention back to the suspended land masses and he took a deep breath. He had to keep believing the kids were alive somewhere. If he started giving into despair, he could miss crucial signs.

* * *

"Karyu, look out!"

The girl didn't dodge quite fast enough as her opponent snapped at her. She screamed as the ikran's teeth closed over her upper arm and she dropped her bola. Kato lunged forward to come to her aid but another banshee abruptly blocked him. He shouted at the turquoise colored male, waving his arms to shoo it. Usually the tactic worked but this particular ikran wasn't interested in going anywhere. It shrieked challengingly at Kato and snapped at him.

Karyu hollered her brother's name, unable to help him due to her own predicament. The ikran tried to lift her and shake her but Karyu wrapped her good arm around the creature's head and fought to hold it still. She spared a glance at Kato to see him tumbling away from his attacker. It seemed he was going to get his ikran this night after all—if he survived long enough to make _tsahaylu_ with it.

Things weren't going a bit the way she had planned. She gritted her teeth against the pain and when her ikran opened his mouth again to have another try, she grabbed hold of his antenna and forced her queue to it. She missed the mark the first time and she was nearly thrown. She dared another peek at her brother's progress and when she saw that he was still avoiding his banshee's attacks, she was able to fully focus on her task. Grunting with exertion, she ignored the slippery blood coating her arm and she wrapped her legs around the ikran's neck. He tried to throw her again and she held on with determination, again grabbing hold of the tentacle to establish the bond.

This time, her queue connected properly and the beast's struggles abruptly halted. Panting from the difficult battle, Karyu murmured to the animal and patted it as she seated herself the way she had been taught by her mother. "Kato, you're going to have to start being aggressive," she warned when she saw that her brother was still using evasive tactics. "This is your chance! Take it!"

"I think I'd rather wait for it to lose interest and leave me alone," he admitted breathlessly. As Karyu said earlier; he wasn't quite ready to become a sky hunter. Eywa seemed to disagree though—otherwise the ikran wouldn't have chosen him.

"It chose you for a reason!" Karyu called. Her new mount shifted restlessly and she knew she would have to take flight soon or lose the unstable bond she had formed with him. "You can do this, Kato! I can't wait for much longer. Think of Savanna and how impressed she would be if you show up riding your own ikran!"

"It's hard to impress a girl when you're dead," he grunted. He swore and jumped aside as his opponent swiped at him with one of its front talons.

"You won't die if you hurry up and make the damned bond with it," Karyu snapped. "Now _do it_, while you still can!"

The look he gave her made it clear that he thought she was completely insane, but her encouragement made him look at the ikran differently. "Something tells me I'm going to regret this," he muttered.

* * *

"Trudy, I'm not having any luck searching the mountains," Jake said over the transmitter. "Tanhi's gone back to the outskirts of Omaticaya territory to look for them there. Shadow's almost wiped out and I'm thinking of checking the caves in these mountains before calling it a night. What's your status?"

"I should be in the area in about ten minutes," she answered. "We're going to check to the north of the volcano first, since we didn't scout that area before. Max is looking after your boy himself and he's got Tommy sedated, for now. He said to tell you he should have both of those boys detoxified in a day. They weren't exposed long enough to have serious lung damage, so there's at least a little good news."

"Thanks Trudy. I appreciate it. If I see any sign of the other kids I'll let you know."

"Back at ya," Trudy agreed. "They're alive, Jake. We've just got to find them."

Jake smirked without humor. "Yeah. I'll contact you after I make another pass here, Trudy." He ended the communication and he wished he could feel as certain as Trudy seemed to be that the kids were alive somewhere. There was a lot of ground to cover and hundreds of places they could be holed up, so it could take days to find them. He reminded himself of this, taking what comfort he could.

"Just hang in there a little longer, old boy," Jake said to Shadow. "I'd do it for you if one of your brood was missing." He managed a smile at the toruk and guided him to bank left, gliding around the outer perimeter of the lower mountains.

"Come on kids...where the hell _are_ you?"

As if summoned by his muttered question, something shot into the air to Jake's left and he blurted a startled oath as the object exploded into a blossom of purple and blue sparks.

"Fireworks?" Jake remembered his brother telling him about the way the twins celebrated their most recent birthday and his heart skipped a beat with hope. He looked around for the source of the pyrotechnic but he was suddenly distracted by the sound of flapping wings closing in on him from above and behind. Jake turned and looked up to see an ikran rider bearing down on him. It wasn't Tanhi's mount and he couldn't see who the rider was.

Just as he reached for his bow and directed Shadow to change course, another rider approached from ahead. The second rider flew down in front of him and with a shock, Jake recognized the young man seated on the turquoise banshee's back. A plant frond that obviously served as a filter mask covered his mouth and nose, but his features were easy to recognize.

"Uncle Jake," Kato called, "You're never going to believe what we've been through!"

Jake blinked. "Try me." He turned around as the orange-yellow ikran swooped down and his suspicions were confirmed when he saw that the rider was Karyu. "Do you kids have to do _everything_ backwards? The ikran taming is supposed to come _after_ your Dream Hunt."

"We're happy to see you too, Uncle Jake," Karyu said dryly. She was nursing a bleeding arm and when he frowned in concern, she shrugged. "My ikran managed to bite me before I made the bond. It's not that bad."

"What put this idea into your heads?" demanded Jake. "You could have been killed."

"We had to," Kato explained. "We couldn't be sure anyone would look for us here and we needed a way to get back without having to navigate on foot. I _literally_ had no choice, Uncle Jake. I was just there to help Karyu but one of the banshees took an interest in me. I had to decide between trying to avoid its attacks until it lost interest or trying to bond with it. Since we couldn't be sure whether help was coming or not, I chose the second option."

Jake was still floored by the whole thing. "Where are Tsu'tey and Gracie? Don't tell me they're following your crazy example."

"They're the ones that shot the firework a minute ago. We left them waiting for us in a cave down there."

Jake heard his youngest son's voice calling out to him and he looked down to see Tsu'tey standing beside Gracie. His left arm was in a makeshift sling but otherwise, he seemed unharmed. Jake grinned down at them, relived beyond measure to see them alive and relatively well.

"The first thing I'm going to do is contact Norm and Tom to let them know," Jake decided. "After that, I'm going to let Trudy know and she'll come and get us."

"But we could fly back," protested Karyu, disappointed that her efforts to get her mount were going to waste.

"You've all seen better days," Jake reminded her sternly. "That arm of yours needs looking after and both you and Tsu'tey would be a lot more comfortable in a Samson than on ikran back. I'm proud of you for being so brave and taking the initiative, but there's no sense making the trip to Hell's Gate harder."

"We're not going to Hometree?"

"Hometree has been evacuated until this is over with," Jake answered. "So far the destruction hasn't reached the village but we aren't taking risks. Hell's Gate is closer than the direction the clan is heading and I want you all checked out by doctors. I'll arrange for your families to come and meet up with you after we get you safely to the base, all right?"

Karyu sighed but she grudgingly agreed. "What about our ikrans, though?"

"The bond you've made is permanent," answered Jake. "They'll be able to sense where you are now and they'll come to you again eventually, if they don't follow us to the base. Now let's land so I can look after you guys."

* * *

After assuring the kids that Tommy and the others were okay, Jake carefully probed his son's shoulder. He winced when the young man moaned in pain. "Yeah, it's dislocated, all right. You guys didn't try to set this?" He looked up at Kato and Karyu expectantly.

"We know how, but we've never done it before," answered Kato. "I thought we might make it worse if we tried, so we just made a sling for him."

"I've done it before," Jake said. "Kato, I'll need you to hold him steady for me. Grace, see if you can find some herbs that can be used for pain. Karyu, give Tsu'tey your bola to bite down on." Grace quickly fitted her mask over her mouth and nose and she left the cave to do as he asked. Karyu relinquished her hastily constructed banshee catcher to Jake and the chieftain folded it and handed it to his son.

Tsu'tey looked at his father warily. "You're going to force my arm back into the socket?"

Jake brushed some stray locks of hair away from the young man's face and nodded. "We've got to, kid. The sooner that shoulder's set, the sooner it will heal. I'm not going to lie to you; this is going to hurt...a lot. It'll be over fast if you cooperate, though. If Gracie can't find something to give you for the pain, you only have to cope with it until we get to the base."

Tsu'tey shut his eyes and nodded, not quite able to hide his fear. Jake nodded to Kato and the male twin squatted down at Tsu'tey's uninjured side and braced him. Karyu stood behind them and she stroked Tsu'tey's hair awkwardly in an attempt to be soothing. Jake searched his son's eyes as he eased his arm out of the sling and took firm hold of it.

"Are you ready, Tsu'tey?"

He certainly didn't _look_ ready, but he nodded trustingly. "Ready, _Sempul_."

Jake braced himself for guilt as he adjusted the arm until he was certain it was positioned right. He bent the lower arm at a ninety-degree angle and he began to work the socket back into the joint by helping his son to move his arm outwards. Tsu'tey kept his complaints to a minimum at first, but the closer they came to resetting the socket, the more he suffered. He choked back a sob and Jake murmured encouragement to him, wishing he could just pop it back in abruptly as they did in some action movies.

"Only a few more seconds, son," Jake said. It felt like hours to him. He felt his son's pain like it was his own and he watched him guiltily as he made his suffering worse. When the socket popped back into place, Tsu'tey yelped, sighed with relief and opened his eyes.

"Is it over?"

Jake smiled. "Yeah, it's over. You're going to have to take it easy with that arm for a couple of weeks. You did good, kid." He gave the young man a brief, careful hug before slipping his arm back into the sling. He looked at the twins thoughtfully. Shadow was fatigued but he needed to find Tanhi and get word to her. He was kicking himself for failing to consider equipping her with a transmitter, but there was no help for it now. He thought about sending the twins to go and find her, since their new mounts were rested. However, if anything happened to them he'd never forgive himself.

"What's on your mind, Uncle Jake?" Kato was too observant not to notice the Omaticaya leader's pensive frown.

"Your mother is still out searching for you, near the borders of the clan territory. Knowing her, she'll search all through the night until her ikran drops dead from exhaustion. I need to let her know I've found you but Shadow's about wiped out."

The twins exchanged a look. "Then let us go and find her," Karyu said plainly, shrugging.

"We've got the hang of how to fly," Kato added. "Think of how surprised _Sa'nok_ will be when she sees us on our ikrans."

"Kids, this isn't an opportunity to show off," Jake said sternly. "This is serious. The volcano's still spewing away and it could spit more of those fireballs while you're up in the air. You haven't been flying those banshees long enough to know how to control them if they start giving into panic."

"But Mother needs to know," Karyu insisted. "What if you ride behind one of us? Gracie and Tsu'tey should be okay on their own for a while."

Jake examined her wounded arm with critical eyes. "You've got a point, but even if I agree to this, I don't want you out riding right now. That's a nasty bite, kid. You stay here and let Grace look after your arm while I ride with Kato to find Tanhi."

The young woman huffed. "It isn't as deep as it looks and it was _my_ idea to tame an ikran!"

Jake smirked. "Are you sure you want to be admitting that? Once they get over their relief at seeing you alive and whole, your parents are going to remember that you two broke traditional rules."

Karyu's mouth twisted into a grimace, but she couldn't think of a rebuttal.

"They were just trying to save us," Tsu'tey excused, speaking up for the twins. "What's worse, breaking a rule or being dead?"

Jake covered his mouth and coughed to hide a chuckle. "Good point, Tsu'tey. I'll be sure to bring that up in Karyu and Kato's defense. Right now, I just want to get you safely away from here."

Tsu'tey nodded, rubbing his newly reset shoulder gingerly with his other hand. "We'll wait for you and Kato."

* * *

By the time Jake and Kato returned with Tanhi, Karyu was feeling ill. Grace had done her best to clean up and treat her injury but the flesh around the bite marks was angry and swollen. Kato noticed the flush on his sister's cheeks and he quickly unwrapped her arm and looked at it. Tanhi began to lecture them, until she saw the state of her daughter's injury.

"It is getting infected," Tanhi observed, forgetting her anger in the face of concern.

"I couldn't clean it properly with what we've got available," Grace apologized. "The hospital at Hell's Gate should be able to do more."

Karyu hissed as her mother carefully probed around the enflamed wound. "M-Mother," she choked in a warning tone, hastily turning her face away.

Kato didn't move fast enough and Karyu's sparse dinner came back up, right on top of his foot. He grimaced but he was too worried about her to be offended. "We need to get her to Father or the doctors at the base," he urged as he walked over to the waterfall and stuck his foot into it. Gracie was holding Karyu's hair back while the female twin retched. Tanhi dribbled some water from her drinking skin over the back of the girl's neck, trying to cool her fever and sooth her.

"I contacted Trudy on our way back and she's on her way to meet us," Jake informed. "Just do what you can for her until the Samson gets here to pick everyone up. Our mounts are too tired to carry us and Karyu's in no condition to fly, with or without a passenger helping her."

Tsu'tey solicitously scooted aside on his makeshift bedding of plant leaves and fibers, offering space for Karyu. When her sickness fit ended, Tanhi helped her over to the bedding and helped her get comfortable. The girl was panting softly as she curled onto her side next to Tsu'tey and Tanhi compressed her lips with maternal anxiety. She offered her drinking skin to Karyu and when the teenager turned her head away, Tanhi's expression darkened.

"Drink, daughter. The water will keep you from drying out."

"You don't want to get dehydrated," Jake agreed. "You'll get weak faster and you'll have a harder time fighting off the infection. Keep your strength up."

Karyu sighed and dutifully sipped at the water. Because it came from the untainted source in the floating mountains, it at least tasted clean and it did sooth her sore throat. Tsu'tey gladly accepted the water skin when Karyu finished drinking her fill and his eyes went to her in concern again as he took a few swallows.

"It came on so fast. She seemed fine before Uncle Jake left to find you, _Sa'nok_."

"Ikrans aren't known for practicing good oral hygiene," Kato explained softly. "The bacteria in its mouth got into the wound when it bit her. If it gets much worse, they're probably going to have to lance it and drain it."

"I'm sure it won't come to that," Tsu'tey said hastily, shooting the young woman a glance that suggested he didn't think Kato should be talking about things like that in front of her.

"They'll do whatever they have to do," Karyu said with a ginger shrug of her petite shoulders. "It's just going to get more gross if they don't."

Tanhi stroked her daughter's hair and stood up with a sigh. She walked over to Jake while the kids huddled close and talked about their ordeal. Together, the two clan leaders looked out through the gap between the cave opening and the waterfall, keeping an eye out for signs of Trudy's aircraft.

"She is much like me," Tanhi commented, glancing meaningfully over her shoulder at Karyu.

Jake smirked sidelong at her. "Too stubborn for her own good, you mean?"

A bare hint of a smile curved the ikran chieftess' lips briefly. "Her boldness rules her common sense. What she and her sibling did today was very foolish."

"Don't put all the blame on her," Jake reminded gently. "Kato was there too and he could have opened his mouth and said something before the action started."

Tanhi shook her head. "He follows her lead. I know my son and I am sure he tried to speak sense to his sister, but as I said; she is very much like me. Once the idea was there, she would not let it go."

Jake studied her thoughtfully. "You're right; it was too rash. They should have waited before trying something so reckless, but you can't tell me you aren't at least a little proud of them for what they managed to do. They took the initiative to take care of their friends. Besides, riding ikrans at seventeen, before they finished training or took _Uniltaron_? I could be wrong but that's got to be some kind of record."

"It is very rare," she agreed. Another reserved little smile softened her mouth. "As rare as a _Toruk Makto_. There is a good reason behind the requirements. The body must finish growing, the mind must be mature enough to focus and the senses must be fully attuned. Eywa was with them in this. Most would not have survived the task at their age and level of experience."

"Well, now your clan has bragging rights," Jake said with a grin. "Something tells me your daughter is going to make a legend of herself fast."

Tanhi's proud expression faltered a bit. "That is what worries me."

* * *

They had a bit of trouble getting everyone on board when the Samson arrived. There was nowhere nearby for the craft to land, so Wilson tossed out a ladder and directed Trudy to help her steady the chopper. Because of their injured arms, Tsu'tey and Karyu weren't able to climb the ladder safely by themselves. Jake ended up piggy-backing them both, one at a time. Kato offered to carry one of them but upon seeing the weariness etched into his young face, Jake declined. Jake wasn't sure Kato's slighter frame had the strength left in it to carry someone else, though the young man was still more muscular than the average Na'vi male.

"Looks like you kids took a beating," Wilson said when he finished helping load everyone onto the Samson. "We've got some medical supplies on board, Corporal Sully. I can help you with the first aid if you want."

"Don't worry about it," Jake assured him, "Kato and Grace know their way around medicine and I'll help them out. You and Trudy just get us back to Hell's Gate."

The soldier nodded and gave Jake a quick salute. "Roger that. Sorry we didn't think to bring any docs with us."

"My guess is they're pretty busy as it is," Jake said with a shrug. "We can take care of things until we get there."

Wilson got out of the cargo area and climbed back into the cockpit with Trudy. The pilot turned around to look through the window separating the front of the tiltrotor from the cargo area, doing a quick headcount with her eyes.

"Everybody on board and secured, Jake?"

Jake gave her the thumbs-up after shutting the hatch. "Good to go, Trudy. Let's fly."

The rotors sped up and the passengers braced themselves as the aircraft ascended. Tanhi held her daughter close and soothed her as well as she could with Gracie's help. Kato divided his attention between seeing to his sister and administering standard, Na'vi-approved pain medication from the first-aid kit to Tsu'tey. Jake helped gamely, suffering no hurt to his pride over being instructed by people younger than himself. Both Grace and Kato shared their sires' understanding of medicine and Jake respected their medical skills more than his own.

After helping to make the injured teens as comfortable as possible, Jake allowed himself to relax and he contacted Norm to let him and the others know they were on their way to Hell's Gate with the rest of the kids. He laid his head back against the chair, sprawling his legs out before him. His eyes shut and he dozed off before he even realized he was tired.

* * *

They arrived at Hell's Gate in the early hours of the morning. Gracie was relieved and heartened to see her friends when Dustin and Savanna met up with her in the medical wing. Since they were in the avatar/Na'vi section of the med ward, Dustin had to wear an exopack. They exchanged information about what had happened to their respective groups as the doctors worked over Karyu and Tsu'tey.

"My father had a proper British meltdown," Savanna explained with a smirk. "He was here when we arrived and he sputtered and flailed and looked totally indignant. It was like watching an old BBC comedy broadcast."

Kato smiled at her, amused. "What did he say when he finally found his tongue?"

Savanna took a deep breath and tried to mimic Sebastian's accent and mannerisms. "'Young lady, I _caun't_ believe you would be so brash and foolish! You could have _bean_ killed or permanently maimed! When I gather my _whits_, your _mum_ and I will decide a fitting punishment for you'. Luckily for me, Mama was a little more calm about it and she told me to spend time with my friends for now, while she calms Papa down."

Grace, Kato and Dustin snickered softly at the recap. Being one of the only Englishmen on Pandora, Sebastian's accent was a subject of fascination and interest for many. Kids often asked him to say something, just to hear him speak. Savanna did a great impersonation.

"What about you, Dustin?" Grace asked. "I can't imagine you getting into much trouble. You hardly ever do anything wrong."

"Well, that only made this stunt worse," sighed Dustin. "My sentence is on hold until this is all over, but I'm definitely getting grounded. I'm not sure my Ma is ever going to let me fly again, after this."

"She will," Savanna insisted. "She's too proud of how far your piloting skills have gotten to forbid it indefinitely."

"What about your friend?" Kato asked. "Andrew, wasn't it? I hear he was with you guys."

"Yeah, he went home after he dropped his link to his avatar," Dustin answered. "His parents are more worried than angry."

"Weird, since it wasn't even his real body in danger," Kato observed.

"Well, anything that happens to the avatar is felt by the driver," Dustin explained, "and he hasn't been operating his for very long. He was supposed to spend more time getting used to it, so he can cope with the shock better if something goes wrong. His parents were pretty freaked out about him going into such a dangerous situation. He might as well have gone in his real body."

"So we may not be seeing him for a while," guessed Savanna with a sigh.

"Not in his avatar body, at any rate," Dustin answered. "I'm sure they'll start letting him drive it again after a few weeks, though."

"How is Tommy?" Grace asked, unable to bear it any longer.

Seeing the anxiety she couldn't quite hide, Dustin smiled up at her kindly. "Relax, Gracie. He and Emazu are fine. They're in separate recovery rooms and they've been getting breathing therapy to detoxify their lungs. The doctors say they'll make a full recovery."

"Can I see him?" She cared about Emazu too but right now, all she could think about was Tommy. After that last glimpse of him when the ground opened up, she needed to see with her own eyes that he was okay.

"Sure," Dustin agreed. "I'll show you where he is and make sure they let you in to visit him."

* * *

"Tommy? Are you asleep?"

He groaned softly and stirred, groggy from the medication they had given him. His mouth and throat were dry from the concentrated carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide and xenon treatment he'd been breathing through the mask. He swallowed, taking a moment to gather his wits and place the voice with an owner. He opened his eyes and blinked, trying to bring the blurred face hovering over him into focus. Recognizing Grace's beautiful, soot-smudged features, he smiled behind the therapy mask and groggily reached up for her. Her silken hair dangled over him and the tips of it brushed against his arm, tickling the skin.

"Hey. You're really here...right?"

She smiled at him and took his hand in hers. "I'm really here. Are you feeling all right?"

"Seeing you safe helps," he confessed. He tried to sit up and Grace pushed him down, laying the palm of her hand over his gown-covered chest. "I'm fine," he stubbornly insisted, resisting her.

"You're recovering from smoke and poison inhalation," she corrected, "you won't be 'fine' until you've rested and recuperated, so don't try to get up."

He sighed and coughed behind his mask as he gave in and stopped trying to sit up. "How are the others? Did they make it out okay?"

"They're fine," she confirmed. "Your brother's shoulder was dislocated when the _pa'li_ kicked him but your father reset it and the doctors have given him pain medicine. Karyu and Kato tamed their own ikrans and—"

"Wait, what?" Tommy blinked and sat up abruptly before she could chastise him. "Say that again?"

Grace smiled and lowered her eyes. "The twins tamed their ikrans early. We took to the Hallelujah mountains after we got separated from you. Kato said it was the safest place to go until we could figure out a less hazardous path home. Karyu decided we couldn't wait for someone to come and rescue us and Kato went with her when she climbed to the ikran nests. From what I understand, he just went to help her since he couldn't change her mind. I'm not sure what happened but he ended up taming an ikran of his own."

Tommy's eyebrows went up. "Damn. Those two are always a step ahead of everyone else."

"It's not a competition," Grace reminded him with a little smile. "This was an emergency and you know the twins don't consider risks the way other people do."

"That's what makes them so good," Tommy sighed. He lay back down and stared up at the ceiling. "I envy them a little. They're always getting things done so fast and I feel like I'm always a few paces behind everyone else."

Grace frowned. "Well, they didn't make it out unscathed. Karyu has a pretty nasty bite on her arm and they're treating it for infection now."

Tommy forgot his feelings of inadequacy. "Is she going to be okay?"

"Yes. Kato and I took care of it until we got here and they caught it before it could spread and get serious."

"What about the people at Hometree?" Tommy asked. "They put me down as soon as I came in here and I haven't had the chance to ask about anyone at home."

"They've evacuated to the east," answered Grace. "They are safe. Auntie Trudy is sending transport to pick up our families and bring them back here to be with us. They should be here by tomorrow morning."

Tommy relaxed a little. "And Tsu'tey's doing okay?"

"He's resting. Your father's in there with him so he should be along to see you soon."

Tommy smiled. "So he found you guys?"

"Yes. His toruk and Tanhi's ikran were the only ones that didn't fly away when the volcano erupted. They spent all day looking for us while the clan evacuated. Aunt Trudy came and got us after they found us."

He reached up to caress her features slowly. "I'm still a little groggy from the medicine. I'm just checking again."

Grace smiled and she stroked the top of his hand with her fingertips. "You're silly." Her smile faded and her golden eyes softened. Her lips parted as his thumb brushed over them and her breath sighed over his fingertips. "I'm being a hypocrite, though. I had to see you myself, to believe you made it out alive. Tommy, I was really afraid I would never see you again."

She was disheveled, filthy—and the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. He wanted to kiss her; a desire he was accustomed to having quite often. Now, with her plush lips parted invitingly and her expression so caring and open, the urge was overpowering. He almost cupped her neck to draw her face closer but the mask rudely reminded him that kissing wasn't going to work out. He grimaced and settled for running his fingers through her hair. He smiled as wisps of ash fell free from her hair as he combed through it.

"You should take a shower or a bath in the avatar cabin," he suggested. "I've never seen you so grimy before."

Grace's eyes swept over him. "Well, I've never seen you so clean."

He laughed, coughing a little. "I have no idea how I got this clean. I don't remember being put in this gown, either. Someone must have done it all while I was knocked out."

Grace's teasing expression quickly changed into a frown. "Someone bathed you and dressed you?"

"They must have," he answered. "Unless I did it in my sleep."

"A woman?" pressed the young huntress.

Tommy shrugged. "I don't know, maybe. Half of the hospital staff is female so I guess it's possible."

* * *

The notion of another female touching his body was bad enough. She was imagining some other woman lathering him, perhaps taking the time to run her fingertips over his soapy skin to caress the strong muscles beneath. The hussy probably slid her palms down his chest, over his stomach and between his thighs to—

"Gracie, are you okay? You look a little...angry."

She blushed so hard she thought her face would turn purple. "I'm just tired. I should get cleaned up and have something to eat with the others. You should get some rest too, so you can recover your strength."

His larger hand settled over hers and he squeezed it. "I wish you'd stay a little longer."

Grace experienced the interesting sensation of feeling her pulse in her teeth. She thought her heart was pounding loudly enough for him to hear it and she hastily averted her eyes. The breathing mask covered half of his face, but that didn't distract from his good looks. "I would, but I don't think they would let me. Besides, I probably smell bad."

"Even if I could smell you through this thing, I wouldn't care." His eyes smiled up at her and she knew he had a crooked grin on his lips beneath the concealing mask.

Grace managed a smile. Surely, he could feel her pulse against his fingertips as he caressed her neck. A shiver passed through her as his light touch made her body sing in interesting ways. She leaned over him, her eyes flicking over the mask. She came to a quick decision, driven as much by curiosity as mischief. Maybe a _real_ kiss would dispel some of this troublesome frustration she felt. It couldn't possibly be as good as some people made it out to be, could it?

"Hey, what are you doing?" Tommy gazed at her with puzzlement as she grasped hold of the mask and pulled it down.

"Can you breathe without it for a minute or two?" She tilted her head and looked at him hopefully.

"I can breathe fine," he assured her. "That thing is just giving me concentrated air to clear everything up. Um, Grace? You look a little..." He trailed off and stared at her as she leaned further over him and began lowering her face to his.

There was no point in backing out of it now. Their mouths were too close and she might not get another opportunity like this again soon. Gracie touched her lips against his and applied gentle pressure. Tommy's incoherent murmurs died down and he cupped the back of her head, his fingers threading through her hair above the base of her queue. His lips were dry, but soft nonetheless. He returned the pressure of her kiss and after a moment, she drew back for a brief second before moving in for another kiss. Before she knew it, Grace was having trouble breathing. There was no logical reason for it, but her breath came faster with each passing moment. Tommy was breathing faster, too. One of his hands settled on her shoulder and his tongue gently pushed between her lips to caress hers. A jolt seemed to pass through her body and she tingled all over as she allowed him to explore her mouth.

Several moments later, Grace forced herself to break the kiss and pull away from him. His lips were parted and his eyes were glazed and heavy-lidded. She was sure she had a similar expression of passion on her face and the urge to climb onto him and rub her body against his nearly overpowered her. So much for a kiss satisfying any of this frustration.

"Goodnight, Tommy." Was that _her_ voice, so husky and low? It was difficult to get up and walk away—especially with his hand holding hers. She gently eased out of his grasp and situated his mask back over his mouth and nose, giving him a soft smile. "I'll see you in the morning."

She left the room without looking back and when she found Jake waiting on the other side of the door, she gasped in surprise and mortification. "_Olo'eyktan_," she said with formal respect, stammering a little. "H-how long have you been there?"

Jake smiled at her and she detected a twinkle of mischief in his eyes. "Not very long. I'm glad you stopped by to visit Tommy. I'm sure you perked him right up."

Gracie lowered her eyes and chewed her bottom lip. "I'm relieved to see that he's okay. When do you think they'll release him from medical care?"

"Well, they said it should only take a day or two for him and Emazu to recover," Jake answered with a glance through the window on the door. "There's no big hurry, since we can't go back to Hometree until we're sure it's safe."

Grace swallowed. "How close has the lava come to it?"

Jake patted her on the shoulder. "So far it's not hitting the village. It looks like it could bypass Hometree but even if it doesn't, we got everyone out safely and that's what matters the most."

She frowned and her eyes stung warningly at the thought of losing her home. Jake tilted his head, noticing her angst. He cupped her chin and urged her to raise her eyes and look at him. "Grace, I know how you feel but there are other _kelturals_."

"You sound like the kind of parent that would sneak off and buy a goldfish to replace the one you flushed," Gracie accused with a sniff, remembering some of the Earth movies and shows she had watched. "Hometree is alive, Uncle Jake. We all grew up there. It's part of us."

Jake brushed away a tear that escaped to her welling eyes and he nodded. "I know. The Omaticaya have been through this before, but the last time it was because of human incursion. Maybe I'm taking it for granted that it would be easier to lose the village again if it's something we can't fight. If the lava reaches Hometree, then Eywa must have a reason for it."

"It isn't fair," Grace whispered. She knew it was a childish protest but the thought of leaving the sturdy, towering tree with its strong branches and rich canopy made her feel sick.

"There's an old saying on Earth," Jake murmured. "It goes: 'Home is where the heart is', and it's true. I've lived a lot of places in my life but I've only had _two_ homes, Gracie. The first was the house I grew up in with my brother. The second was here on Pandora, with our clan, Neytiri and the kids. It doesn't matter where I go; as long as I have _them_, I'll be home. Does that make any sense to you?"

She nodded reluctantly. "I understand. I know you're right, it just hurts to think of losing our home."

He sighed. "I know. It hurts me too. Just try to look on the bright side and don't write our village off just yet, okay?"

"Okay. I'm sorry to be so negative." She felt somewhat ashamed of herself. Jake was right; the immediate concerns should be focused on and she should be thankful that her friends, family and clan mates were safe.

"You're tired," he guessed. "You've been up all night and you need a good meal and some rest. Go on and take care of yourself, Grace."

She bowed her head in consent. "I will, Uncle Jake. I'll see you in the morning."

* * *

Savanna stopped in front of the door to the apartment she shared with her parents and she glanced over her shoulder at Kato. The two of them were alone together. Dustin went to visit Andrew, Karyu and Tsu'tey were in the hospital and Grace was either visiting Tommy or sleeping in the cabin.

"Do you want to come in for a while? I can put on a movie."

Kato took a slow breath, wondering if it was a good idea to take her up on the offer. "Are your parents home?"

Savanna shook her head. "Mother is in the lab and Father is finishing up a program he was working on. They'll be gone all day long, probably."

"Oh."

Kato struggled inwardly, torn between excitement and trepidation. They would be well and truly alone together, if he took her invitation. This could be the opportunity he'd been missing to find out if the chemistry between them was as good as he thought. The problem was that if he started kissing her in such a private setting, he couldn't be sure he could stop.

Savanna noticed his ambiguity and she looked puzzled. "Kato, is something wrong?"

"We've both been through a rough time," he excused. "We should probably rest and I need to get cleaned up."

"You can have a shower here," offered Savanna. "Or a bath, if you prefer. It's sized large enough to fit you comfortably. The couch extends into a bed too, so you can sleep on it."

Kato was ridiculously tempted. He didn't feel like being around the avatar drivers as they came and went in their pseudo-Na'vi bodies. Having a private soak and a quiet place to lie down would be nice—particularly when Savanna would be in the same building. "You don't think your parents would mind?"

Savanna smiled. "After what we've been through, they probably wouldn't mind if you slept on my bed with me."

Kato blinked at her, taking a moment to realize she was being facetious. "Right. Well, as long as they won't have a meltdown if they come home and find me asleep on their couch, it sounds good to me."

Savanna unlocked the door and took one of his hands to guide him into the building with her. "I'll make a snack for us while you're getting cleaned up. We've got lots of martial arts movies on file. Do you have any particular preference?"

Kato smiled. Watching his favorite martial artists in action while resting on a comfortable couch would be much better than watching it in his father's cramped trailer. He liked a lot of the most recent actors/combat masters, but what he thought they both needed right now was some comedy to go along with it. There was no comparison to the classics, when it came to combining the grace of martial arts with comedic plots and wit.

"Anything with Jackie Chan will do."

* * *

Savanna knew that Kato could eat terran food but he was accustomed to meals made from native flora and fauna. She tried to make a snack tray consisting only of Pandora food but there wasn't enough variety to make a good presentation. She finally decided to mix a bit of human food into it. She arranged some cheese, cherry tomatoes and cucumber slices over the plate. She also added a couple of carrots and apples. There wasn't any un-thawed meat available, but she knew that wouldn't bother her guest since meat wasn't an everyday part of Na'vi meals.

She placed the tray on the coffee table when she was finished putting it together and she turned on the video monitor. The sound of the shower running distracted her as she cycled through the files in search of the requested category. She had all of the martial arts movies placed in a subfolder for convenience, for just such occasions. After looking at the selection of films starring Jackie Chan, she decided on "Shanghai Noon".

The shower stopped and Savanna grabbed a carrot and bit the end off of it, chewing vigorously. In her effort not to think of Kato naked and drying himself, she ate the entire carrot in record time. She got off the couch and wandered around the living room, struggling to remember what she'd gotten up to do in the first place.

"Oh, drinks," she exclaimed, blinking. She could hear the bathroom door opening and she hurried into the kitchen to pour some juice for herself and her guest.

"Nice spread," Kato called out from the living room. She heard him take a bite out of one of the crunchy veggies or fruits and his next words came out a little distorted. "I haven't had an apple in months!"

She smiled, pleased that she had provided something he enjoyed. "Would you rather have juice, water or cola?"

"Cola, please."

She wasn't very surprised by his answer. It wasn't as if the twins had regular access to the fizzy, artificially flavored drinks. On that note, she was glad she hadn't made popcorn or brought out any candy. She didn't want Kato making himself sick on the junk food he hardly ever got to eat. She took two cans out of the refrigerator and returned to the living room to find that he'd already finished one of the apples.

He had his damp queue draped over his shoulder so that it wasn't resting on the couch. The rest of his hair hung loose and slicked back, hanging to just below his shoulders in wet tendrils. He looked rather exotic, sitting there dressed in his clan garments in the middle of a human living room. Savanna consciously kept her eyes on his face, very aware of the fact that he was wearing nothing but a loincloth. His weapon harness, bow and quiver were sitting in the corner next to the foyer entrance. Thankfully, the couch was custom built to be large enough to seat Sebastian and Savanna comfortably, so Kato fit into it reasonably.

"You can have the other one too," she offered, handing his drink to him. "I can get more from the orchard anytime I want."

He looked somewhat sheepish, even as he eyed the remaining apple hungrily. "I don't want to be a glutton."

Savanna rolled her eyes and smiled at him. "Don't be ridiculous. It isn't like you get to have apples every day. Eat up."

Kato smiled at her as he picked up the apple. "I wish you could come to our village some time. _Sa'nok_ makes stuffed rim fish that melts in your mouth and I'd love you to try it. I've thought of wrapping up a serving and bringing it with us before, but I don't think it would keep well. You really need to try it fresh from the fire."

"My mother promised me she'd let me visit the Ikran village someday soon," Savanna replied. "I'm going to hold her to it."

Kato nodded in agreement and the expression of approval on his face was all she needed when she started the film. "I haven't watched this one for a long time," he said, reaching for some fallow nuts on the tray.

Savanna happened to be reaching for the same thing and their hands bumped together. She hastily pulled her hand away and mumbled an apology, blushing awkwardly. It was like a one of those corny romantic scenes from a movie and it didn't help that he was smirking at her like that.

"Ladies first," Kato insisted with a gesture at the tray. "I get these all the time anyhow, so I won't care if you eat the whole bunch."

Savanna took one of them and gave him a smile, pushing for confidence. "We can share them. Have you ever tried one of these with cheese?"

"No. What's it like?"

"You should try it," she encouraged. "Here, just pick up a wedge and push the nut into it, like this."

She demonstrated by picking up one of the thicker wedges and carefully pushing the nut into the soft cheese, burying it inside. Kato selected a wedge and mimicked her actions, complying with her instructions easily. When he finished, he popped the treat into his mouth and chewed experimentally. Savanna opted to eat hers in individual bites instead of whole, to reduce the possibility of slopping and embarrassing herself.

"What do you think?"

He nodded and made a little purring sound in his throat. "It's good," he said after he finished chewing and swallowing. "Very creative." He proved his sincerity by reaching for more.

Savanna smiled around the food she was chewing and she tried to pay attention to the movie. That sound he'd made distracted her, however. She kept looking at him sidelong, watching as he ate. Kato seemed to be enjoying the snacks she had set out and she ate with him absently, more interested in watching him chew and swallow than feeding her stomach. Fortunately, she was practiced with the technique of observing someone without being obvious, due to her common troubles at school. She only hoped Kato didn't notice.

When the food was gone, they settled back against the cushions and enjoyed the movie together. Savanna was pleasantly surprised when he put an arm around her and drew her closer. She laid her head on his shoulder, again thanking whatever powers might be listening that they had all made it through their terrible ordeal alive and relatively un-hurt. His fingers stroked her hair and she sighed, shutting her eyes. While the gesture wasn't exactly unusual from him, she dared to hope there was something more than the usual friendly affection in it. He rubbed his cheek against the crown of her head and she snuggled closer.

Deciding to throw caution into the wind, she put an arm around his waist and laid her head against his bare chest. He didn't protest or move, so she smiled and relaxed, listening to his heartbeat and the occasional chuckles that rumbled in his chest in response to amusing moments in the movie.

"Are you comfortable like that?" Kato murmured after a few moments.

She was more than 'comfortable'. Savanna could have happily climbed on top of him and curled up in his lap to sleep. Of course, she didn't say so aloud. She nodded and sighed, squeezing him around the waist. There was nothing like feeling his bare skin and the movement of the lean, strong muscles beneath.

She felt his lips brush very lightly against her forehead and she swallowed, thinking she should tilt her head back and coax him to kiss her on the lips. She battled inwardly for a while before deciding she wasn't brave enough to make a move like that just yet. Disappointed with herself but unwilling to risk rejection, she settled for hugging him and resting against his chest.

The movie was only halfway finished before both of them drifted off to sleep, completely worn out from everything they had been through.

* * *

"Bastian, I've got to tell you something and I want you to promise me you won't get angry or upset."

Sebastian stopped working and looked up as his wife approached. He was so absorbed in losing himself in his work to forget the danger his daughter had been in that he hadn't even heard Katherine come into his computer lab. "It's not really possible for me to promise such a thing before I know what you're going to say."

Katherine smiled faintly at him and scooted one of the computer seats over to his. She sat down and crossed her legs in an elegant manner that made his eyes stray to them. Sebastian raised a brow and dragged his gaze away from the shapely calves exposed beneath her cream colored skirt. "Was that little move for my benefit?"

"What move?" Katherine asked, shaking her chestnut hair back. She usually wore it secured in a twist or a bun while she was working, but now it hung loose and wavy to just beneath her shoulders.

Sebastian grinned, amused. "You're using the 'sex appeal' strategy, my dear. I'm onto you."

Katherine sighed and lowered her eyes, falling back into a more natural—but no less attractive—stance. "I suppose you know all my tricks, by now."

He glanced at the open door to ensure nobody was walking by in the hallway and then he slipped a hand under her skirt, just far enough to squeeze her knee. "I'm still enjoying the effort, nonetheless. Now, what is it you want to tell me?"

She took a soft breath, indicating that she was bracing herself. Sebastian braced himself as well, expecting to hear something bloody awful. When she finally spoke, he was admittedly puzzled.

"I stopped by our living unit at lunch to pick up some things I forgot to take with me this morning. Savanna was there in the living room with Kato."

Sebastian waited to hear more but Katherine only looked at him expectantly. He frowned. "Is that all? The twins come to our home to visit all the time, when they're here. Are you worried that I would be upset because Savanna didn't ask permission before inviting them?"

Katherine shook her head. "No. Karyu is still in medical care for an infected bite. It was just Savanna and Kato, alone together." She looked at him warily, possibly expecting an outburst.

It took Sebastian a moment to realize why she thought the news would upset him. His eyebrows went up and his gaze went blank. Savanna was a young woman now and Kato was an attractive young man. Of course, there was a possibility that their affection could grow beyond friendship. Somehow, that particular detail made a bypass in Sebastian's brain and now it was doing a complete one-eighty and coming back around at top speed.

"I...see." He blinked and focused on his wife. "Are you trying to tell me you caught them in a compromised position?"

"That depends on your definition of a 'compromised position,'" she replied dryly. "They were sleeping together."

Sebastian didn't even feel his jaw drop. He tried to respond but an odd grunt was the only noise that escaped.

"Oh, I said that all wrong," Katherine hastily amended. "I didn't mean they were _sleeping_ together. They were just sleeping together."

Sebastian closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. "I'm getting a headache."

Katherine giggled softly behind her hand and scooted closer to him. She reached out and pushed his hands away so she could rub his temples for him. "They were on the couch. They were fully dressed—if you call Kato's usual clothing 'fully dressed'. It looked like they had a snack and fell asleep together watching a movie."

Sebastian felt a wave of relief. "Why did you insist on scaring me that way?"

Katherine bit her lip in an effort to contain a laugh. "I wasn't trying to scare you. I was playing it cautious because I didn't want you to go home to get something, find them that way and flip out."

"Why would I 'flip out' over our daughter resting with one of her oldest friends?" Sebastian wondered aloud. "The poor kids have been through enough over the past two days. I'm certainly capable of overlooking her failure to ask permission for guests."

"And you aren't worried about what she and Kato could get up to, all alone?"

Sebastian hesitated a second. He and Katherine did their best to be supportive of their daughter and encourage her to communicate with them. "I've been preparing myself for her to become romantically involved some day. She has her mother's common sense." He smiled and traced Katherine's lovely features with his fingertips. "That alone helps me to cope with the reality that Savanna isn't a child anymore. I trust her to make good decisions regarding her love life. She has always come to us with any questions or thoughts concerning the matter before. I have faith that she'll do the same if things should change between her and Kato."

Katherine smiled at him and laid one of her hands over his as he stroked her cheek. "I'm glad to hear you say that. After the way you reacted when she and the other kids came home from their little adventure, well..." She let the sentence hang.

Understanding her meaning, he shook his head. "Kath, there's a huge difference between my daughter showing an interest in a boy and my daughter taking off with an untrained pilot into territory rife with volcanic activity. Dating generally won't kill her. Lava will."

Katherine could no longer prevent a chuckle and she eased off of her chair and settled into Sebastian's lap. He embraced her for support as she shifted into a more comfortable position. She nuzzled his ear, making it twitch. "So you're really not concerned?"

He turned his head to look at her. "Of course I am. No father worth his salt wouldn't be. You trust our Savanna, don't you?" He spoke the final part of the sentence with a pleading look in his eyes, wondering if his faith might be misplaced. Teenagers often surprised their parents, after all. The ones that seemed perfect could easily turn out to be the biggest hellions.

"I trust her," Katherine assured him. She stroked his hair and kissed him on the chin. "But you know, we can't expect her to tell us absolutely _everything_ about her life. We're her parents, above all. Some things you just don't tell Mom and Dad."

Sebastian grimaced. "Katherine, sweetheart...I think that it's time for a mother's finesse. You and Savanna should probably discuss birth control options."

* * *

Kato was mortified when he woke up to the early morning light and realized he had slept in the Thomas apartment all through the night. A micro fiber throw was draped over him and Savanna. She was still dozing in his arms, oblivious to the time that had passed or the fact that one or both of her parents had discovered them that way. He carefully eased his arm out from behind her and allowed her to relax against the couch cushions. He slipped out from under the blanket, wincing at every faint sound he made.

Once he succeeded in freeing himself from the couch and the throw, he tucked Savanna in and spared a moment to admire her in the dim light. He loved the shape of her thin brows and the way they arched over her eyes. Her pouty lips drew his attention next and he shot a quick look around the living room before indulging in a soft, very brief kiss. He heard activity down one of the narrow halls and he started to panic, despite logic reminding him that Savanna's parents obviously knew he was there.

Kato lunged towards his gear and snatched up his bow and quiver. He heard footsteps approaching and he hastily slung the items on and headed for the foyer. Just as he was about to reach for the locks on the front door, someone softly cleared their throat behind him. He swore silently and turned around to face Sebastian. It was quite interesting how the man was two feet shorter than him and yet he seemed to tower from his leaning position against the archway.

"You forgot your harness," Sebastian whispered, holding the article out to him.

Kato stepped forward and took it, nodding at the technician respectfully. "Mr. Thomas, I—"

"You've had a rough time of it," Sebastian interrupted with a soft smile. "And your parents should be arriving on base anytime now. We were happy to have you as a guest, Kato. Give your parents our love, won't you?"

Kato was frankly speechless. He nodded convulsively and mumbled something that he hoped was respectful before securing his harness and unlocking the front door. Before he could step out, Sebastian stalled him again.

"Oh, Kato? Take these with you."

Kato turned again to see the older avatar lightly toss two objects through the air at him. He caught them—just barely—and he looked down to see that they were red apples. He smiled in spite of himself and looked at Sebastian somewhat sheepishly. "Thank you, Mr. Thomas."

Sebastian shrugged. "I'd be a poor host if I let you leave without breakfast. Just be sure to save the second one for your sister."

Kato nodded and slipped both pieces of fruit into the little pouch on his harness. He thanked Sebastian again and stepped out. Once he was outside of the apartment complex, he gave himself a moment to think about how the morning had progressed. He had to admit that he was confused. From what he understood, the English were a polite people even when insulting someone.

What if Sebastian wasn't as nice as everyone thought he was and his true meaning behind all of his seemingly kind actions were just a way of saying: "Stay the hell away from my daughter or I'll neuter you and I won't be too quick about it"?

Kato cast an uncertain look over his shoulder at the building as he began to walk away from it. Maybe he was being paranoid. He saw a curtain drop in one of the small windows of the Thomas family home and he imagined Sebastian watching him leave.

Mr. Thomas was certainly one of the most polite people on the base, but that didn't mean he was a pushover. Kato reminded himself of this as he took one of the apples out of his pouch and began munching on it.

* * *

Ni'nat had never felt so exhausted in her life. When they finally arrived at Hell's Gate, she stumbled out of the Samson and Norm had to catch her. She wasn't familiar enough with the flying machines of the humans. She generally avoided riding in them, but since the clan's ikran mounts had fled, there was no choice but to ride in the aircraft sent by Hell's Gate. After steadying Ni'nat, Norm lifted Ralu out and set her down.

"Ralu, wait," Norm called when the excited young girl started running towards the door leading from the hangar to the interior building, "you need an exopack! Don't run off!"

"I will show her," Neytiri offered, having just disembarked with her youngest daughter. "Come, Ralu. You will see your sister soon."

Tom escaped the loud metal bird next and he approached Norm and Ni'nat. Tom said something but the noise from the whirring spinners on either side of the aircraft drowned out her voice. Norm hollered an inquiry and the couple moved closer and spoke again.

"Grace is in the avatar cabin," Tom said, "Tommy, Tsu'tey and the twins should be in the med ward, and so that's where I'm going. We'll meet up with you."

Ni'nat nodded and put an arm around Ralu, hurrying away from the noise of the human contraption. Norm grabbed some exopacks and helped Ralu put hers on before they went inside of the building.

* * *

Tom found Kato and Tanhi sitting with Karyu in the room they had assigned the girl to. Karyu's arm was bandaged and she looked a bit worn and pale, but otherwise seemed fine. Kato looked well-rested and in good spirits. He smiled when he saw his father and he stood up to embrace Tom as he hurried over. Tom got a hug from Tanhi next and then he examined their daughter anxiously, stroking her hair while he asked several questions of her.

"I need to know if my brother was pulling my leg," Tom said to her, searching her eyes. "Jake said you and Kato ended up taming your own ikrans while you were in the mountains. Is that even remotely true or was he just having some inappropriate fun at my expense?"

Kato gave him a sheepish grin. "It's true. It was Karyu's idea, not mine."

"I was trying to save us," she objected, looking up at them challengingly. "How was I supposed to know when or _if_ anyone would find us there?"

"We could have survived for a while," agreed Kato, "but we didn't know how much worse it was going to get. Karyu made a judgment call."

"And you?" Tom demanded with a frown at his son. "You've got a mouth. Why didn't you use it and talk her out of it, instead of going along with it?"

"It wasn't Kato's fault," Karyu defended. "He tried to talk me out of it."

"She wouldn't budge, so I went with her," he added. "What else was I supposed to do, leave her to face it alone?"

"And yet you ended up with your own banshee," Tom reminded him, raising his eyebrows. "How did _that_ happen, if you were just there to observe and help?"

"He didn't mean to," Karyu explained.

"It was an accident," finished Kato.

"Explain to your _sempul_ what happened, " demanded Tanhi with a stern look at the young man.

"Well, he picked me and challenged me while I was up there watching Karyu. I didn't have much of a choice and Karyu was shouting that he chose me for a reason, so I went for it."

Tom shook his head and sighed, but a wry smirk formed on his lips. "You're definitely my son. Not many other people could 'accidentally' tame a banshee, Kato."

"This breaks tradition," Tanhi reminded them all. "It is forbidden to claim an ikran before all other tests are completed. You will not ride your new mounts again until you have completed your _Uniltaron_, understand?"

"But _Sa'nok_, that's going to be another _three years_," complained Karyu. "Our ikrans won't remember us by then and we'll have to start all over with them!"

Tanhi exchanged a look with Tom and she saw how quickly he was wavering. While there was no chance their bonded mounts would ever "forget them", it did seem unfair that the twins should be forbidden from riding the animals they had risked so much to tame. She chewed her lower lip and considered the matter some more.

"While it is a very impressive feat to accomplish at your ages, I cannot overlook this. I will discuss this matter with our _Tsahik_ when we return home and we will decide what can be done without insulting our people's ways. I warn you now, young ones; the path you have chosen may lead to tasks and responsibilities you are not ready for."

Karyu shrugged and the resulting pain in her arm from the gesture made her wince. "I have spent my life preparing for the day when I'll have to lead our clan, Mother. I know you can't be _Olo'eyktan_ forever and I know I have to be ready to step up."

Tanhi approved of her answer and she looked at Kato expectantly. "And you, son?"

"I'm not destined to be a clan leader," he announced softly, "but I made my own choice when that banshee attacked me. I could have avoided him until he lost interest. I guess I'll have to face the music."

Tanhi frowned in puzzlement, still a bit unfamiliar with human slang terms. "What does it mean, to 'face the music'?"

"Take responsibility," Tom supplied with a little smile. "Like an honorable adult."

Tanhi studied her offspring thoughtfully. The twins were unpredictable at best and difficult to read. She saw sincerity in both their faces and she nodded in satisfaction. "I will trust you both to keep your word. Your father and I will go and make breakfast now."

"The hospital brings breakfast around to patients," Kato informed her. "They should be coming within the hour."

"You both need fresh foods to regain your strength," insisted Tanhi. "If I gather and prepare it myself, I know you are getting good nutrition. I have seen how they preserve the food here and my children will not be eating it."

The twins didn't dare argue with her. Tanhi's mothering instincts were as fierce as her hunter instincts and only a fool would challenge her. Besides, she was a good cook and they both looked forward to eating a meal prepared by her. They watched her leave with their father and when they were gone, the twins softly discussed everything that had happened and debated over what they would be expected to do when they returned to the Eastern Sea.

* * *

"You need to eat."

Tommy sighed but he smiled at Gracie as he complied. He spooned up a mouthful of the oatmeal she had brought him and he swallowed it gingerly, wincing as it slid down his throat. It came as a surprise to him that Norm wasn't there, watching like a hawk. Their parents had arrived about an hour ago and Tommy fully expected Grace's father to refuse to let her anywhere near him.

"I'm surprised your parents let you out of their sight," Tommy said when he finished swallowing his food.

Grace shrugged. "I did a little dance for them, to show I wasn't hurt."

He stared at her, thinking she was teasing him. "You serious?"

She nodded. "It was either that or run the obstacle course in the avatar training area. Mom was being reasonable enough but Dad wanted proof that I'm okay."

Tommy smiled. "And he doesn't mind you and I being alone together?" After what happened at the creek that day, he expected his courtship with Grace to become a lot more complicated.

"He acted a little odd about it at first," she admitted, "but mother gave him one of those _looks_ and he didn't try to forbid me from coming to see you. How are your mother and little sister? I haven't had the chance to see them yet."

Tommy ate another spoonful and washed it down with a swallow of water before answering. "They're okay. They came to visit me first and when _Sa'nok_ was satisfied that I'm all right, she took Sylwanin to check on Tsu'tey. They're probably still in there with him now. I think Mom wanted to check out his shoulder herself."

Grace nodded. "I spoke with Dustin on the way here. He said his father told him they'll release you and Emazu today around noon. Tsu'tey and Karyu need more recovery time, though."

"What about the village?" Tommy prompted. "Have you heard anything about the status there?"

"So far, most of the damage is staying in the eruption zone," she answered. "The people here have sent teams out to try and contain forest fires, to keep them from spreading. They can't get very close to the eruption zone, though. They're just trying to keep it from moving into our village. Father would have organized a team of sky hunters to try to put out the fires, but until the ikrans come back, we'll have to rely on Hell's Gate to keep it under control."

Tommy sighed. "We'd probably be screwed if it weren't for them."

Grace smiled faintly and set the food bowl aside on the table. She caressed his face and gave him a tremulous smile. "Your father said that no matter what happens, we all have each other. He's right. Even if we lose the village, the clan got out safely and we can always settle somewhere else. I'm...I'm glad you're here, Tommy."

He reached up and cupped the back of her head, confident that she wouldn't pull away. There was only brief resistance from her as he drew her mouth down to his but she got over her surprise quickly. Their lips met and for the next few moments, both of them forgot about everything except the taste and feel of one another.

* * *

"Son? Come, the others are waiting in the Avatar compound. I do not wish to stay in these cold Sky Person walls longer than we must."

Emazu heard his mother's voice but his feet remained rooted in place. His eyes stayed locked on the sight he could see through the partially opened door. Puzzled by his behavior, his parents stopped walking and came back to him. His mother looked into the infirmary room and when she saw Tommy Sully lip-locked with Grace Spellman, she understood.

"Some things are simply meant to be," she said to Emazu in a low whisper, laying her hand on his shoulder. "I know how you wanted her to choose you, but we cannot force these things, my son."

"Let the tainted ones seek each other out as mates," said Emazu's father in a voice laced with disdain. "She may be a beauty, but you are better off without her. You will find a more suitable mate to grow old with, Emazu—one that is more worthy of you."

Emazu didn't answer. The lump of jealousy and betrayal in his throat made speaking impossible for him right now. Tsu'tey wasn't even considered for the leadership succession, so logically Emazu couldn't truly say everyone was favoring the Sully boys over him. The clan elders had agreed that Tommy would be next in line and should anything happen to him, Emazu would take his place.

But if it weren't for Tommy, he could be leader of the Omaticaya. If it weren't for Tommy, he could have Grace as his mate. It seemed that everything he wanted, Tommy got first. His eyes narrowed on the other young man and he entertained fantasies of interrupting the intimate kiss by shoving Grace away and strangling the life out of Tommy with his bare hands.

"Do not dwell on it," his mother advised, as if she could read his thoughts in his glare. "She has made her choice. Have dignity and seek a different potential mate, son."

He slowly exhaled, realizing for the first time that he'd been holding his breath. He nodded curtly and continued walking down the hall, keeping his pain and envy locked up inside of him. His parents shared a look between them before following him. Emazu wished he hadn't been so honorable when he had Tommy's life in his hands.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Iknimaya_** = The final trial a young hunter has to accomplish in order to be initiated as a full adult, in which she or he must bond with an ikran mount.

**_Sempul_** = Father

**_Uniltaron_ **= Dream Hunt. The rite of passage in which a young hunter seeks out his or her spirit animal and destiny through a ceremonial trance. One of the final, most important steps to becoming an adult and earning one's place as a hunter of the clan.

**_Keltural_** = Hometree.

**_Uniltaron_** = Dream Hunt; similar to a vision quest.

**_Sa'nok_** = Mother


	5. Chapter 5

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 5: Aftermath

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Warning: Graphic sexual situations. Oh, the awkwardness. _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

That night after everyone was rested, Jake called for a gathering outside the Avatar cabin. Because they had nothing to discuss that was particularly private, he didn't care if any passing avatar drivers or residents overheard some of the conversation. The purpose of the meeting was to bring everyone up to speed on what was happening, though Tommy, Tsu'tey and Karyu were still in the hospital and couldn't attend.

"Well, I spoke with General West and believe it or not, he's already sent some teams from the UNEC base to help with the damage control."

Neytiri nodded and she examined her mate thoughtfully. "You seem troubled. Do you think this man and Selfridge have hidden reasons for helping?"

Jake shook his head and frowned, absently drawing Neytiri closer to him and stroking her back. "There's something about West I can't put my finger on."

"Is he like the last Sky Person warrior leader that came here?" Tanhi questioned grimly. Beside her, Kato tensed. Jake guessed that mention of Myers reminded Kato of Phelps. It was difficult to say whether the young man's tension was due to what the MP had tried to do to his mother or what he and his sister had done to steer Phelps into his grave.

"No, he's not like Myers," Jake insisted. "And none of his men are like Phelps, as far as I can tell. I don't think we'll have to worry about a repeat of that part of our history."

"Then what's bothering you about him, if he doesn't remind you of Myers or Quaritch?" Norm asked.

Jake shrugged. "I just feel like I know him from somewhere, that's all. I can't put my finger on it."

Tom raised his eyebrows. "Maybe you met in passing when you were still in the Marines. A lot of years have passed since you left Earth. He probably wouldn't look the same as you remember him, if you did meet him on Home Planet."

Jake nodded thoughtfully. "That's right. I keep forgetting how long it's been. That cryo really messes with your sense of time."

"I forget sometimes too that more time has passed on Earth than I've actually spent here on Pandora," agreed Tom.

Norm wasn't concerned with time or aging. "I know you feel like they can be trusted, but I think the people from UNEC should be watched."

"Trudy's already got people ready to keep an eye on them," Jake assured him. "It's too bad we can't let our guard down by now, but we've all seen too many examples of people getting greedy with resources."

Norm nodded. "Yeah, and this would be the perfect distraction for someone to mine or harvest outside of the contract restraints without anyone noticing it."

Grace heaved a sigh. "A Na'vi can make five bows from the same tree, without killing it or causing it lasting harm. Why not the UN too?"

"Because some humans haven't figured out they don't need to cut down a whole forest to make a single shithouse," Jake finished bluntly.

"Jake," Neytiri warned, pinching him on the ear and making him wince.

"What?" He gave her a look of protest. "I think these two are old enough to hear a couple of swear words. Have you heard some of the things our oldest son comes up with? Not to mention, Karyu can be a little potty-mouth, when she wants to be."

"Your fault!" Neytiri and Tanhi both said in unison, though the latter said it to Tom instead of Jake.

The Sully twins looked at each other helplessly.

"Hey, Tommy learned half of it from the people at Hell's Gate," Jake excused, "especially Trudy. Go smack her around for a while, if you're brave enough."

"You do not help with your use of crude language," Neytiri insisted, though the corner of her mouth twitched suspiciously.

"They're just words," Kato reminded the adults. He immediately fell silent and lowered his eyes as his mother raised a brow at him warningly.

"Back on the subject at hand," Tom said with a cough. "How are we keeping up with what's happening with the rest of the Omaticaya?"

"I left a transmitter with the huntress I put in charge," Norm answered. "She knows how to use it and I'm sure she'll contact us if the clan gets into trouble."

"I'll give her a buzz tomorrow so I can tell her what's going on here and find out how our clan is doing," Jake said. "I'm thinking of leaving to meet up with them. You all can stay here with the kids until this situation is over with."

"I will go with you, if you leave tomorrow," Neytiri insisted, slipping her hand into his.

Jake returned the pressure of her hand. "You wouldn't rather stay here with the kids?"

Neytiri smiled softly at the others. "I know Sylwanin will be well looked after. Her brothers are almost men now and they are recovering well. I am _Tsahik_, my Jake. I should be there with you, to lead our people."

Jake nodded, quietly happy with her decision. The whole situation was depressing. Reassuring the clan in their time of need would be easier with his mate at his side.

* * *

The next morning, Dustin was up bright and early to monitor the readings on volcanic activity and go over the reports with his father. He and the others were allowed a three-day leave from school after their ordeal, but the young scientist wasn't taking advantage of the little vacation the way most people in his age bracket would. He obsessively poured over the data and kept a hawk's eye on the goings-on with the efforts to keep forest blazes under control.

"We're going to have to put out an advisory for all residents to minimize their time outside, even with exopacks," Max was saying to Trudy as he peered at the local atmospheric readings on his monitor. "Even avatars should be using breathing filters until the toxins clear out."

"We're getting ash fallout," Trudy said with a nod. "It's being blown in from the west. Our people are keeping the fires from getting closer to the Hometree boundaries but that's about all they're managing. We can't keep it under control to the north while we're fighting to keep the shit from spreading to Omaticaya territory. General West's people just made it on site so I'm hoping their help is going to make a difference."

Max nodded. "We can't assume there's no risk of the destruction spreading in our direction, either. We've got to keep this tightly under control and be sure nobody save for military personnel and approved Avatar drivers leaves the compound, until this is over." He glanced over at his son, who was hunched over another computer with a scowl on his face. "How is it looking, Dustin?"

Dustin tapped in a command on the flat, touchpad keyboard and he snarled, shaking his head. "The readings are off again. Dad, we need to have the monitors in that territory looked into when this is over with. They suck at giving consistent stats."

Max shared a look with Trudy and then regarded the young man with concern. "Maybe you should consider doing something with your friends today, son. Leave it be for a while and try to relax."

"You're wound up too tight," agreed Trudy.

"I'm okay," Dustin insisted.

Trudy sighed and prepared to open her mouth to say something else, but a familiar blond teenager walked through the sliding doors at that moment. Seeing Dustin's friend, Trudy sighed in relief and motioned him over. "Andrew, come over here and convince this little boneheaded workaholic to take a break, would ya?"

Andrew had a look at Dustin, who glanced up at him, spared him a nod and then turned his attention back to the readings. "Dude, did you even hear what your mom just said?"

Dustin nodded absently, though the words hadn't truly registered with him. "This thing hates joy and wants to see it die."

Andrew spared his friend's parents a helpless glance before walking over to Dustin's computer and leaning over his shoulder. "What, the volcano?"

"No, the piece of garbage monitoring the volcano," answered Dustin.

Andrew scratched his head and frowned at the dark-haired young man. "You get joy out of watching seismic readings? Seriously?"

"When it can help me predict events like this, yes." Dustin kept tapping away at the keypad.

Andrew laid a hand on one of Dustin's tense shoulders and squeezed it. "You're way too tense. Come on; we can go play video games or something at my place."

Dustin looked up at the blond incredulously. "Now isn't the time to play video games!"

"Oh yes it is," Trudy said sharply, putting her foot down. "Everybody's working on rotation schedules to keep fatigue at bay, kid. You can do like the rest of us and take some time to wind down, before you snap. Even your Dad's been taking breaks."

"But Ma—"

Trudy shook her head. "No sir. Get the hell out of that chair and go hang out with your buddy. That's an order and you're already in deep crap with me for your little adventure."

"Come on," coaxed Andy. "We can play that one game you like so much."

Dustin paused and looked up at him again, his attention finally distracted from the dodgy readings. Andrew's blue eyes were sly and amused on him, telling Dustin that he hadn't imagined the hint in his voice. "Uh...are we both thinking of the same game?"

"The strategy game, right?" Andrew smirked. "I'll bet I win, this time."

Dustin hesitated for a second before returning his smirk. "We'll see. You've talked me into it."

"I knew I could."

Max slumped in relief as Dustin got out of his chair and started toward the door with his friend. "I'm sure Joyce and Allen keep the pantry stocked, but feel free to raid ours if you two need more to eat."

Dustin and Andrew shared a grin. "How much food do you think teenagers eat, Dad?"

Max shrugged. "You boys eat enough to feed a small army, given the rate of food disappearance in our home. If you could convince the girls your age to consume even a fourth of what you do, eating disorders amongst the young women on this base would decline drastically."

Andrew furrowed his brows and Dustin nudged the taller boy. "Serves me right for asking. Come on, let's go before he gets started on his theories about curing teens of selective hearing."

Trudy snickered at the protesting expression on Max's face as her son and Andrew hurried out of the room. "You know you ramble once you get started, Maxi."

He scratched the stubble on his chin and shrugged. "Yes, I know." He noticed the thoughtful look of concentration on his lover's face as she watched their son go out the door with his companion. He looked from the teens to Trudy and raised his eyebrows. "Is something wrong?"

She frowned and shook her head, but her eyes remained on the exit. "Just thinking too much, I guess."

"That's my job," Max said quietly. He cast a look around to be sure the other people in the data room weren't watching and he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

Trudy reached up to ruffle his hair. "Yeah, it is."

* * *

Mt. Pizayu remained volatile for a further five days before the activity finally began to wane and the rumbling slowly stopped. The skies were dark with clouds of smoke and dust for hundreds of miles in every direction of the volcano. Areas that weren't immediately damaged from the activity were coated in a blanket of ash—which continued to drift from the sky like snowflakes for several days after the last sputter of activity. The residents of Hell's Gate found themselves showering more often and going outside less. Even the exopacks couldn't completely filter out the sulfuric stink in the air.

"We were actually lucky," Dustin explained to his friends when they met up in one of the presentation rooms in the recreation building. Andrew was getting the big screen ready for the film they were going to watch and Savanna was in the building's small kitchen, getting snacks ready.

"How was this lucky?" Tsu'tey asked with a pointed frown at his sling-supported arm. Across the room, Karyu struggled to adjust to the awkwardness of having her arm bound and in a sling as well.

Dustin shrugged. "Hometree is still standing, for one thing."

"Good point," agreed Tommy. "But our hunting grounds are all messed up now. We'll have to travel further for fresh water, fishing and game until the land recovers."

"True, but volcanic activity can last for months...even years. We're all very lucky that Pizayu didn't keep erupting like that for longer than a week. We're going to have to keep a close eye on it from now on too. They're making arrangements to have the monitoring equipment at the remote base serviced and upgraded."

"I'm sure that thrills you to the core," Grace said with a grin.

She sat down cross-legged on the big microfiber blanket spread over the floor and her little sister scooted closer to her, laying her head on her shoulder. They had to wear exopacks to hang out with their friends in this building, but neither of them minded. Sylwanin was busy braiding Ralu's hair and she paused for a moment to adjust her mask. Grace looked over at Karyu and she chuckled as the petite Ikran huntress fussed over the display screen with Andrew. Sometimes she envied the twins and Savanna for their ability to adjust to either atmosphere, but that very advantage set them further apart from their peers and made their social lives more difficult.

"I'm thrilled they're finally doing something about improving the accuracy of the data collectors, yeah," Dustin agreed with a shrug. "The earlier we can predict these things, the less damage we'll all have to deal with."

Tsu'tey sank down onto the blanket beside Sylwanin and nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense. I don't want to be stuck in a situation like that again."

Tommy took a seat beside Grace and she flushed a little when he took her hand and twined his fingers with hers. "Well, it's over now and we'll find a way to get by until everything clears up. I'm just glad we didn't lose any people or our home."

"Amen to that," grunted Andrew. "Hey Brain-o, I think we need you to get this thing going."

"You're doing it wrong," complained Karyu, "the output file destination path is supposed to be the video folder!"

"If you can figure out how to make this stupid machine recognize that, be my guest," Andrew said lightly. "Otherwise I think Dusty's going to have to find the magic word."

"I'm not familiar with this system," Karyu admitted grudgingly.

Dustin shook his head and smiled, skirting around the Na'vi seated on the floor to help his friends with the video presentation. "I have to do everything around here."

"It's not my fault my father won't upgrade his equipment," objected Karyu. "Kato and I are used to dealing with older electronics than this."

"It's okay. We'll have this going in no time." Dustin glanced at her before returning his attention to the controls. "Maybe you should check on your brother and Sav. They're taking a long time getting those snacks."

Karyu snorted. "Of course they are. Wish me luck...there's no telling what I might walk in on when I find those two."

"I think you're paranoid," Grace said generously. "They aren't in that 'place' yet, even if they have sparks."

Dustin and Karyu shared a glance between them, both having a different impression of the chemistry between Kato and Savanna. The attraction shared between the male twin and the hybrid girl was more obvious with each day and it was hard to miss the barely concealed desire in their eyes.

"I'll go see what they're up to," Karyu sighed. She doubted that her twin had Tommy's self-control but she did have faith that Savanna would keep Kato in check.

* * *

"Kato," Savanna gasped, shutting her eyes.

She tilted her head to the side and held him tight as his lips sucked on the skin of her neck. She still wasn't sure how it happened; one minute he was brushing a smudge of flour off the tip of her nose and the next minute they were locked in a kiss against the counter. The cocktail wieners she had been wrapping in dough for her human friends lay forgotten on the baking pan. She stumbled a little on the Pandora nuts that were scattered over the kitchen floor and Kato supported her, pressing her tighter against the counter to keep her from falling. The bowl that had contained the nuts was broken, lying forgotten on the floor.

Savanna felt herself being lifted and she eagerly met Kato's seeking mouth with hers, pushing her fingers through his hair. He set her on the counter and his hips settled between her thighs, while his hands cupped her bottom and pulled her tight against him. Warmth spread through her body when one of his hands burrowed under her shirt to fondle a breast.

_~Tell him to stop...this is going too fast!~_

Though her mind was shouting the warning at her, Savanna had no real interest in protesting against Kato's explorations. In fact, her body demonstrated blatant rebellion against common sense and her legs hugged his waist greedily. Her hands stroked his bare chest and she delighted in the feel of the sleek muscles beneath his smooth skin. She didn't even care that her shorts were giving her an uncomfortable wedgie. She felt his arousal digging against her through the thin layers of clothing and it made her throb all over with lust. His tongue stroked and thrust inside of her mouth and she reciprocated, slipping her hands lower between their bodies. He broke the kiss again to pepper her throat with nibbles, licks and kisses while he tried to get into her bra.

"Kato," Savanna said again, trying to regain her senses. "I think maybe we should...oh!"

Her mind went blank when he gently squeezed her nipple. He pulled the cup of her bra down enough to expose her left breast to his touch and he was now taking thorough advantage of his success. Savanna's eyes fluttered shut and she laid one palm against his chest as his thumb brushed back and forth over her pebbled nipple. She wasn't prepared for how good it felt to be touched that way by someone else. Her other hand was unconsciously sliding lower, making its way below his navel to touch him more boldly.

Kato's mouth sought hers out again and Savanna kissed him without thought, forgetting what it was she was trying to say a moment ago. He slipped his other hand under her blouse and cupped her other breast. She wriggled against him instinctively as he fondled them both. She was just about to cop a feel herself when the lusty interlude was horribly and rudely interrupted.

"Great. I _told_ them I'd find you two doing something like this!"

Kato let go of Savanna and jumped away from her so hastily that she almost tumbled off of the counter. The young woman awkwardly caught herself and she looked at Karyu with bewildered, guilt-ridden eyes.

"I...we were..." she began stupidly.

"It was...an accident," Kato added in an unsteady, breathless voice.

Karyu raised her brows and looked at her twin. "You do an awful lot of things by 'accident' that other people do on purpose. I think a lot of boys would love to be accident-prone the way you are, Kato."

"I'll just...bring this stuff to the others," Savanna said hastily. Her face was delightfully pink as she gathered the 'pigs in a blanket' and took off with them, heedless of the fact that they were still raw. Kato watched her go with parted lips, wanting to inform her that she was bringing their friends uncooked snacks but unable to find his voice.

Karyu compressed her lips on a smirk as the hybrid girl left the kitchen and she waited until she was gone before facing her twin with an expectant look.

* * *

"Well?"

Kato stared at his sister. "'Well', what?"

Karyu sighed. "You know, I expected to find you two kissing sooner or later but that was more than I was ready for. You were practically mating, Kato!"

"I...I wasn't going to..."

"You were humping her against the counter," Karyu insisted mercilessly. "I know what I saw...though I really, really wish my memory had an 'erase' button! Don't you have _any_ self-control?"

Kato swallowed. His body was trembling from the force of the lust he had felt a moment ago and to his humiliation, his resulting condition was still obnoxiously apparent. "I don't know what happened," he confessed. "I mean, I've wanted to kiss her for a while now but I didn't mean for it to go like that. We were making snacks together and she got some flour on her face."

"So you decided to suck it off?" Karyu was grimacing and he knew she was trying not to laugh at him.

"It just _happened_, okay?" He wanted to climb into one of the cabinets and hide for the rest of the day. "I don't know how but it did and once it started, she felt and tasted so good I couldn't stop!"

Karyu snorted. "She's a girl, not a piece of candy."

"I know that," he snapped, his arousal finally cooling. "But you don't know what it's like. Some day you're going to catch up to me and we'll see how well you deal with it."

"I'll handle it better than _you_ do," she promised. "Now come on, you slut. Help me get this food so we can start the movie. The others are waiting and I've only got one good arm to work with."

Kato sighed and grumbled under his breath as he gathered the rest of the snacks for transport. "Don't say anything to the others," he warned her. "I know you don't care about embarrassing me but at least take pity on Savanna. She doesn't deserve to be humiliated over me jumping her like that."

"From where I was standing, it didn't look like she had any objections," Karyu said dryly. "But don't worry...I like Sav too much to do that to her. Besides, I don't want to repeat what I saw to anyone because that would require thinking about it again."

* * *

True to her word, Karyu didn't share what she walked in on with the others. Kato was sure their friends could tell something was the matter, given the fact that Savanna brought raw cocktail weenies to them and couldn't look the twins in the eye for the rest of the afternoon. The whole thing raised some eyebrows but Dustin was too tactful to press for details aloud and Andrew didn't know what to ask in the first place. Sylwanin and Ralu were both too young to understand the strange tension in the air and their older siblings minded their own business.

Midway through the movie, Kato gathered the courage to scooch a little closer to Savanna and she gave him a shy little smile when he slipped his hand into hers. At least she seemed to forgive him for mauling her. He could only hope she wasn't afraid to be alone with him again, after that incident.

* * *

Kato and Savanna weren't the only ones taken aback by their own behavior. Grace was in a state of regret over admitting her feelings so passionately to Tommy and she was trying to put on the brakes. It wasn't that she didn't want him and it wasn't that the kisses they had shared weren't mind-blowing. The problem was that she was very aware of Emazu's jealous gaze every time they crossed paths. She was also conscious of the way hers and Tommy's parents smiled at the two of them in an expectant, knowing way. She was just learning about womanly desires and it felt like everything was moving faster than she could handle it. With the stress of worrying about how her clan was going to adjust to the aftermath of the eruption, the pressure of growing into womanhood was more than she could handle.

When Tommy's parents left to join the rest of the clan and lead them safely home, Grace knew that soon life would return to relative normalcy. Things would be difficult for the Omaticaya for a while but they would get by and hers and Tommy's journey to adulthood would resume. They would become a mated pair. She knew this in her heart of hearts and she felt Eywa's approval. It should have comforted her to know with such certainty that Tommy was meant to be hers and nobody else's. Instead, it frightened her.

Unfortunately, Tommy had no idea what was going on in her head and he couldn't understand her change in attitude when she became more conservative with her affections. He was patient with her. He didn't try to pressure her and he was careful not to get too arduous with his attentions, telling himself his feelings shouldn't be hurt over her change of attitude. It was difficult for him, though. There wasn't a nineteen-year-old male in existence that wouldn't have felt frustrated and toyed with but Tommy's determination to treat Gracie right kept him from losing his temper and saying something to her that he might regret—at least, for the first couple of days after his parents departed Hell's Gate.

Keeping his confusion to himself became more difficult as the week moved on.

* * *

"Grace, the sun's finally coming out again. Do you want to take a walk in the forest outside the compound?"

Grace looked up from the beaded necklace she was weaving and she bit her lower lip uncertainly. Tommy had a hopeful expression on his handsome face and she couldn't in good conscience turn him down. Besides, she hadn't seen a ray of sunshine since the volcano mess began. Beside her, Ni'nat smiled encouragingly and urged her with her eyes to spend some time alone with her love interest.

"Okay, just for a little while," Gracie agreed. She set her partially finished necklace aside on the table by her bunk and she took the young man's offered hand.

"Can I come?" Ralu asked, clamoring over eagerly from the other side of the room.

Grace almost said yes, if only so that she wouldn't be alone with Tommy. Norm intervened before she could use the little girl as a shield against her boyfriend's affections, however.

"Let your sister and Tommy have a little time alone," Norm advised the little girl.

Grace blinked at her father, again surprised by how amicable he was being about her relationship with Tommy. Ever since they reunited at Hell's Gate, Norm's attitude concerning the romance between the two of them took a completely different turn. Now he encouraged her to spend time alone with him, rather than trying to find reasons to keep her from doing it.

"Aww, I want to go with Gracie," Ralu complained, pouting.

Grace smiled and stroked her sister's hair. "I'll take you out to play later this afternoon," she promised, knowing it would look strange if she tried to invite the girl now. "Why don't you and Sylwanin find something to do together, in the meantime?"

"Sylwanin's helping Miss Ramona in the lab building," sighed Ralu. "She likes that boring old science stuff."

"I will take you to look at the Earth animals in the dome," offered Ni'nat tactfully. "Would you like that, little one?"

Ralu brightened. "I like petting the animals there! The baby chickens are so soft."

Ni'nat smiled. Most Na'vi children found the terran animals fascinating, with their fur and feathers, funny legs and alien eyes. Pandora wildlife was generally hairless and in no way cuddly. "Then come. Norm, will you join us?"

"Sure," he agreed, smiling down at his youngest daughter. He looked at Grace and Tommy and gave them a smile as well. "Don't go too far, okay? Bring your weapons too. Most of the wildlife stays clear of the base but some of the more aggressive animals aren't too scared to come in close."

"Yes sir," Tommy agreed respectfully. "We'll be careful."

* * *

Tommy studied his companion in the dappled sunlight as they walked through the forest together. She was so lovely...and so distant. He could sense her keeping him at arm's length, so to speak. He considered the problem and he decided he wasn't going to fix whatever was wrong without taking initiative. He stopped and he put his hands on her waist, bringing her to a stop as well. Her high, sculpted cheekbones bloomed prettily with color as he lowered his head to hers. Instead of trying to kiss her, he whispered in her ear.

"Grace, you look beautiful today." He said it in a low purr and he smiled when her ear twitched and she shivered.

"Thank you," she whispered back. Her hands settled on his biceps and her fingertips traced the leather band tied around his left one.

Tommy pulled back a little and gazed into her eyes. "When we get home, I'll finish my trials as fast as I can. Maybe they'll let us pair up sooner, even if you haven't completed your initiation yet."

"That would go against custom," Grace reminded softly, lowering her eyes.

Tommy smiled. "Not exactly. I asked _Sa'nok_ about it and she said other Omaticaya have been paired early before in the past, because they were ready to mate before they finished their trials."

"It happens sometimes when the population is dangerously low...girls come of age faster than normal so they can bring new life into the clan." Grace was blushing harder, avoiding looking at him. "Since that isn't the situation now, it doesn't apply to us."

Tommy refused to be deterred. "But it could. Mating isn't just about having babies, Grace. There's _tsahaylu_ too. We have the bond to look forward to and that's supposed to be amazing, if people aren't exaggerating."

She started to pull away but he held her closer, embracing her. "Grace, can't I just hold you for a little while? I'm not trying to jump your bones. You don't have to be afraid."

"I'm not afraid," she protested, licking her lips nervously. She finally looked up at him and the anxiety in her eyes revealed the fib for what it was.

"I think you are," Tommy said with certainty. "But I don't get why. You peeped on me when I was bathing, you took your clothes off in front of me and you kissed me first. Now you're acting like I'm trying to jump on you and I haven't even kissed you yet. Tell me what you want from me, Grace."

She looked somewhat ashamed. "Tommy, I'm not trying to play games with you. I know I've been unfair and I know I keep sending mixed messages, but it's only because my feelings are so confusing to me."

He relaxed and loosened his hold on her a bit, trusting her not to pull away now that he had her talking about what was troubling her. He traced her features with the fingertips of one hand while keeping his other arm around her waist, gently encouraging her to embrace him. Of course, he couldn't know what it was like for her. He'd been having these feelings since puberty and though they were a pain in the ass, he had time to adjust to them over the years. Grace's urges didn't give her a chance to adjust. In many ways, Na'vi males were the lucky ones.

Acting on instinct, Tommy lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her softly. He pulled back and whispered to her after a moment. "You don't have to be afraid. It's me, Gracie. You know I'll always do my best to make you happy."

Grace parted her lips to respond but he kissed her again when she hesitated, hoping he was right in his guess that she just needed a little more persuasion and the opportunity to get used to intimacy. He felt her tension but her lips were pliant and willing against his. He caressed her jaw and neck with his fingertips and slowly brushed down over her shoulder and back. She shivered and her skin prickled with goose bumps in reaction to the light touch. He eased his tongue past her lips and explored the warmth of her mouth.

Her muffled objection warned him that he was moving too eagerly and he eased up on his aggression, slowing the motions of his lips and tongue. He slid his hand up her back again and he combed his fingers through her silken hair, stroking in slow, soothing motions. He felt so connected to her, even though they weren't linked in a bond of _tsahaylu_. He thought there must be no other explanation except that they were truly meant to be together, and he wondered if she felt the same.

Gracie's hands settled on his chest as the kiss deepened and Tommy pulled her closer with his other arm, breathing faster with growing desire. His hand splayed over the small of her back and without considering his actions, he lined his hips up with hers and pressed closer. She put her arms around his neck and her tongue suddenly pushed aggressively against his as the evidence of his need bumped against her pelvis. His tail was practically doing a corkscrew with agitation and he began to fumble with the laces of her leather bodice as subtly as he could.

Grace's hands had made it to just above the waistline of his loincloth and they hesitated uncertainly. Tommy carefully pulled his mouth away from hers and he brushed his thumb over her parted lips. He stopped working to undo her top and he lowered his hand to cover one of hers. Searching her eyes with his own, he hoped he wasn't misreading her behavior. Her actions indicated that she was interested in learning more about his body and he remembered how she had asked him to undress for her that day at the creek.

Taking a slow, steadying breath, Tommy swallowed his anxiety and guided her hand lower, easing the palm over the swell of his arousal. He flushed with both excitement and embarrassment, having never been touched by a woman this way before.

"You don't have to," he whispered, trying to still the nervous tension in his body. "I just thought you wanted to."

Grace's beautiful features were full of curiosity and wonder as she pressed her palm more firmly against the length of his protruding sex, hidden beneath the tribal garment. "Does it ache?" She slowly curled her fingers around the shaft through the material and she gently squeezed it.

Tommy lost coherent thought for a moment and he stared blankly at nothing, entranced by the feel of her hand gripping him that way. Realizing he had better answer her question if he didn't want her to let go, he shook his head and swallowed. "Not exactly. It's a little uncomfortable but the ache is kind of a warm throb. It doesn't _hurt_, really. Oh...that's really nice." He bowed his head over her shoulder as she stroked it—possibly in an effort to sooth the stiffened flesh. Listening to common sense instead of libido was difficult now—more difficult than he expected. Every cell in his body was urging him yank their clothing off and start humping like mad.

Having enough sense left to realize any sudden, aggressive moves would probably just scare her, Tommy shuddered and held her tight, murmuring her name in an uneven voice. He resumed his attempts to conquer the laces on her bodice, determined to at least catch a glimpse of those perfect, full breasts again before things had to wind down. They sank down onto the ground together, until they were facing one another on their knees. Tommy coaxed Grace onto her back, supporting her with one hand splayed between her shoulder blades. She was tense and trembling but she didn't refuse his urgings. He waited for a moment before continuing with his earlier actions, letting her touch him at leisure until he felt her tension ease a bit once more.

"Grace, I wish we were already mated," he said huskily, easing one leg between her thighs.

Her face was flushed as she gazed back up at him and her hand continued to gently stroke him through the loincloth. She moistened her lips with her tongue and swallowed before answering. "A part of me wishes that too," she confessed. Her long lashes concealed her eyes as she lowered her gaze. "But another part of me is still scared. You know so much more about this kind of thing than I do."

"I know the basics," he agreed with a tight little smile. He gasped and shut his eyes for a moment as she rubbed a particularly sensitive spot. "That doesn't mean I've got more experience."

"But do you really like this, or are you trying to spare my feelings?" She rubbed the tip of his sex again and watched his face as another gasp escaped his lips.

Tommy shook his head and then hastily nodded, too confused to decide how to answer the question at first. "I...I really like it," he insisted breathlessly when her hand slowed. He reached down to cover it with his and urged her to keep going. "It feels so good, Gracie."

With his guidance, she began to rub up and down the length of his erection, sliding the soft, treated leather of his garment over it with her motions. Tommy's hips jerked into motion and he began to thrust into her touch. He covered her mouth with his and kissed her. It was a somewhat sloppy kiss but it seemed to turn Grace on more anyhow. She made a soft little whimpering sound and she wriggled beneath him, pushing against the thigh he had wedged between her legs. He felt the warmth of her concealed loins and he groaned, rubbing his thigh against the spot in frustration.

Now Tommy had a bit of a conundrum to deal with. He still wanted to free her breasts from her top but now he wanted another look at her downstairs parts, too. He remembered the delicate crease he had caught a glimpse of before Norm rudely interrupted them, that day at the creek. He bared his teeth as the scent of her arousal reached his nostrils and suddenly he wanted to do something that made him go utterly still with shock.

He wanted to bury his nose between her legs, breathe in the scent of her and taste her most intimate area with his tongue. He stopped kissing her and blinked, taken aback by the new, unexpected urge.

"Tommy?" Grace asked between kisses, "What's the matter? Did I squeeze too hard?"

He shook his head and squeaked at her.

Grace frowned. "Are you sure? The last time I heard you make a noise like that was when you got hit down there with a baseball."

Realizing how easily her confidence and eagerness could fade if he didn't say something to reassure her soon, he smiled down at her and kissed her. "It's okay. If you hurt me, I'll let you know."

The flush returned to her cheeks as she looked down, watching as she stroked him. Tommy's breath caught at the expression of fascination on her face and the pressure between his legs peaked so fast, he had no time to stop Grace or pull away.

"Oh...oh shit," Tommy grunted, digging his fingers into the moss on either side of her body. "G-Gracie...unh!"

* * *

Grace heard the gasped curse and she felt the thick, rigid organ she was grasping harden even further and twitch. She had time to look up at Tommy's flushed, tense face before the friction between his flesh and the loincloth changed. The soft leather was now sliding easily along the shaft of his arousal—almost in a slick manner. His body was taut and he stopped breathing for a moment, frightening her.

"Tommy? You said I wasn't hurting you!" Grace looked down, feeling his shaft softening under her hand.

She looked down and saw the damp spot spreading over his loincloth. It was then that she remembered something she'd been told about male anatomy—one of the only useful things her father had taught her. Either he had just wet himself or he had just ejaculated.

Tommy resumed breathing again in ragged pants. He was trembling all over. Confused by the whole thing, Grace just blurted her thoughts, remembering the words Savanna used to describe situations like this. "Did you just come?"

She had never seen Tommy blush so deeply before in the entire time she knew him. His mouth worked and he stared at her helplessly, still panting for breath. "I...you should go."

He rolled off of her and stumbled to his feet, turning his back on her. He struggled to get his bow over his shoulders and he reached for an arrow. "The walls are in plain sight as soon as you step out of the forest. If anything _is_ stupid enough to come after you between here and there, I'll shoot it."

Grace got to her feet on shaky legs and she looked down at her bodice, realizing it was halfway unlaced. "Tommy...I didn't mean—"

"You didn't do anything wrong," he said, still keeping his back to her. "I'll go in later."

"You shouldn't stay out here alone," she said softly as she tightened the laces and adjusted her top. "Don't be embarrassed. I can wait for you to do whatever you need to do."

If anything, Tommy's tension got worse. "Just go, okay? I'll be fine. I just need to...take care of this before anyone else sees me."

Grace bit her lip, feeling terribly guilty. If she hadn't played with it like that, he wouldn't be in this situation. "You're mad at me."

Tommy half-turned and looked at her over his shoulder. "No way. I promise, I'm not mad at you. If anything, I'm mad at myself."

She frowned. "Why? I thought part of this whole mating thing was supposed to be making each other feel good? You're the one that said it was okay, Tommy."

"I know," he agreed. His voice sounded half-pleading. "And we _are_ supposed to make each other feel good. I'm just...uh...not supposed to feel _that_ good _that_ fast, okay?"

She didn't understand. "I'm going to kill my father for keeping so much of this from me. I feel like _such_ an idiot."

Tommy turned around and approached her, evidently forgetting his own humiliation in the face of her self-berating. "You aren't an idiot," he insisted. He cupped her face and kissed her on the lips, avoiding brushing against her body with his own. "You're just a little more sheltered than some people our age. Compared to humans, we all are."

"But just knowing how things work doesn't mean we're going to run out and mate with everyone we see," she protested.

Tommy chuckled and shrugged. "I think parents know that but some just don't want to admit it. Don't be too mad at your father, Grace. Humans are obsessed with sex and they punish themselves over it at the same time. Uncle Norm can't shake that part of his background and he was just trying to protect you and Ralu. I thought you forgave him already, anyway."

She sighed and reached up to smooth a loose strand of hair away from Tommy's eyes. "I did...until this happened. I feel like I've done something terrible to you and I'm not sure why."

He lowered his gaze and shook his head. "No. Something terrible would have been getting me all excited and then taking off without looking back. It's my fault I lost control, not yours."

"You're talking about it like it's a bad thing," she insisted. "Tommy, I'm confused enough as it is. I was just starting to feel more confident and now you're acting like you're ashamed of yourself for something I thought was supposed to be good." She could still taste him on her lips, still feel his hard body pressing her down. While they were kissing and touching, all of her fear and confusion fell into the background and for once, everything just felt _right_.

He seemed to read some of her concerns in her eyes when he looked into them. He nodded and gave her a strained little smile, still flushed with embarrassment. "I don't want this to upset things between us, Grace. I want you to feel natural around me and I don't want you to be afraid or uncomfortable when we can finally be together. You uh..._do_ want to be with me, right?"

He looked suddenly boyish and uncertain as he asked the final question. Grace could have teased him and said she still had other males to consider before making her decision, but she didn't have the heart after what had happened. It would have been a lie, anyhow. She put her hands on his shoulders and rose to kiss him softly on the mouth.

"I do. Don't let it go to your head though. I can change my mind anytime I want before we're mated, you know."

Tommy grinned, finally relaxing a little. "You won't, though."

"Don't be so sure," she warned, straightening her weapon harness. "If you start getting arrogant, I might change my mind and go for a different suitor."

He grimaced down at his soiled garment. "I don't think you have to worry about me being arrogant right now. I've knocked my own ego down about a mile. Promise me you won't say anything about this to our friends, will you?"

She took pity on him, understanding well enough that it was a matter of male pride. Tommy certainly didn't deserve to have his wounded any further. "It's between us. I'll give you some privacy so you can clean up, but I don't want to go back without you, okay?"

"All right. I'll go to that little pond that's deeper in here. Give me a shout if anything bothers you."

"You do the same," she reminded him. "And Tommy?"

He paused and regarded her questioningly.

"I liked touching you that way." She said it hastily and her face immediately burned, but she smiled and held his eyes.

Tommy stared at her silently for a moment and his crotch began to swell. "You're a trouble-maker," he informed her in a tone that wasn't entirely teasing.

* * *

Tommy couldn't quite keep his "early arrival" incident to himself, though he had made Grace promise not to tell anyone. There was one man he trusted to give him advice without teasing him or telling anyone else about his issue.

"Uncle Tom, can I talk to you about something?"

Tom looked up from the monitor he was peering at with Max. His gaze swept over the young man with faint concern. "Is everything all right, Tommy?"

"Yeah, it's nothing major," answered Tommy. "It can wait until later, if you're too busy." He scratched the strap holding his exopack mask in place uncomfortably. He hated wearing the breathing filters but finding Tom Sully at this time of day required venturing into the lab building, where most of the atmosphere was suited for human breathing.

"No, I'm just looking over the latest readings," Tom assured. "I can take some time out for a chat. Excuse me, Max."

Dr. Patel nodded and gave Tommy a smile of greeting before returning his attention back to his work. Tom skirted around the equipment in the room and joined his nephew at the door. Together, they walked down the hall toward the exit and Tom gave his namesake a puzzled, curious look as they approached the big sliding doors.

"For something that isn't a big deal, you have a pretty serious look on your face. Don't tell me the twins have done something wrong."

Tommy smirked. "If they had, I wouldn't be here telling you about it. That would make me a traitor."

Tom chuckled. "Fair enough. What can I do for you?"

Tommy glanced around and when he spotted a tended area of green across the street beneath a native tree, he gestured at it. "Could we sit down on that bench over there? It's not something I want to say here at the entrance, where people could overhear as they come and go."

Tom shrugged. "Fine by me."

Tommy started toward the squared grass area and he waited for his uncle to have a seat before he sat down beside him on the bench. "I'm just going to come right out and say it," Tommy informed without looking directly at the older man, "because if I stop to think of how to ask this, I'm just going to lose my nerve."

Tom stared at him somewhat warily. "I see. Should I brace myself?"

"I don't know." Tommy took a deep breath and swallowed. "Is it weird for a guy to get too excited while he's messing around and...you know...blow it?"

Tom frowned, not immediately catching onto his meaning. "Messing around how?"

"With a girl."

"Oh..._oh_! That. Sometimes it just happens...especially to younger, inexperienced men."

Tommy flushed and averted his eyes again. "So it's not a medical thing? It's normal?"

Tom was equally uncomfortable, but he understood how much courage it took for Tommy to speak to anyone about this. Deciding not to mention Grace or ask how far things had gone with them, he tried to keep it clinical. "Well, if it happens too frequently it could indicate a medical problem. If a man can't functionally copulate because of it, he should have it looked into. How often are we talking, Tommy?"

"Just once," answered the young man with obvious relief. "It was the first time I ever made out with anyone. Oh shit...I didn't mean to say that much."

Tom laughed and ruffled his nephew's hair. "I knew you were talking about yourself, Tommy. It's okay. You could have waited and asked your father about this, though."

"No," Tommy disagreed, shaking his head. "Mom and Dad are both great but Dad isn't that good at keeping a straight face and I'm afraid of what _Sa'nok_ would say if she knew Grace and I made out."

"I can identify," Tom sighed. "Though at your age, I don't think you run the risk of disappointing your parents by making out a little with your girlfriend. Jake would be a hypocrite and Neytiri knows how long you've waited for Grace to return your affection."

"Why would Dad be a hypocrite if he got upset about it?"

Tom smirked. "Because like the majority of humans, he'd already had sex with more than one girl by the time he was your age."

Tommy's eyebrows shot up. "How young do humans usually start having sex?"

The older man shrugged and re-buttoned the cuff of his shirtsleeve. "It depends. Some kids wait by choice and others just don't have luck attracting partners. The rest either don't have the patience to wait or end up pressured into sex, sometimes as early as puberty."

Tommy grimaced. "So you and Dad started pretty early, huh?"

"Well, I tried to wait for a while but then I thought I was in love." Tom smirked. "It didn't work out. Your father had been with two partners to my knowledge, by the time we graduated high school."

"At the same time?" Tommy's eyes widened.

"No," Tom chuckled again and shook his head. "Jake was never a two-timer. His relationships didn't last long before your mother but when he dated someone, he was loyal to them."

"Oh." Tommy relaxed a little. "If it's okay by you, I don't really want to talk about _Sempul_ having sex anymore. It's kind of gross."

"Got it," Tom agreed with a grin. "Nobody wants to think of their parents having sex. So do you feel better now?"

"Yeah, I feel better. I just...that's never happened to me when I...you know. It only happened when I was with her. She thought I was just embarrassed but I was actually a little scared. Since you're a doctor, I figured you would know if I should be worried."

"Well, you have nothing to worry about medically," Tom assured him. "If this only happened in her presence, it's all in your head and just a matter of finding a method of self-control."

Tommy nodded and looked down at his bare feet. He dug a hole in the grass with his big toe and watched a tiny, ant-like creature crawl over his foot. "So uh...what methods would you recommend? It's not something I like saying to my uncle but Grace and I are bound to fool around again eventually—especially if we end up mated."

Tom nodded slowly and glanced up at the clouds and smoke drifting overhead. The smell of sulfur was still heavy in the air but the smog was down to a safe level again. "Well, let's see; there's one classic that men have been using for generations. It seems to work for enough people so it might work for you as well. When you feel yourself getting too excited, think of something disturbing."

"Disturbing how?"

"That depends on you. Some guys think of something disgusting, like vomit or bad smells or festering wounds. You have to be careful about that though. If you think of something _too_ repulsive, you could make yourself sick and that's a quick way to bring an encounter to a horrible and crashing end."

Tommy smiled. "You sound like you speak from experience."

Tom cleared his throat and looked away. "Let's just say guys with vivid imaginations should avoid abusing the tactic. Although, puking on your date is sure to cool things down too."

Tommy grimaced. "That's disgusting, Uncle Tom."

"Better to be warned about it than experience it first hand," insisted the older man with a smile.

* * *

It was inevitable that they had to return to classes, once the teens recovered from their ordeal. Savanna wasn't happy about having her time taken up with school while her Na'vi friends were visiting, but Kato and Karyu always met her after school or visited her during lunch breaks. Savanna's few girlfriends were utterly fascinated by Kato and a little envious.

"Savanna, your boyfriend is out there again."

Savanna looked out the window, following Sheri's gaze. Kato was perched outside on the limb of a tree, looking into the cafeteria window at her. He smiled when their eyes met through the glass and he mouthed a question to her: "Can you come out?"

Savanna worried her lower lip between her teeth, trying not to break into a huge smile. Behind her in the line, Dustin noticed Kato and he snorted softly and nudged the hybrid. "Go on. We'll cover for you if anyone asks. Just don't leave school grounds because you could get detention if you do and we've been in enough trouble, lately."

She looked at him uncertainly and Sheri added her encouragement, leaning over to speak into the shorter girl's ear. "Are you really going to say 'no' to that?" She nodded at the exotic young man outside, dressed in his tribal wear and looking utterly wild and gorgeous in the tree.

"She'd better say 'no' in certain situations," Dustin blurted, a frown of almost brotherly concern manifesting on his tanned face.

Savanna gave him a scandalized look. "I...now look here, Dusty, I can make my own decisions and I don't need you trying to be my protective big brother!"

"Small brother, is more like it," Andrew said, having approached to rejoin them in line just as Savanna shared her indignant thoughts. He smirked at the shorter teen when Dustin scowled at him. "What, I'm just saying, is all. So what's going on here?"

"Sav's trying to play hard to get with that hot Na'vi guy outside," informed Sheri. The avatar girl smiled at Kato through the window, her golden eyes dancing with intrigue. "They really know how to move, don't they? I mean, I train with my parents but the natives just have this cat-like sense of balance. Just look at him."

Andrew covered his mouth with a fist and coughed into it. "Dusty, should we warn the guy that he's about to get crash-tackled through that window by a rabid fangirl?"

Dustin grinned, looking from his blond friend to the hunter waiting patiently in the tree outside. "We could, but then we'd miss out on the fun of watching it happen."

"Hey, the line's moving," One of the boys behind them complained. "Either get out of the way or get going! Some of us are here to eat."

The group hastily took a few steps forward and Sheri giggled softly. "It looks to me like he only has eyes for Sav," she whispered. "Otherwise I'd be tempted to tackle him. Go on, Savanna. He came to see you, after all."

Savanna looked through the window at Kato again, who had tilted his head questioningly and was regarding her with expectant eyes. She smiled at him and held a finger up, indicating that she'd be out in a few moments. He returned her smile and hopped right off of the tree branch, startling Sheri so bad she shrieked. Along with a handful of other girls who had seen Kato outside, Sheri rushed to the window and splayed her hands over it, searching the ground for the Na'vi teen.

"Did he make it to the ground okay?" Sheri pushed her nose against the glass, searching anxiously below.

"I can't believe he just _jumped_ like that!" The human girl beside Sheri was also peering into the courtyard with wide eyes.

One of the avatar girls sighed. "If he gets hurt it's all Savanna's fault!"

"Oh brother," Andrew sighed, rolling his eyes.

Dustin was fighting laughter. He checked out the window too just to be sure and he wasn't surprised to see Kato safe and sound on the ground in the courtyard. He turned to assure Savanna—just in case she was worried—but she was nowhere to be seen. She had used the distraction caused by Kato's stunt to leave the cafeteria without drawing attention to herself.

* * *

"Hi." Savanna smiled up at him as Kato met her outside the doors leading to the courtyard. "I think you've got half the girls in my class pining for you."

He smiled in a manner that said he thought she was teasing him. "Yeah? So they like flea-bitten savages, huh?"

She groused under her breath and poked him in the arm. "Don't call yourself that...even jokingly."

Kato nodded and looked at her sidelong, his mannerism sly and playful. "I wouldn't want to make you mad."

She squinted against the sunlight and tucked a wayward strand of chestnut hair behind her ear as the wind blew it over her eyes. "Darn right. I'll throw you in the trash."

He tried to look properly respectful but evidently, the mental image was too much for him. Kato laughed out loud and he quickly turned away and coughed. "Uh...that would be interesting."

"I will!" Savanna promised, coming to a stop and planting her fists on her denim-clad hips.

Kato was grinning at her sharply. "Like you did with that idiot that teased you? Dustin told us about that. I wish I had seen it."

She chuckled. "You would have been proud."

Kato's smile faded a little and his pupils dilated as he gazed into her eyes. Recognizing the expression on his face, Savanna swallowed and braced herself. His hands settled on her shoulders and he lowered his head down to hers. He brushed his mouth over hers lightly, almost teasingly, and then he whispered a request.

"There's a place in the bushes by the back fence that's private. I checked. It's hidden from sight and there aren't any security cameras. Spend some time with me there?"

Her heart was already hammering like mad in her chest and her fingertips tingled. "Kato, after what happened in the kitchen the other day..."

"I'll behave," he assured her, flushing a little. "I promise. You can throw me in the trash if I get out of line."

She burst into soft, charmed laughter. Gazing up at him with adoration, she placed her hands over his chest and she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the jaw. "Okay. Just for a little while." She sifted her fingers through his hair and traced the braided length of his queue, toying with the decorative beads and feathers woven into the long weave.

Kato just smiled at her in that quiet, warm way of his.

* * *

Fine Art was an elective class that Savanna had pressured Dustin into taking so that she'd have a friend to partner up with on projects. It wasn't his thing and he was a terrible artist, but he did enjoy seeing how happy it made her to paint, draw and craft. On any other day, it would be almost unheard of for Savanna to be tardy to her favorite class but it came as no surprise to him when she arrived five minutes after the buzzer. She offered a soft apology to the teacher, pleading a headache. Mrs. Crutch asked if she needed to see the school nurse and Savanna hastily assured her that she was okay now. The hybrid joined Dustin at their adjoined desks and she gave him a sheepish little smile when she sat down.

Dustin returned her smile with teasing exasperation. "You've got moss in your hair."

Savanna stared at him suspiciously and he glanced around before speaking again in a lower voice. "I'm not kidding." He covertly reached out and plucked a small cluster of moss from her hair and showed it to her. "I don't think anyone else noticed, yet."

Savanna took a deep breath and her face predictably went pinkish-violet. "I...um...we..." She turned her head and glanced at the clock. Dustin's gaze was drawn to the discolored spot on her neck and his eyebrows drifted up. The fresh mark was getting darker with each passing moment.

"Sav, I think you might want to consider wearing a scarf or a high-necked sweater for a few days," suggested the young man.

She looked utterly clueless as she blinked at him. "Why?"

Extremely aware of the other students and the teacher in the classroom, Dustin chose to write it in a note. He slid the piece of recycled paper to his friend and waited as she read it, pretending to pay attention to the shading lesson the teacher was giving to the class.

"What does that mean; 'Kato marked his territory'?" Savanna asked in a bare whisper.

"Take out your compact mirror and check your neck," answered Dustin out the corner of his mouth.

Savanna hesitated for a moment before digging into her jeans pocket for the wallet she carried there. She flipped it open and looked at the little mirror inside, frowning in concentration. When she spotted the cause of Dustin's advice, her jaw dropped and she hunched in her seat.

"Oh, crap!"

The teacher stopped her demonstration and looked at the hybrid in concern. The students also ceased what they were doing and everyone stared curiously at Savanna. The girl looked around at her audience with a slightly panicked expression and she self-consciously arranged her thick hair around her shoulders, hiding her neck from view.

"I...thought I had an arachnoid sting," Savanna explained awkwardly. "It's just a regular bug bite, though. Sorry, Mrs. Crutch."

The teacher regarded her with suspicion and concern. "Savanna, are you _certain_ you're feeling all right? You're acting really strange today."

Savanna forced a smile. "I'm sure. It's just one of those days."

Beside her, Dustin tried not to let his concern show. As teenagers went, he was ahead of his time and he tended to think on a more adult level of responsibility than the rest of his friends. He knew the limits though, and he chose to keep his concerns to himself and save them for another day. Savanna could only take so much "big brothering" in a day before her cup was full.

* * *

Support from the parents was a cold comfort when the day came for the Na'vi visitors to travel back to Hometree and meet up with the rest of their clan to pick up the pieces. Savanna desperately reasoned that the twins didn't really have to go, that they could stay for another couple of weeks before returning to their own clan at the Eastern Sea. Her father gently and patiently told her that they could do nothing to convince Tom and Tanhi to stay longer than they already had. They had their own lives to live and until they were adults, the twins had to go where their parents went. This of course prompted Savanna to remind them that Kato and Karyu already tamed their ikrans and were therefore technically adults.

"It doesn't work that way," Sebastian said to her. "What they did during that crisis was highly irregular and it doesn't change the fact that they are not by Na'vi standards eligible for adulthood yet."

"But it's not fair," Savanna complained, on the verge of tears. "It's going to be another year before I get to see them again—before I get to see _him_ again!"

Katherine and Sebastian exchanged a look between them and Savanna realized she was getting overly emotional and not behaving in a mature manner at all. She tried to calm herself and she took a deep breath. "Kato and I are dating," she reasoned as evenly as she could. "Shouldn't we have the right to see each other more often?"

"You've hardly left each others' side since the eruption," Sebastian said dryly. "I believe this will be the first time you'll be separated for more than six hours, darling."

"We'll be half a continent away from each other!" Her frustration was mounting again and she was slipping back into "brat" mode.

"I've promised you that you can go and visit the Ikran village this year," Katherine pacified. "We can arrange that for your spring break. Would that make you happy?"

"I...I guess," Savanna sighed. She knew they were trying to accommodate her but the thought of not seeing Kato for so long ate at her.

"I know it's hard for you," Katherine said to her, "but it isn't always going to be like this."

"How do you know that?" Savanna demanded.

Katherine visibly struggled for an answer and Sebastian put his hands on her shoulders supportively, stepping up behind her to look over her shoulder at their daughter. "Because if it's meant to be, sooner or later one of you will change locations to be with the other—when you are old enough. When you're both adults and you're certain of what you want, nobody can tell you what to do."

Savanna grumbled, but she knew there was no point in arguing further. Her parents couldn't force the twin's family to stay, after all. Given that they had tamed their banshees early, they probably had a set of difficult trials ahead of them and they would both need to prepare for them. That was what frightened Savanna. She knew all about the rites of passage her friends and Kato would be subjected to and though they had survived what was probably the most physically dangerous one, the Dream Hunt was still ahead of them.

Perhaps she was worrying about nothing, though. The spiritual trance was a test of the mind and will. Surely Kato and Karyu would make it through _that_ safely. It was hard though—knowing that her friends and love interest were going to be facing things that were so dangerous. She went to her room to get ready to see them off with a heavy heart.

* * *

"I feel terrible," Tom confessed in a whisper to his mate as they watched Kato and Savanna embrace as if for the last time. Never mind that in his experience, first love never worked out. Looking at the way Kato was brushing away Savanna's tears with his thumbs and staring into her eyes, he couldn't help but think this was much more to it than puppy love. He was also uncomfortably reminded of a time when he himself looked at a small, feisty pilot that way.

"They are not ready for what they want," Tanhi whispered back in a stern, yet gentle voice. "Our son has tests he must complete and Savanna must grow more, inside."

Tom listened to her words and he looked at her curiously. "Were you ever trained to be a _Tsahik_, Tanhi?"

She smiled faintly at him, looking at him sidelong. She slipped her hand into his and leaned closer to him. "I was taught to be a leader, my Tom. This required instruction from both the warrior and the spiritual path."

He nodded. He was still learning things about his mate—not because she kept anything from him but because he kept discovering delightful little things about her that caught his interest. He smiled at their daughter, who looked like she was ready to yank Kato and Savanna apart and shake some sense into both of them. Karyu definitely had her mother's temperament, but there was a bit of Jake's humor in her as well. When her time came to seek companionship, Tom was certain that whomever she chose would be in for the ride of a lifetime.

* * *

Trudy organized a Samson flight to carry everyone back to Hometree and make the trip easier on the younger kids. Kato was stoic but quiet through the trip, while the others were more or less excited to be returning to the Omaticaya village. Jake and Neytiri met them when they landed at the outskirts and Sylwanin immediately ran to her mother to be lifted and held close.

There was still ash dusting the ground, trees and plants but other than that, the only notable damage to the village was from the titanothere stampede that occurred when the volcano first erupted. Food wasn't as plentiful due to the extended travel required to hunt, but the clan managed to bring in enough so that no bellies went empty. Jake informed Tommy that he would be one of the chosen warriors responsible for leading hunting parties into the wilds for food. Until the ecosystem in the area recovered from the volcanic event, such treks were going to be necessary to maintain the clan's food consumption needs.

"So far we've got everyone on a schedule," Jake explained to him, "Your mother and I go out twice a week each and we've got other warriors assigned to lead hunting and gathering groups on other days. This won't be like the hunting trips you're used to, Tommy. You're going to have to lead your hunters further out of the territory before you find any game. This means each time you go out, you'll be gone for a couple of days and you're going to need to carry supplies with you."

"Hunting from the air is probably easier," Tommy observed with a look up at the gray-tinged sky.

"Only in the right spots," Jake corrected. "And right now believe it or not, most of the game is easier to get on the ground. Our best meat source has been coming from the marshlands. The hexapedes have made themselves scarce so we've been going after sturmbeest, when we can get them. That's why we need larger hunting parties sent out."

"What about fish?"

Jake shook his head. "Most of the freshwater fish in the territory got boiled alive from the vents bleeding into their water sources. You'll find fish where you find other prey. The clan gathers what it can from the forest plants but the ash and sulfur choked off a lot of it."

Tommy looked over his shoulder at the _keltural_ and he shrugged. So things were going to be tough for a while. At least their home was intact and the sight of the huge, beautiful tree was comforting to him. "Do I get a say in who's in my hunting party?"

Jake grinned. "Don't worry; your mother and I agreed to give Emazu his own separate hunting party. Tsu'tey and Grace are both in yours."

Tommy returned his father's grin gratefully. "Good. He's still got a grudge against me and I'm sick of trying to compromise with him."

Jake sobered and nodded. "You got the girl. He's going to hold that against you until he's got something bigger to think about."

"Dad, do you like Emazu?"

Jake regarded him silently for a moment, with a melancholy expression on his face. "He's not exactly likable as a person but as a warrior, he deserves respect. You two managed to work together to survive when things got bad, so that should count for something."

Tommy thought about this and he nodded in agreement. "I have to agree with you there."

Jake smiled and clapped him lightly on the back. "You make me proud, kid. I know this is going to be tough on you, taking up these responsibilities and finding time to train for your last trials on the side. If it gets to be too much, just take a step back and tell us you need a time out."

"I'll be okay."

Jake smirked but said nothing, allowing Tommy his youthful boasts and knowing full well that the young man—like himself—would push himself to exhaustion before admitting he needed a break.

* * *

Near the end of the week, Tom's family left to travel home. They planned to visit the Tree of Souls first, stay there for a few days and then continue home after visiting the guardians. Neytiri was very tempted to travel with them to _Ayvitrayä Ramunong_, so that she could spend time with her aging mother. Jake encouraged her to go and assured her that the clan could do without their _Tsahik _for a week or so, but Neytiri reluctantly turned the offer down. There was still much to do and Mo'at would understand that the needs of the tribe came first. When Jake asked if she was sure, Neytiri smiled and assured him that her mother still had many years before it was time for her to go to Eywa and join Eytucan in the afterlife.

Tommy put forth every effort to set a good example of leadership and vigorously pursue his training—while somehow still finding the time to court Gracie's affections. Through it all, Emazu kept a respectable distance and though everyone was aware of the covert glances of jealousy he cast towards the young couple at times, nobody could say he wasn't being gracious; at least, nobody save Tsu'tey.

The younger of the two Sully boys had read enough literature and seen enough Earth movies to be familiar with the concept of ascension conflicts and he knew very well that if anything happened to Tommy, Emazu would take his place as the next _Olo'eyktan_.

Though he was named after a fierce warrior, Tsu'tey wasn't aggressive or confrontational. In fact, he enjoyed crafting, learning about forest life and listening to songs more than he enjoyed physical activity. His mother even said that he might have made a good _Tsahik_ some day, given enough training and focus. But Tsu'tey wasn't ambitious. He didn't want to lead and he didn't want to be a role model for anyone, save his own kids if he ever had any. He just wanted peace for his family and his clan.

Which was perhaps why he took it upon himself to keep a close eye on Emazu. He didn't like the way the other warrior looked at his brother—didn't like the malicious intent he detected in his yellow gaze. He hoped that he was just being paranoid and that Emazu really was too honorable to do anything underhanded like poison Tommy or try to set up an 'accident' to be rid of him. Tsu'tey wanted to believe the best of people, especially those in his own clan. He was not, however, going to let that desire blindside him. Being a patient young man, he waited and watched and hoped that his impressions were wrong.

* * *

Two days after Tom's family left the territory, Tsu'tey joined Tommy's hunting party for the first time. He hadn't been able to go on the first two trips because his shoulder was still recovering from the injury he'd sustained. A steady, soothing rain began to fall as they traveled out of the immediate territory and into wilder areas. The shower washed away more of the ash residue that remained.. Tsu'tey realized where their trajectory was taking them and he remembered everything he had heard around the fire pit about the territory.

"Tommy, do you know where this path is taking us?"

Tommy slowed his mount to allow his younger brother to come up beside him and he gave the younger hunter a puzzled look. "What, do you think I'm going to get us lost or something? Of course I know where I'm going."

"I know you know where you're going" explained Tsu'tey. He looked around at the shaded surroundings and blinked rainwater out of his eyes. "But do you know where it's going to take us?"

Tommy looked exasperated. "I think you spent too much time reading Savanna's book selection. Next you'll be asking me why a raven is like a writing desk. Quit distracting me with riddles, or I'll take us off course."

"It's not a riddle." Tsu'tey sighed, annoyed. He started to explain further but Grace came up on Tommy's other side, having heard part of the conversation.

"I think he means to ask if you realize what's _in_ the territory we're moving into, Tommy."

Tommy frowned briefly. "Well, we should be passing close to the site where the old _Keltural_ used to stand, if that's what you mean. Don't worry; we're not going to pass directly through it. We'll go around, so we don't disturb anything."

Tsu'tey nodded, relaxing a bit. A part of him was curious to see the remains of the original Hometree, but it was just too sad. Like most other Na'vi his age, part of growing up for him had been connecting his queue to an _Utral Aymokriyä_ as soon as his parents considered him mature enough to handle the experience. Only a couple of the special, sacred trees grew near the present village location, but they fulfilled their purpose as well as the great grove that once stood near the original Hometree. Having experienced the terrible destruction of the old village through racial memories shared through the root network, Tsu'tey felt a weight pressing down on him. The closer they got to the site of the ruined village, the more he imagined he could hear the voices of the spirits crying.

Gracie rode quietly and somberly beside Tommy, equally pensive. Tommy looked between the two of them and Tsu'tey thought he looked a bit unsettled as well. "What?" demanded the budding chieftain, "you two look spooked and it's making me nervous. Don't tell me you're sensing another volcanic eruption on its way, Grace." He looked around at the damp surroundings and his ears twitched, listening for animal activity.

"It isn't that," Grace assured. Her eyes slid to Tsu'tey and he nodded at the silent question in them. So, she felt it too. It was no surprise, since she was chosen to be the next _Tsahik_ and had been undergoing regular training for her future role.

"Then what is it?" Tommy slowed his direhorse even more and the handful of warriors following behind adjusted their speed accordingly.

"You don't feel it?" Tsu'tey prompted. A shiver raced up his spine as a breeze passed over his skin like the breath of the dead.

Tommy narrowed his eyes on him before looking at Gracie. "Feel what? Your drama? Yeah, that's coming through loud and clear. Grace, what's he talking about?"

"Our ancestors," answered the huntress softly. She looked up at the canopy overhead and beads of rainwater slid over her face. She shut her eyes. "They're all around us, Tommy."

There was utter silence within the ranks as Gracie's words reached the rest of the hunters. Tommy stared at her for a moment, then at Tsu'tey, then over his shoulder at their hunting companions. He finally gave his brother and girlfriend a suspicious look and a smirk curved his mouth.

"The twins put you up to this, didn't they?"

Grace lowered her head and looked at him with sincere puzzlement. "Put us up to what?"

"Trying to rattle me and make me screw up in front of the others."

Grace clucked her tongue and rolled her eyes. "How would they have done that? They didn't know we'd be passing through this area...unless you told them we would."

"And why would we try to make a fool of you in front of anyone?" Tsu'tey added in a whisper, mindful of their companions. "You think Grace and I want to see Emazu end up as our leader? Believe me, I _want_ you to succeed."

"Then stop scaring each other with ghost stories and concentrate on the trail," Tommy insisted.

"You don't believe our ancestors watch us?" Grace challenged, her eyes flashing.

Tommy flinched a little under her gaze. "I didn't say that. I just don't think they're closing in on us the way you two are implying. They've got better things to do with their afterlife than haunt their own people, you know."

"How do _you_ know what the dead do with their time?" Tsu'tey asked.

"I don't and as far as I'm concerned, it can stay that way." Tommy was evidently losing patience.

Tsu'tey wanted to respond to that, but he spotted a flash of movement between the tree-trunks to the left that made him jump. He stared at the spot, blinking. He could have sworn he saw a Na'vi running through the undergrowth, heading away from the direction their party was going. He heard Grace gasp and he looked at her with wide eyes. She was staring at the exact same spot. The _pa'li_ seemed to sense something too and several hunters had to take a moment to settle their mounts.

"What now?" Tommy hissed the words, frowning severely at the two of them.

"It's...nothing," Grace said, still studying the spot suspiciously.

"No it's not," Tsu'tey insisted in a harsh whisper. "You saw it too! I can tell!"

"Saw _what_?" Tommy looked around. "There's nothing there."

"There was something there a minute ago," Tsu'tey informed, pointing at where he had seen the disturbance. "Or _someone_."

Tommy compressed his lips, looking as though he was more nervous than he cared to admit. His eyes flicked to the shadows of the rainforest, settling on the wisps of fog around the boles of the trees that should have evaporated before mid-morning. "If you two keep this up, people are going to wonder if you're crazy."

"No, they won't," Grace corrected with a glance behind her at the other hunters. They were muttering amongst themselves and looking around at their surroundings warily. "Unlike _some_ people, they trust a _Tsahik's_ vision."

"You're not a _Tsahik_ yet," reminded Tommy.

"But the Omaticaya are spiritual," Tsu'tey shot back. "You can deny it if you want to, Brother, but something isn't normal here."

"All right, let's say for argument's sake we've got spirits all around us and they're stirred up," Tommy sighed. "What exactly do you want me to do about it? We aren't defiling the grounds where our clan mates died. We can't take another path without passing directly through 'ground zero' and that would piss them off more than us just passing by. We have to spread out when we hunt to keep from depleting the animal life in surrounding territories with over-hunting, so if you two have a solution I'd love to hear it."

Tsu'tey and Grace looked at one another helplessly, equally at a loss. Finally, Grace offered a murmured suggestion. "Maybe we should stop the group for rest and rations. You could be right; Tsu'tey and I might just be feeding each other's fear and over-reacting a little. Maybe a snack and a break will help."

Tommy nodded and called the party to a stop. Tsu'tey didn't argue with the decision to take a break, but he watched his brother with annoyance as he dismounted and dug through his pouches for his food wrap. Just like last time, Tommy was blowing off people's concerns and Grace was again caving in, trying to trivialize her own gut feelings.

"You guys have to start doing better than this," Tsu'tey muttered under his breath.

He cast an uncertain look into the forest as he took a bite of his _nikt'chey_. His eyes bugged out when he saw a Na'vi child in Omaticaya garb stumble through the bushes to his right and he almost got up, but she vanished like smoke before he could get to his feet.

It was then that Tsu'tey realized he could not breathe. He could not breathe because he had swallowed his food wrong and it was now wedged in his throat. He dropped the food wrap and stood up, waving his arms around in a panic. Tommy stared up at him from his squatted position near the others and for a moment, the older brother didn't comprehend that something was wrong.

"Tsu'tey, I don't know what the hell you're doing now but cut it out."

Tommy's exasperated expression faded as Tsu'tey pointed at his throat and stumbled towards him.

"He is choking," one of the huntresses said urgently, getting to her feet.

Tommy was up and at Tsu'tey's side before anyone else could get to him. He forced his brother to turn around and his arms went around his torso, hugging him tightly. Tsu'tey had time to see Grace reaching out to help before Tommy gave a firm, hard squeeze and dislodged the food from his throat.

The half-chewed piece of fruit flew from Tsu'tey's mouth with a "patooey" sound and it smacked against Gracie's stomach—where it stuck like a pinkish-orange slug. She was too concerned for Tsu'tey's health to spare more than a glance at the expelled bit of food sticking to her.

"Tsu'tey, are you okay?"

He drew a ragged breath and nodded. If his brother hadn't thought to use what the human's called the "Heimlich maneuver" so quickly, he might have suffocated. Tommy released him slowly and stroked his hair, turning him around to look him up and down with brotherly concern.

"It would be just my luck to have to explain to _Sa'nok_ and _Sempul_ that you got taken out by a food wrap," Tommy murmured with a relieved smirk. "You've _got_ to stop getting hurt on these hunting trips."

Tsu'tey coughed and nodded in agreement. He took a deep breath, cast a look at his discarded food wrap and grimaced. "I'm not hungry anymore."

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Sempul_** = Father

**_Sa'nok_** = Mother

Ayvitrayä Ramunong = Tree of Souls

**_Utral Aymokriyä _**= Tree of Voices

**_Nikt'chey_** = Food wrap. A mixture of food wrapped in an edible leaf for convenience and preservation. These wraps can contain any combination of fruits, veggies, meats and nuts.


	6. Chapter 6

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 6: The opportunists

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Warning: Graphic sex, violence, possibly disturbing content. See the end of the chapter for additional author's notes, as I don't want to put any spoilers at the top._**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

They stopped for the night and set up camp. They had no success taking down any prey for meat, but they gathered herbs and root vegetables and Grace found some _teylu_ inside a decomposing log. The hunting party made a stew from their combined scavenges, allowing a hot meal alternative to the dried food wraps they carried for rations. Tommy estimated that they would reach the outskirts of the old Hometree sometime around mid-morning the next day. The closer they got to the territory, the more Gracie and Tsu'tey seemed to see things. Both of them tried to keep quiet about it but Tommy could tell when they saw something because of the way they reacted. A swift, indrawn breath here, a whispered oath of surprise there...it wasn't hard to tell what was going on.

Tommy debated with himself over what to do about it. Though he was raised to respect the spirituality of the People, he was a natural skeptic. In his opinion, ghosts were a fanciful notion and the Dream Hunts were just hallucinations caused by tripping on toxins delivered by glowworms and arachnoid venom. He didn't exactly disbelieve in ghosts but he had trouble accepting the idea that they could manifest on Pandora. He figured that once you went to Eywa, that was where you stayed.

He paused in his task of connecting the wooden tent support poles together and he looked over his shoulder at Grace. She had taken up the task of refilling everyone's water containers at the river and she had just returned to hand them back out. Tsu'tey was helping with the cooking while the rest of the group erected temporary, simple shelters for the night. Gracie's eyes met his and she smiled at him, coming to his side once everyone else collected their water skins.

"Here," she murmured, offering the container to him. "I'll help you finish that up now."

Tommy took a drink and nodded gratefully. "Thanks. We'll put yours up after I finish with mine."

Grace lowered her eyes and bit her lip. "We don't have to put my tent up."

He put the water skin down and regarded her with puzzlement. "You'd rather sleep in the open? Okay, but I'm a little worried about the stingbat activity in these parts. We don't know how active they are here."

"I meant that I could sleep in your tent, with you." She said it softly and she peeked at him from beneath her thick lashes.

Tommy blinked and shot a glance around at the five other hunters. The tents were only basic structures, designed for easy transport and efficiency. There was enough room in his tent for two people if they slept close together but he wasn't sure if he could keep his hands to himself, snuggled so intimately against Grace's gorgeous body.

"Are you sure about that?"

She nodded. "It isn't improper, if that's what you're worried about. Everyone knows we're betrothed to each other and lots of couples start sharing hammocks before they start mating."

He was aware of that. Some couples co-slept before mating so that they could get familiar with each other's sleeping habits. Tommy thought it was just an excuse to snuggle until they were approved to do more with each other.

Evidently he was taking too long to answer because Gracie heaved a sudden sigh and spoke in a frustrated tone. "Okay I confess. I don't want to sleep alone tonight."

He tore his thoughts off of her body and stared at her. "Huh?"

Grace looked around and leaned closer to him. "These things I've been seeing...they scare me."

Tom considered the problem and frowned. "Are these...uh...ghosts threatening you?"

She shook her head. "No, nothing like that. But they all seem to be running away from where we're going, Tommy. Some of them are bleeding and others look like they've been badly burned. I saw a mother carrying a dead toddler and I thought I was going to throw up. I really think Tsu'tey and I are seeing visions of what happened to the clan in the past. I recognized your mother in one of them. She was traveling with Mo'at and she kept looking over her shoulder with this sad, uncertain expression on her face."

"Wait...if you saw my mother and grandmother then you must not be seeing ghosts," reasoned Tommy.

"Some of them are ghosts," she answered with a shrug. "Others are just phantoms of the past, like I said. The spirit world is sending us messages, all the same."

"Did you see my father when you saw _Sa'nok_?"

"No, he wasn't with her. That might be why Aunt Neytiri kept looking over her shoulder."

Tommy found the whole thing more interesting than he cared to admit. Looking into her troubled eyes, he could understand how frightening it must be to see these things. A part of him felt like he was taking advantage of her situation when he nodded and took her hand. He frowned at the chill in her hand and he rubbed it between his palms, warming it.

"Okay Grace. If you trust me enough, we'll share my pallet tonight."

* * *

Grace felt a little bad for organizing the tent sharing with Tommy. She could see the way Tsu'tey's eyes darted around nervously as they ate supper and it occurred to her that he didn't have the luxury of asking to snuggle up with anyone for comfort. He was already considered "soft" by many of his peers, because he was such a sensitive young man and favored his mother so strongly in looks. Tsu'tey was prettier than he was handsome and that often caused others to unfairly see him as weaker than other males. If he asked anyone for comfort now, it would only hurt his reputation more.

Feeling pity for him, Grace finished her bowl of stew and went over to Tsu'tey to clean up with him. She flinched when she saw another phantom race past the encampment and she saw Tsu'tey jump a little. He gave her a strained little smile when she squatted down beside him and dampened a fiber cloth with her water skin.

"Are you okay?" Grace whispered, reaching out for his bowl expectantly.

He gave the eating container over and watched as she wiped it clean. "As much as I can be. How about you?"

"Don't worry about me. I'm sleeping with Tommy in his tent tonight." The mere thought of it made her want to squirm and she frowned in irritation. In addition to the disturbing visions she kept having, she felt a restlessness that seemed completely inappropriate under the circumstances. She'd been feeling it for days now, but it just kept getting worse.

Tsu'tey glanced over at one of the small tents and raised his eyebrows. "That's going to be a tight fit."

"Stop your smirking. A lot of couples do it and I really don't want to sleep alone tonight. Maybe when everyone else is asleep, you can sneak in with us and we'll all rest better."

"You know I can't do that," Tsu'tey whispered, chuckling softly. "Someone would be bound to figure it out by morning and people already think I'm weak. I'll be lucky if any woman ever wants to mate with me."

Grace stared at him, angry for his sake. He wasn't as powerfully built as his older brother but Tsu'tey still had an advantage over other Na'vi males when it came to muscle mass. How anyone could look at him and consider him physically weak was a mystery to her. She also wondered how anyone could overlook his strength of spirit, which was so obvious to her and their friends.

"Tsu'tey, anyone that thinks you're weak doesn't know you," Grace murmured, reaching out to comb a loose strand of his hair back with her fingers. "And any woman that doesn't think you'd make a fine mate is only kidding herself and missing out. Someday, you'll find someone who appreciates you for what you are."

He gave her a sidelong, modest little grin. "Thanks. Tommy's really lucky to have you."

She returned his smile, knowing that unlike some others, Tsu'tey could say that without a hint of jealousy. She knew he thought she was beautiful but he had never once tried to approach her romantically, because he knew his brother wanted her and he felt like they belonged together. More grateful to him than ever, she impulsively leaned in to give him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"I'm glad you're going to be my brother-in-law."

He lowered his eyes bashfully. "Go on, before Tommy gets jealous."

Grace chuckled. "He knows better than that. He trusts you."

"He trusts you, too," reminded Tsu'tey. "Get a good night's rest and don't be afraid to smack some sense into him if he gets too lovable."

Grace smiled again, looking across the fire at Tommy. He caught her eye and he gave her a smile, then gave one to his brother as well. Her heart skipped a beat only this time, it wasn't due to fear from a vision. Eywa, he was a handsome devil. Grace noticed that the other two huntresses in the party were eyeing her boyfriend sidelong, covertly admiring him. She flushed when she realized that one of them was looking him up and down and though her gaze was subtle, it was clearly lustful. Not that Grace could blame her...she often looked at Tommy that way and thought of running her hands all over his strong body.

Tommy kept his eyes on her and he nodded meaningfully at his tent and raised his brows questioningly. "Are you ready for bed?" His look said.

Gracie said goodnight to Tsu'tey and crossed the distance between herself and her intended mate. One of the huntresses had retired to her tent but the other was still watching Tommy through lowered lashes as she made a show of checking through her supplies.

"Don't get mad...don't get mad," Gracie muttered to herself through clenched teeth. Tommy didn't punch out every guy that looked at her and she knew damned well they looked. It wasn't like the other woman was actually _doing_ anything and she was at least being subtle about it. She couldn't believe how jealous she had become over him and she felt a moment of shame when she admitted to herself that she'd sort of been "checking out" his brother, even if she only did it in a clinical way.

"You sure do blush a lot," Tommy said to her in a soft, teasing whisper when she joined him at the tent.

"So do you," she countered, all too aware of the flush in her cheeks. She wasn't about to admit it was as much from anger as embarrassment.

"Not all the time," he protested. "Just when we're...doing stuff."

Grace smirked in satisfaction when the color on his sculpted cheekbones darkened a little. "Or when it's called to your attention, apparently."

"Let's just get in the tent and go to sleep," he groused.

* * *

Sleep was the furthest thing from her mind when she and Tommy crowded close together in the low, narrow privacy of the tent. As soon as Tommy spooned up against her back, Grace's body reacted almost painfully to the intimate contact. Her breath expelled in a sigh and she pressed back against his warmth instinctively. His hand settled on her hip and the simple touch made heat spread through her body. The hand briefly caressed her outer thigh before moving up to her waist. He embraced her and his breath tickled her ear as he spoke in a soft, husky whisper.

"Are you comfortable enough like this? I can move if I'm poking you or anything."

Grace almost blurted a hysterical giggle. Something was poking her all right, but she didn't mind. In fact, she wanted to wriggle her bottom against the evidence of his arousal—which was growing stiffer with each moment.

"I'm fine. This is nice." She could hear the activity outside as the rest of the hunting party put gear away, checked on the horses and retired to their own tents. Her breath caught in her throat as Tommy's lips brushed against her ear.

"You want kids someday, right?"

Grace smiled and stroked the top of his hand, resting over her abdomen. "Yes. Don't you?"

"Yeah. Especially with you." He kissed her lightly on the temple, drawing a little shiver from her. She felt his mouth smile against her skin. "Do you want boys or girls?"

"Two of each," she answered, turning her head to look up at him. He was propped up on his other elbow and leaning over her. "I guess I'm greedy."

"Four, eh?" Tommy's teeth flashed in a smile. "I'll be glad to do my part and help you reach that goal. It might take a lot of work, though."

Grace chuckled softly. Four kids really _was_ a big goal for a Na'vi couple to aspire to, especially if the clan's population was at maximum capacity for the territory to sustain. She imagined Tommy grinding that body of his against hers each night sweating and gasping in his efforts to give her all the babies she wanted. She could barely stand it any longer. Her entire body was tingling and throbbing. There was a warm ache in her pelvis that made her want to squirm.

"Kiss me," Grace whispered, staring up at him.

His throat moved as he visibly swallowed. His eyes latched onto her lips and he cleared his throat before speaking. "Gracie, I don't know how much of that I can do safely." He scooted his pelvis away from her butt self-consciously, obviously aware that his erection was poking her through their garments.

She resisted the urge to smile, knowing full-well she wouldn't need to deploy much persuasion to change his mind. She arched her back subtly and reached up to caress his jaw with her fingertips. The move had the desired effect and his eyes went to her chest of their own accord. His lips parted and a faint, soft groan issued in his throat.

"Grace," Tommy warned breathlessly. His head was lowering and his eyes grew heavy-lidded.

"Tommy," she whispered back, finally cracking the smile.

She was fast forgetting all about the spirits and phantoms haunting the path to Old Hometree. She cupped the back of his head and urged him down faster, parting her lips as they touched his. He kissed her with gentle pressure at first—almost hesitantly. As the seconds ticked by, he eased his tongue into her mouth and she returned its caress. The kiss deepened and he started pressing against her backside again. Grace doubted he was even consciously doing it but the feel of him rubbing intimately against her made her mating instincts bubble to the surface, like the lava from Mt. Pizayu.

She rolled onto her back and put her arms around him, urging him closer. Tommy responded naturally to her silent invitation and his hips settled between her thighs. His mouth pulled away from hers but she hardly got a chance to protest before his lips were caressing her throat. His palm stroked along her ribs, slowly gliding up toward the swell of her breast. Grace raised one of her legs, rubbing her thigh against his torso. She gasped as his hardness pressed firmly against her loins and she wished there were no barriers in the way. The need was growing unbearable and when she heard Tommy growl softly, she blurted his name out loud without thinking.

Tommy suddenly lifted his head and brought his fingers to her lips. "Shh, we don't want rumors to start about us mating too soon." He was breathing heavily and his whisper was ragged and pained. He forced a smile at her and he inhaled deeply, breathing in her scent. "You smell so damned _good_. What have you been washing your hair with, lately?"

Grace understood what was happening, then. Because she was so new to it all, she hadn't comprehended what her body was trying to tell her. She stared blankly into the darkness and caressed his body, unable to stop herself. It was ironic that this was happening. Not because it was terrible timing—which it was—but because she and Tommy had talked about this very thing when they were staying at Hell's Gate.

Some women went into heat before completing a bond with their intended mates, but such a thing was rare unless the clan was badly under-populated. "My human blood."

Tommy stopped sniffing her hair and he frowned down at her. "What?"

His nearness made it hard for her to concentrate. Her body wanted things that she had no experience with and she was torn between desire and fear. "This is happening because I have human in me. I'm sure of it."

He looked utterly confused. "Okay...what are you talking about, Gracie? Sure, we've got a little human in us...like, five percent maybe. Are you saying you and Tsu'tey are seeing ghosts because of that?"

Grace had forgotten all about the ghosts and his mention of them startled her out of her helpless lust for a moment. "No, I'm not talking about them. Tommy, do you remember what you said to me that day when we went into the forest outside of Hell's Gate?"

Tommy grimaced. "That's not exactly the kind of thing a guy wants to be reminded of when you're in the middle of making out."

"I'm not talking about the...um...accident. I'm talking about what you said about being mated early." She squirmed beneath him and bit her lip. Her hands slid lower over his torso and she badly wanted to slip them between their bodies and reach down to touch the hardness that now seemed to tease her.

His expression changed from confused to intrigued. "You didn't seem too hot on the idea." He lowered his mouth to hers again and kissed her softly before murmuring against her lips. "Has something changed your mind?"

She wanted to scream at him. She wanted to slap him—preferably on the ass. She wanted to tear his loincloth to shreds, pounce on him and take him inside of her. How she would do the latter, she wasn't sure—but she wanted to do it anyhow.

"Mmm, be careful," Tommy whispered, reaching down just as her hand cupped his arousal. "We're supposed to just be sleeping together and you're going to make me have to think of something gross, if you do that."

Her frustration increased and she surprised herself by growling. "I don't know what you mean by thinking of something gross. This isn't the time for jokes, Tommy." She listened to her urges and she raised her head off the woven matt that served as their bedding. Tommy gasped when she pulled him closer and licked his throat.

"Uh, Gracie...oh, that's going to get you in trouble."

She began to massage his crotch and his effort to push her hand away was weak, indeed. "Tommy," she murmured, "I'm ready. I need to mate with you."

She meant it. She literally _needed_ it and she knew with certainty that now that she felt his hard body against hers, simply distancing herself from his presence wouldn't be enough. It was like the candy her mother made from the syrup of certain trees. One taste wasn't enough.

Tommy pulled back and stared at her with open astonishment. "Y-you want to mate? Here? Now?"

She began to kiss his chest and she stroked his back with one hand while groping his crotch with the other. "I know we should wait, but I can't stand it. Can you?"

He inhaled again and his pupils dilated until only a thin band of amber showed around them. "I don't think I can stand it either, but your father would kill me. I'm not exaggerating, either. He warned me he'd do something if I ever disrespected you." He finally managed to pry her hand away from his groin and he gave her an almost pleading look.

"_Sempul_ won't 'kill you'," she whispered, "He loves you. He might try to beat you up, but he'll have to go through me."

She was moist with need for him and it was embarrassing and uncomfortable. She didn't appreciate having that slippery feeling if they weren't going to take advantage of it and join their bodies. She began to trace his pectorals with her fingertips, watching the way the luminescent pattern of spots brightened as her touch skimmed over them.

"Gracie, I really want to do the right thing, here." He was practically panting now and he was rubbing against her, staring down at her with longing eyes. "God, do I want to do what's right, but you're so freaking beautiful and I want you so bad. Why do you have to keep doing these things?"

"What things?" She kissed his chest. She really, really loved his chest and stomach.

"Sending mixed messages," he answered. "You keep going from shy to sex kitten and I'm afraid I'm going to do the wrong thing and wake up to you slapping me across the face."

She laughed a little. "I won't do that."

"You say that now, but—"

"I promise." She let her head fall back and she looked him in the eye, completely sincere and open. "I may not know much about this sort of thing but I know this won't go away on its own. We might not be mated before Eywa yet but my body obviously knows we're going to be and it's ready, even if I'm not sure _I_ am. I need you."

He hovered over her silently, measuring her with his eyes. "If we're going to do this, we're going to do it right."

At first, she thought he was referring to some kind of sexual position and she was so desperate for relief, she just nodded in agreement. When he balanced himself on one arm and reached for the trailing length of his queue, she realized he meant to enter the bond of _tsahaylu_ with her and sanction their union before Eywa. Tommy paused and looked down at her with a question in his eyes, breathing heavily as he held the tip of his queue up. The tendrils emerged and swayed gently in the dimness, waiting for hers to entwine with them.

Grace hesitated as the realization of what they were about to do dimmed the lust raging through her long enough for a moment of clear thought. She stared up at him and she asked herself if this was really the man she wanted to be mated to for life. Once the bond was made, nothing short of death could break it. Tommy waited quietly, tense with anticipation. Grace took a deep breath and felt around for her own queue, which was lying somewhere on the pallet to her left. She found it and she picked up the end of it.

Looking into his eyes, she lifted it to his but she didn't immediately bring it close enough to form the bond. "Are _you_ sure, Tommy? There aren't other females you want to consider, before committing yourself to me?"

He huffed and narrowed his eyes at her. "Now you really _are_ being a tease."

Grace struggled not to laugh at that. She combed her fingers through his braids and moistened suddenly dry lips, even as she smiled. "I'll take that as a 'yes'."

He looked between his queue and hers. "It's always been a 'yes', Grace. You know that."

Her smile faded and she stared at him. She was never quite sure she felt the same about him, until that moment. He was a beautiful male without doubt and he was her oldest and dearest friend. He was a strong hunter, fiercely protective of her and his family and honorable. All her life, Grace wondered if her attraction to him was so strong because he possessed all of these desirable qualities. Now that they were there like this, looking into one another's eyes, she knew she really saw _him_, as he always seemed to see her from the very beginning.

"It's 'yes' for me too. I'm sincere, Tommy. I want you and only you."

He took another deep breath and exhaled, smiling as the air left his lungs. "I was hoping you'd say that." He kissed her softly and briefly before drawing the tendrils of his hairplug close to hers. He waited for her, smiling with anticipation and a bit of anxiety as she complied and closed the last few inches.

"I love you, Tommy." She meant it completely and she tensed instinctively as the tendrils of their queues reached out for each other and began to entwine.

She didn't know exactly what to expect. When the delicate, pink tendrils of Tommy's queue spiraled around hers and held them tight, she felt everything that made up the whole of him and she knew he felt the same in reverse.

"Gracie," Tommy gasped, shuddering over her.

She had always sworn she wouldn't resort to what she thought was ridiculous silly-talk but feeling the essence of him flowing into her, she broke that promise fast. "My Tommy!"

A soft voice broke through their ecstasy from outside the tent and it immediately put them both into a state of stillness. "Shhh...not so loud, guys."

Grace stared up at her companion with wide eyes and he was wearing an equally mortified expression on his face. For several heartbeats, neither of them dared to move. Tsu'tey's follow-up comment prompted them back into action.

"I'll make sure nobody bothers you, just keep it down."

Tommy's white-toothed grin echoed Grace's smile and they shared an appreciation for Tsu'tey. She could feel Tommy's embarrassed gratitude even as she smiled with her own.

"Sorry," Grace whispered, aiming it somewhere to the left where Tsu'tey's voice seemed to come from.

"I'm not listening," Tsu'tey promised in a whisper back, coming from the left, "I was just warning you guys. I'll scoot a little further away. Goodnight."

Tommy bowed his head over Grace's shoulder and he chuckled softly. His breath was warm and his lips were soft. She stroked his hair and smiled with him, appreciating the humor in the situation. He raised his head from her shoulder and his mouth met hers. The touch of his lips and the feel of him settling on top of her distracted her thoughts of what was happening outside. She could feel how much he wanted her and she couldn't help but share her own need in return.

She embraced him with both arms and lifted her hips to match the instinctive thrust of his pelvis. The masculine hum in his throat as he pressed against her through their garments only ignited her needs further. She slipped her fingertips down the ridges of his ribcage and she palmed the outer edges of his lean hips. She felt the leather strings securing his loincloth and she pulled her hands away, struggling with the urge to snap them.

"Grace?"

There was no point in pretending. She looked down the length of their bodies in the shadows and she acted as her instincts willed. "Get rid of this."

He grinned and lifted off of her a bit, struggling to comply. She helped him and her eyes remained lowered, eager to see that one part of him that she still hadn't gotten more than a glimpse of. With her help, he pulled the loincloth down over his hips and slipped out of it, dropping it on the mossy ground near the edge of the tent wall. He looked at her quietly and she felt his uncertainty through the link they shared.

She stared down at the swollen length of his arousal and instead of reaching immediately for it, she traced the pattern of glowing spots that led from his navel down to his pubic bone. He trembled and stared at her and his mouth parted to whisper something that made absolutely no sense.

"Gargoyle fish. Burnt hair. Clowns."

"Tommy, what are you talking about?"

He looked abashed. "Sorry, I'm trying to calm down."

"Well, do you have to do that? I'm seeing flashes of these things in my mind and it's a little distracting."

He laughed softly. "That's kind of the idea. I don't want to have another accident." He kissed her slowly and sensually, making her purr unwittingly. "I want to come inside of you this time."

The words were so simple and honest, yet sensual to the point of being dirty. She raked his lower abdomen with her fingernails and he hissed softly, reminding her that his flesh wasn't impervious to attack. She felt the scratches through the link and she tempered herself automatically, relaxing the pressure so that she was skimming over his smooth flesh. She looked down again as her hand reached his pelvis and she gently curled her fingers around the base of his naked erection. He took another deep breath as she slid her hand up and down the shaft, familiarizing herself with the contrast of velvety skin and hardness. She felt his pleasure and his tension. The two sensations clashed together confusingly and she stilled her hand and looked into his eyes.

"Should I stop?" Grace asked, feeling suddenly shy. After what happened the last time, she wasn't sure how he would react to her touching it without a barrier of clothing in the way.

He shook his head and kissed her neck. His breath shuddered and his fingers began to untie her bodice eagerly. She helped him with her free hand, sensing his desire. When the stubborn cords loosened enough, Grace arched beneath him to give him a bit of room and she forced her modesty down as the garment was pulled aside and the humid night air touched her exposed breasts. Tommy's appreciative gaze swept over the firm swell of her chest before he met her eyes again. He cupped one of them in his strong, calloused hand and fondled it with care, brushing his palm over the curve of flesh before circling the nipple with his fingertips. His mouth covered hers again in an enthusiastic kiss and his cock seemed to pulse a little in her hand.

"I've been wanting to see those again so bad," he confessed in a husky whisper. Evidently, near exposure to that part of female anatomy on a daily basis wasn't enough to desensitize him to the unobstructed view of her endowments. The dim glow from the plant life outside filtered in through thin slits in the material of the tent, affording enough light for the young couple to see by.

They spent several moments touching, kissing and rubbing against one another before Tommy pulled her loincloth down to remove the final barrier between them. Grace jumped unwittingly when his fingers gently sought out the delicate crease between her thighs and he paused for a moment. His feelings reached her through the link and she relaxed as much as she could, comforted by the sincere desire to be gentle that she felt from him. His tongue curled against hers as he kissed her deeply and his fingers stroked the moist folds of her entrance.

"Grace," Tommy said in a breathless, soft little groan, "I think you need to stop doing that."

She felt how close he was getting and she reluctantly stopped massaging his erection. She shut her eyes and she heard the uncertain little moan in her throat as the pads of his fingers touched a particularly sensitive spot. She ran her hands over his shoulders and looked up at him, trusting him to give her body what it wanted without causing undue pain. She knew it was going to be uncomfortable at first. It might even hurt, until she got used to it. The anticipation of pain wasn't as powerful as her need to have him inside of her, though.

When one of his fingers slipped inside of her, she tensed and clutched at him reflexively. He stopped and gave her a cautious look, waiting for her to relax again. When she did, he pushed further inside and she parted her lips, staring at the low ceiling of the tent. The invading fullness felt strange but it only ached for a moment before pleasure replaced the sensation. Tommy's expression was both cautious and aroused as he pushed the digit back and forth inside of her. He kissed her again, his breath growing heavy and hard with lust.

"Do you like that?"

Grace thought it was an incredibly stupid question to ask, considering that he could feel every sensation she was feeling through _tsahaylu_. She couldn't stay annoyed with him though. As confident as he seemed, she knew without a doubt that she was the first woman he'd ever done this to and there was an undertone of fear in his emotions. She gasped when his finger pushed deeper and pressed against the barrier of her virginity. Tommy stopped immediately and gave her a look of concern that she knew wasn't the slightest bit feigned.

She swallowed and he looked guilty. "There's no help for it. Tommy, I want us to be together. I'm not afraid."

He smirked, but it was strained. "Don't lie."

"Okay, I'm afraid but I know it's going to be over fast."

He withdrew his finger and eased his body on top of hers. Balancing himself on one elbow to keep from putting his full weight on her, he caressed her face and gazed at her solemnly. "I'm all yours, Gracie."

She parted her thighs further and braced herself, gazing back up at him as he took a moment to get into position. "You'd better be."

He smiled and shifted with care, butting against her with the tip of his arousal. Supporting his weight on both arms, he pushed forward a little and entered her. She gasped and he sucked in a slow breath, his golden eyes searching hers. The sensation was very odd. She felt her own discomfort at the intrusion, but Tommy's pleasure mingled with it through the link. He was evidently feeling the same conflict because he paused and swallowed, giving them both a moment to adjust. He drove a little deeper and stopped again when he butted against the obstructing membrane inside. He winced with her as he tried to push deeper and the obstruction didn't give.

"Hold onto me," Tommy advised softly.

She embraced him and held him tight as he withdrew and then thrust forward again, using enough force to break through. Grace couldn't stifle the yelp that burst from her lips in response to the swift flash of pain inside. Tommy grunted softly and kissed her, muffling her little cry with his lips. He waited for a few moments and when the pain faded to be replaced by a pleasurable feeling, he began to move. He thrust gingerly at first, looking down at her with parted lips and a question in his eyes. Grace stroked his chest and stomach as he moved, relaxing as much as possible. The fullness of his girth was becoming less uncomfortable with each gentle push of his hips and Grace started to gasp softly. The ache wasn't completely vanishing but the increasing pleasure of the act made up for it.

"Grace," Tommy breathed, his voice hitching a little. He shut his eyes and pulled his ears back, rocking his pelvis faster as his confidence grew. "Oh god...w-wait."

Grace had just started to experimentally move beneath him in answer to her instinctive mating urges. She went still again and gasped a question to him, feeling the rapid climb of tension within him that warned of an approaching climax. "Tommy?"

"Getting a tooth pulled...blisters...bird poop," he panted.

"Tommy, stop that!"

"I'm sorry...I forgot." He took a steadying breath and looked down at her apologetically.

She felt his embarrassment through the link. His hardness was wedged deep inside of her, throbbing now and then like a heartbeat. Each time it pulsed like that, Tommy tensed and hissed through his teeth. Grace took pity on him. She didn't want it to be over with so quickly either so she tried not to move too much and she rubbed his back soothingly.

After a while, he began to move again and his mouth met hers in a deep kiss. He started thrusting harder when she tried matching his motions and she felt his satisfaction just as he groaned against her lips. In two kinds of increasingly intense pleasure, Grace raised her knees up and back without question when he urged her to. The slight change in position made a distinct difference, allowing him to penetrate even deeper. She whimpered and he breathlessly reminded her to try and be quiet.

Even as he encouraged her to keep her voice down, Tommy struggled to do the same. Their excitement mounted as the young lovers fell into ritual as old as their race. They writhed in the darkness of the small tent, striving to meet the demands of their bodies and find the release they both craved. A sheen of sweat dampened their cyan skin and they whispered each other's names, muffling their moans of pleasure with kisses. Finally, after an indeterminable amount of time, Tommy began to peak again and this time he couldn't calm himself down to delay it.

"Gracie...oh, Grace...I'm...I'm losing it..."

His voice was strained and his body began to tense up helplessly. He pumped harder and faster, staring down at her with intense golden eyes and parted lips. His approaching climax fed hers and the next thing she knew, he bucked in as deeply as he could go and she contracted around his length as it pulsed inside of her. His breath was hot against her ear as he collapsed on top of her, grunting and gasping with pleasure. She was likewise affected, put into a dazed state from the ecstasy of her climax.

For a while, they both just lay there panting, sharing the amazing experience with silent appreciation for one another. They kissed and after catching his breath and regaining control of his limbs, Tommy eased out of her and rolled onto his side. He murmured an apology when Grace winced with soreness and he pulled her to him, holding her close.

"If you're still sore in the morning, I'll help you look for some herbs to make medicine with," Tommy promised her in a whisper, obviously feeling her ache through the link.

Grace snuggled against him, hardly caring about the sticky feeling and the ache down there. Nature's demands had been answered and for a little while at least, she had some relief from the frustration that had been dogging her. She found that she was pleasantly drowsy and she nuzzled her new mate's chest with her lips as he stroked her back. They would have to come up with a way to tell their parents, of course. That could wait until they returned home—hopefully with meat to share with the clan.

* * *

The next morning, Tommy helped Grace clean herself up and he apologized again to her when he saw the traces of dried blood. She only smiled at him, seeming to have blossomed overnight from her first sexual experience. She kissed him, informed him that it was just part of becoming a woman and assured him that she was only a little tender.

They tried to act casual after dressing and exiting the small tent to pack up the camp with the others. Tommy couldn't help but admire the slight blush that darkened Gracie's cheekbones each time their eyes met or their hands touched. He knew he was grinning like a moron and he kept his head down, pretending to be absorbed with packing everything up. Tsu'tey approached him as the last of the supplies were neatly stashed and the party was ready to get moving.

"You two are just making it more obvious by trying to ignore each other like that."

Tommy tried very hard to look ignorant as he glanced sidelong at his younger brother. "Making _what_ more obvious?"

"I'm the one that warned you to keep it down last night, remember?" Tsu'tey smirked and glanced at the others, keeping his voice low. "Someone else is going to figure it out too, if you don't stop trying so hard to play it cool. It looks suspicious when you two don't look at each other or touch. People are used to your affection."

Tommy almost winced. He hadn't thought of it that way. He looked across the distance at Grace and he admired the curve of her hips as she secured some of the light equipment onto one of the horses. She sensed his stare and turned to look at him. The moment their eyes met, a special, secretive smile passed between them.

"On second thought, maybe you'd be better off not looking at each other too much," Tsu'tey amended. "I can see it written all over your faces."

Tommy tore his eyes off of his lover and he coughed into his hand, embarrassed and amused at once. "Do me a favor and keep it to yourself, Tsu'tey."

"You don't have to worry about that," assured the younger hunter. "It's up to you to decide when to tell our parents."

"Thanks." Tommy frowned, hoping he didn't make a huge mistake when he gave into his lust and mated with Gracie.

Tsu'tey noticed the troubled look on his face and he reached out and patted Tommy on the arm. "You only have two things left to do before you finish your rite of passage. If you're really worried about it, maybe you two should wait until after the initiation ceremony to tell anyone."

Tommy sighed. "You may be right. I don't like keeping things from our family but since Grace and I are so close to finishing the trials, it might be better for everyone."

"You've got time to think about it before we go home." Tsu'tey shrugged. With that said, he walked over to his horse and checked its hooves for any cracks or obstructions.

Tommy watched him for a moment and then he looked at Grace. He sighed again—this time in appreciation. She looked surreal and beautiful in the morning light, with the layer of ground fog curling around her feet and her silken hair shimmering in a ray of sunlight.

"She's my mate," Tommy whispered to himself, hardly believing it. Gracie was really mated to him for life and perhaps someday soon, they would be starting a family of their own.

* * *

As they traveled on, it became more and more obvious that something wasn't right. The fog wasn't going away as the morning advanced, for one thing. If anything, it seemed to get thicker when they moved into the old Hometree territory. Tsu'tey rode with his eyes on the ground and Grace stayed close to Tommy, jumping nervously now and then as her eyes flicked to the shadows.

Tommy was just about to lean closer to Grace and ask her if she was all right, when Tsu'tey suddenly yelled at the top of his lungs and fell right off of his mount. Swearing under his breath, Tommy jumped off of his horse and went to his brother's aid as the other hunters tried to calm Tsu'tey's offended mount.

"Are you okay?" Tommy asked as he knelt down beside his brother, frowning. Tsu'tey was staring wide-eyed at something to the left. Tommy looked, but all he could see was a small chalice plant. Tsu'tey was trying to scramble backwards and Tommy grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him. "Tsu'tey! Snap out of it. What's the problem?"

The younger brother pointed at the plant. "There was a woman on fire. She ran straight at me!"

Tommy looked again, then raised his eyes to Gracie. She was staring at the spot as well and the look on her face suggested that she had seen something there, too. "Grace?"

"I saw it," she confirmed. "Another Omaticaya, like the other phantoms. Tommy, I could smell the smoke and I could see the flames rising from the forest behind her. She didn't look like she saw any of us but she ran right through Tsu'tey's _pa'li_."

Tommy cast a suspicious look into the trees and so did the rest of the party. "But she's gone now?"

"Y-yeah, she's gone," Tsu'tey answered. He scrambled to his feet with Tommy's help and he took the horse lead offered to him by one of the female hunters. With muttered thanks to her, he climbed back onto his direhorse's back and linked with it again. "Sorry Tommy. I just reacted."

Tommy compressed his lips and looked around. He could hear insects, birds and other animal activity so that was at least of some comfort to him. "You saw a flaming, screaming woman come running at you from out of nowhere. Not many people would react better. We'll travel for another half hour and then we'll stop for a break."

* * *

When they paused for their rest break, Tommy coaxed Grace away from the rest of the group, sticking close enough to the others for safety but putting some plant life between them to allow a bit of privacy. He invited Grace to sit down with him and he leaned back against the trunk of a massive tree, wedging his back between the twisted roots for comfort. He drew his female companion close and helped her into a more comfortable position between his thighs as he embraced her from behind.

"Are you still sore?" He asked her in a whisper, speaking into her ear.

"A little, but I'll be all right." She twisted to look at him and her eyes were completely serious. "I'm more worried about these spirits we keep seeing."

He watched her silently for a few seconds, contemplatively. "You really think you saw something just before we stopped?"

"I'm _sure_ I did," she answered. "Tsu'tey did, too. We wouldn't joke about something like this, Tommy. I feel like the spirit presence is trying to tell us something."

Tommy looked around at the forest, disconcerted by the fog that stubbornly clung to the base of the trees. The un-natural behavior of the mist added to the creepy feeling he was getting from Grace and Tsu'tey's theories. "What do you think it's trying to say?"

"I don't know." She turned a little and cuddled close to him, laying her head on his shoulder. "All I know is I don't feel spiritual presence this strongly except during ancestral ceremonies and visits to the Tree of Souls."

Tommy nuzzled her hair and rubbed her outer shoulder, endeared by the way she snuggled against him for comfort. "Are you sure you and Tsu'tey both saw the same thing?"

"He was looking at the same spot I was. His reaction was the same as mine, too. Your brother is more sensitive to the spirit world than most, Tommy. If your mother hadn't chosen me to take her place, she probably would have picked him."

Tommy sighed. "He wouldn't have been happy with that. Tsu'tey and I really aren't alike at all. He just wants to do his part and stay in the background."

She smiled and kissed his jaw. "Tsu'tey always does his best in support roles. If he's happy that way, don't pressure him."

"I wasn't going to," Tommy said with a smile. He caressed her face, urging her to tilt it upwards for him. When she did, he lowered his mouth to hers for a kiss. She returned it without hesitation and he smiled against her lips, forgetting about the weirdness of hers and Tsu'tey's claims for a moment.

Suddenly and without warning, Gracie tensed and pulled away from Tommy, gasping. He instinctively reached for his knife and peered at their surroundings for signs of danger. "What is it?"

* * *

Grace stared past her mate, into the trees to the left. She didn't know how to describe what she saw, because she was certain it wasn't real. There was an Omaticaya warrior lying on the forest floor, trying to crawl away from a human driving one of those huge, destructive Amp Suits. The warrior was attempting to reach his knife, which was lying near his broken bow in the bushes. He was bleeding from several bullet holes in his torso and he was coughing up blood. The human soldier advanced on him, wearing a nasty smirk behind the clear visor that protected him from the atmosphere outside his monstrous war machine.

"Grace, what are you _looking at_?"

She tried to tear her eyes away from the phantoms. She parted her lips to assure Tommy that she was all right, but the truth was she was far from it. The Omaticaya warrior had just reached his knife but his enemy caught hold of his queue and dragged him backwards roughly. The human said something but his voice was muted, as were the pain-filled grunts and snarls that were obviously issuing forth from the Na'vi's mouth.

"T-Tommy," Grace choked, curling her fingers into his weapon harness. She couldn't look away and as the human cruelly cut through the Na'vi man's queue and tossed it carelessly away, she screamed.

* * *

Tsu'tey and the other four hunters came charging through the brush when Gracie screamed. Tommy cupped her face in his hands and called to her, trying to get her attention. He still couldn't see or sense any kind of danger but the horror on her face was all too real. She was staring beyond him at something, despite his efforts to get her attention. Whatever she was seeing must be truly awful, to affect her like this.

"Gracie! Look at me!" Tommy shook her a little roughly, growing desperate to snap her out of it. The hunters had their bows drawn and ready and they searched the undergrowth warily, while keeping an eye on the spectacle of the beautiful young woman having what appeared to be a fit of madness.

Tsu'tey looked at Grace and then his eyes settled on the same spot where she was staring. His eyes went round and he yelled a protest. After that, he tilted his head and stared with a deep frown. Gracie calmed down as well and her next comment made Tommy very confused.

"Uncle Jake?"

Tommy looked at his brother, the other hunters and at the spot where she was staring before turning his attention back to Grace. "It's Tommy. Grace, please...you and Tsu'tey are both freaking us out. What are you looking at?"

"_Sempul_," Tsu'tey answered—but he wasn't looking at Tommy or Grace any longer. He was pointing toward the spot where Grace was staring. "He's trying to help that warrior, but it's too late. T-Tommy...this is what happened in the past!"

Tommy looked around wildly, practically giving himself whiplash. "Where? Where are you two seeing this stuff at?"

"Right there." Tsu'tey pointed again. "Tommy...I think this is what happened to the man our parents named me after!"

Grace had calmed somewhat and she was now crying softly. "It's terrible. We're seeing people who died when the RDA destroyed the old village and attacked the Tree of Souls."

"_Ke'u, _Tom-ee," said one of the male hunters in a hushed whisper, after he inspected the spot where Grace and Tsu'tey were looking. "_Kawtu_ _fitseng._"

Tommy's physical senses were in agreement with the other warrior that there was nothing and no one there, but he knew Grace and he knew his brother. They might occasionally exchange pranks with him and the twins for fun, but there was no leisure in their actions. He trusted their instincts, even if he didn't understand them completely. They were both on the verge of a breakdown over these visions they saw.

Grace slumped in Tommy's arms and she wiped her eyes with a shaking hand. "I'm sorry," she apologized with a sniff. "I always seem to bring trouble."

Tommy glanced at his brother to be sure he was okay before answering Grace. He brushed away the drying tears on her cheeks and forced a smile. "You don't bring trouble, Gracie. You just sense it. Do you think we should go back and try a different direction?"

She looked at Tsu'tey, who returned her stare as if silently debating the matter with her. Grace answered after a few heartbeats, looking into Tommy's eyes searchingly. "If I say 'yes', will you hold it against me?"

He smoothed a few reckless locks of raven hair away from her eyes and smiled a bit more sincerely at her. "No. I trust you, Gracie. If you think we should leave, then let's do it."

She seemed to struggle inwardly before coming to her decision. "I think we should turn back, or at least try to find a wider route around the burial site. Tommy, the spirits are so restless here and I feel like...I don't know...it probably sounds ridiculous but I think they're trying to warn us away."

He shook his head and took both of her hands in his. "After what happened with the volcano, I'd best learn to listen when you get these feelings. It's okay Gracie. We'll find another path."

* * *

They began moving north first, attempting to find an alternate way around the territory. Tsu'tey and Grace both continued to see visions as they went and the two of them began to stick close together for comfort. Tommy noticed this with concern—not because he was jealous but because they were two of the most important people in his life and it seemed he couldn't do anything to make it better for them. The entire hunting party was thoroughly spooked by the time an hour passed by and they were still on the outskirts of Old Hometree.

Tommy spotted a trail in the moss a couple of yards away and he directed his mount over to it, holding his hand up to get the attention of his companions. He stopped his direhorse near the tracks and he stared down at them.

"What is that?" Grace asked as she came up beside him. She peered down at the tracks and frowned. "Tommy, those look like boot prints, but they're way too big for a human foot."

He looked around suspiciously. "Yeah. The prints are deep. There was a lot of weight behind these steps. They're fresh, too."

Tsu'tey came up beside him and examined the tracks. "I've never seen anyone with feet that big."

Tommy grunted low in his throat, frustrated. "I don't think a person made those tracks."

"No animal made those marks, _Eyktan_," insisted a male warrior off to the side.

"No, an animal didn't do it," agreed Tommy. He concentrated hard, trying to remember where he'd seen something that could leave a print like that.

Grace answered the question a moment later. "It's from an AMP suit, like the one Tsu'tey and I saw in the vision of Uncle Jake trying to save that warrior." She shivered and rubbed her arms, an expression of helpless misery darkening the beauty of her features.

"An AMP suit?" Tommy repeated, still examining the tracks. Now that she said it, he realized she was right. The heavy steps of an AMP suit was the only thing that could have logically made the imprints. "Visions don't leave footprints."

"I didn't say they did," Grace answered peevishly, overly strained from the entire day.

"Then how did these tracks get here?" Tsu'tey demanded.

Tommy raised his eyes to his companions and took a deep breath. There was only one reason for the tracks to be there. Somewhere nearby, there must be humans—

"_BOOM_!"

The explosive noise struck like an unexpected crack of thunder and it startled Tommy so badly that he came close to swallowing his own tonsils. He would have thought recent history was repeating itself, except there had been no signs of activity from the volcano since it stopped sputtering and this explosion didn't sound like the eruption. The hunting party collectively struggled to control their horses and the animals calmed down when the noise rolled off into the distance. Everyone stared at one another in perplexity.

"Tommy, let's just go back," Grace pleaded, casting a nervous look around the forest. "I don't know what caused that explosion but with everything that's been going on, it can't be good."

He was going to agree with her, when a strangely familiar sound reached his ears. He perked them and listened intently, shushing his companions to reduce background noise. With a frown, he listened to the growling sound in the distance and he tried to identify it. He'd heard it before...he was sure of it.

"It sounds like a motor," Tsu'tey said after a little while, echoing Tommy's suspicion.

Another sound joined the first and it set the teeth on edge. The buzzing noise cut through the air harshly, followed by an odd shriek. Tommy knew where he had heard this one before. He'd heard it at Hell's Gate. The noise was coming from a chainsaw. It was coming from behind them, back toward the ruined village.

Tommy took a deep breath and looked each of his companions in the eye. "Keep going. I'm going to go back and scout the area, to find out what's causing that ruckus."

"Tommy, maybe we should just leave well enough alone for now," Tsu'tey suggested in a low voice. "There are only seven of us and if those sounds are what I think they are, there could be some major trouble. I think you should use your transmitter to try and get in touch with _Sempul_." Jake had given Tommy the transmitter to use in case of emergency. After the volcano incident, their parents didn't like to take chances.

Tommy nodded and glanced at the others before leaning closer to his brother. "I think you're probably right about what those sounds are, but we don't know _why_ we're hearing it. When I know, I'll contact Dad. I don't want to cause a stir over nothing."

"Tommy, don't go," Grace urged when he dismounted and handed his stallion's lead over to one of the other warriors. "If someone's breaking the treaty, they're not going to react well if they realize they've been found out. Think about what happened to Aunt Tanhi's clan when one of her hunters found an invader compound."

He looked up at her and rested his hand on her knee. "I'm not going to show myself to whatever or whoever is making that noise...not until I know it's not an enemy. It could just be Hell's Gate clearing out some dead wood to make way for new growth. Dustin said they do that kind of thing all the time and it's helped the land recover in some places."

Tsu'tey relaxed a little upon hearing that theory. "It does sound like something they would do. But if you're wrong about that—"

"I promise you I'll stay hidden," Tommy assured them. "As soon as I see what's going on, I'll catch up with the group and we'll go from there."

Grace sighed and nodded. She squeezed Tommy's hand before he pulled away from her horse and she reluctantly followed the rest of the party. Satisfied that she and Tsu'tey were moving away from the potential danger, Tommy turned around and began to sprint nimbly through the forest in the opposite direction, guided by the sounds of human mechanics buzzing and grinding away.

* * *

The grind of the saws set his hair on edge as Tommy crept closer to the ruined Omaticaya village. He stopped before a large dandetiger tree and looked up, calculating. With a nod, he removed his bow and set it at the base of the tree before he began to climb the trunk. The weapon would only snag on branches and leaves if he tried to climb with it. He chose the tree because it was surrounded on all sides by vegetation from clinging vines, ferns, other close-growing trees and large specimens of local plants. The leaf cover provided plenty of camouflage, but it also hindered his climb rate because he had to be careful not to rustle the canopy too much and draw attention to his location.

When he was mid-way up the trunk, he was able to get a clear view through the leaves at the clearing, where the massive _keltural_ that once sheltered his clan used to stand. Now there was only a huge, jagged ring of hollow stump and the broken, decaying remains of the fallen trunk to mark the location of the great tree. Tommy counted over a dozen armed human soldiers moving about in the area and there were four people operating AMP suites. A smoking hole had been blasted into the ground near the dead roots of the _keltural_. The soldiers were using manual drills and shovels to excavate the precious, unique mineral deposits from within the gaping wound they had created in the earth. Others were cutting away obstructing wood with chainsaws.

Tommy's knuckles whitened around the vine he was holding onto. His father had known something like this would happen, someday. Jake always tried to be optimistic and he laughingly accused Norm of paranoia but there was always something in his eyes and words that warned Tommy never to let his guard down. Tommy knew with certainty that these people didn't have permission to dig here. It was bad enough that they would dishonor the conditions of the treaty, but they were doing it on sacred burial ground.

His sheer outrage made him see red for a moment and Tommy had to take several calming breaths. The uniforms, symbols and colors belonged to UNEC, so he could at least take comfort in the knowledge that this betrayal didn't come from anyone at Hell's Gate.

"This is why the spirits are so restless," Tommy muttered to himself as he pulled his thoughts together and began counting the enemy numbers. "First they killed those people and now they're digging up their fucking graves to get rich!"

This was the warning Grace had sensed. The dead were trying to tell her that their resting place was being violated. They were warning her to get out...or were they pleading for help? Tommy couldn't know for sure. He was a warrior, not a seer. As a warrior, his first duty was to protect and he reminded himself of that fact as he checked the situation. In total, he counted twenty-two soldiers—not including the four using AMP suites. There were a couple of Scorpion gunships waiting near a Samson, so Tommy had to assume there was at least three more people hidden inside the aircrafts.

"More than _we_ could possibly handle, anyhow," he grumbled.

What confused him the most were their numbers. If this violation was UNEC approved, there should have been heavy machinery there and a lot more people. There should be dozers and daisy cutters, there should be more than a handful of armed guards keeping watch and there should be a Valkyrie shuttle or a Dragon ship to haul landscaping vehicles and troops. None of those things were present, though.

"If they were going to openly break the treaty, they would have come in with a surprise attack and tried to capture or kill everyone at Hometree," Tommy reasoned with a frown. "But if they were going to sneak they _still_ would have brought more than this."

The observations led him to a conclusion that gave him a little bit of hope: The UNEC probably did not order this excavation—at least, not officially. He wasn't an expert when it came to human politics and leadership but he knew they never did anything half-assed. The small numbers of participants and lack of heavy equipment made Tommy suspect that these people went under their supervisors to make a buck on the side through black market operations.

"They're like poachers, going outside the law," reasoned Tommy. It made perfect sense and he was a bit surprised by the relief he felt with the conclusion. He really didn't want another war to start—especially if he and Grace were going to start a family soon. He couldn't be positive that his assertions were correct until confirmation, but he knew humans well enough to see that this was a sloppy, hasty operation and did not in any way suggest organized sanction.

"I'd better contact _Sempul_."

He reached for the small pouch secured on his harness, where he had stashed the transmitter Jake gave him before he left on this hunting excursion. He turned it on and just as he was going to tune the frequency as he had been instructed, the noise from the destructive landscaping equipment died down and he heard a holler from below. Tommy frowned and peered through the opening of the canopy curiously, only to find that one of the AMP suit drivers had stopped and was pointing directly up at him, shouting. He'd evidently gotten the attention of the other workers and informed them that they had a Na'vi witness, because the workers had powered down their tools and were reaching for their weapons.

"Oh, shit."

Tommy feared he might literally _do_ that when the AMP operator called out in a speaker-enhanced voice for him to halt. "Stop! We order you to stop!"

The shouted command was given in Na'vi, but it inspired no trust—especially since the announcer readied his Gau cannon as he said it. Tommy jumped right out of the tree, not bothering to respond or wait. He landed harshly and he swore in pain as his knee struck the ground with less than kind force. He snatched up his waiting bow and got to his feet, plunging into the undergrowth to head in the opposite direction from where his hunting party was going.

"'Stop', he says," Tommy panted, casting a quick look over his shoulder as the bushes and plants snapped behind him. Two of the AMP drivers crashed through, followed by a handful of foot soldiers. "How stupid do they think I _am_?"

He leaped over an old, overgrown limb and he swore when a bullet whizzed by his head. "Don't expect someone to stop when you're shooting at them, _assholes_!"

* * *

Tsu'tey stopped his horse when he heard the "rat-tat-tat" of automatic gunfire in the distance and the rest of the party stopped as well. "Tommy," he said, looking back in the direction his brother went.

"We have to go back and get him," Grace said, immediately turning her horse around with the intent to do just that.

Tsu'tey was on the verge of agreeing with her, but he thought of what they could be up against and he intercepted Grace. She pulled up short and stared at him with wide, disbelieving eyes.

"Tsu'tey, what are you _doing_? That was gunfire we just heard and Tommy went off that way!"

"I know," he answered, trying to quell his fear and dread, "and if there's gunfire it means one of two things: either we've got humans shooting at hostile animals or we've got humans shooting at my brother! You and the others keep going. I'll go and see what's happening."

She glared at him. "No. Not _this_ time, Tsu'tey. I'm not going to leave Tommy behind!"

His argument died on his lips as he watched her stubborn expression grow more determined. Something told him that she would follow him, one way or the other. Short of knocking her out or tying her up, he wasn't going to be able to keep her from coming with.

"All right, but you've got to be ready to _run_ if there's trouble," Tsu'tey said urgently. "No matter what's happening with us. Tommy would kill me if anything happened to you."

"I can take care of myself," she said. She hopped off of her mount and handed the lead over to one of the others, while Tsu'tey did the same. "Let's go!"

Tsu'tey looked at the rest of the party. "The rest of you start heading back to the village, okay? We'll catch up when we find my brother."

"Tsu'tey, we—" began one of the female hunters.

"Don't argue, just go!" Tsu'tey handed his horse's lead over to her and hopped off to join Grace on the ground. "We'll catch up to you."

The remaining hunters looked at each other with unease, but Tommy was the leader and Tsu'tey was his co-leader. They left reluctantly and Tsu'tey took a deep breath, breaking into a run with Gracie to follow the direction of the upheaval.

* * *

Tommy dodged, dove and swerved through the jungle in his efforts to shake his pursuers. As he moved, he tried to get the transmitter up and running but all he got was static. Either there was flux interference or the equipment had been damaged. He stopped worrying about it and concentrated on finding a safe place. Ideally he thought he should lead them at least a mile in the opposite direction of his companions but realistically, he had limited endurance and could only get so far.

"Grace," he panted, taking a steep, reckless path down a hill. "Tsu'tey."

Another series of shots rang out and he squirmed under an upraised tree root for shelter. He shut his eyes as the bullets struck and sent a shower of splinters around him. When the assault stopped, he heard someone swear and after that, another human voice crackled over a radio transmission.

"Visual?"

"Negative," the first voice answered, "the flux is interfering with radar, too. We lost him."

"This operation can't be compromised," said the voice over the radio.

"Affirmative. He can't be far."

Tommy leaned back against the base of the tree and he got to his feet slowly. He carefully drew an arrow from his quiver, listening to the steps of human feet and the heavier tromps of the AMP suit. He steadied his breathing and prepared to make his move, willing his heart to stop pounding so hard. Closer...closer...he had only moments to decide whether to attack or run.

When he opened his eyes again, he caught a flash of motion in the bushes on the hill ahead of him and he stopped with a frown, staring. Two familiar faces peered out from the feathery leaves of the ferns and his heart abruptly stopped. He turned his head and flattened his ears, hearing the humans coming closer. He looked at his brother and Grace's shocked faces and he motioned at them, urging them to leave.

They looked at him, looked at the danger he was in and he knew they wouldn't leave him. Tommy had two choices at that moment and only one of them made any sense to him. He jumped out from behind the tree and fired an arrow at the approaching humans, shouting at the top of his lungs.

His arrow struck the AMP suit in the thigh and bounced off with a clang, repelled by the metal armor. He barely noticed or cared; the shot served its purpose and combined with his shout, it drew all their attention directly to him. The startled humans reacted faster than he expected and as Tommy dove and rolled away, he reminded himself that these were trained soldiers—like his father. Their mining operation might not be organized but their adaptive combat skills didn't suffer for it. Tommy barely managed to leap and roll away as the soldiers fired at him. The bullets cut into plant life, shredding leaves and spraying moss and dirt.

"Tommy!"

He wasn't sure whether he actually heard his brother and mate screaming his name over the gunfire or not. He doubted the humans could hear the cries, but he wasn't going to take that chance. He lunged to his feet, whirled and drew his hunting knife to chuck it at one of the pursuing soldiers. The man screamed as the Na'vi crafted blade buried itself into his shoulder to the bone-handled hilt. He fell to the ground and dropped his weapon, clutching at the knife. Two of his companions stopped and went to his aid while the others stayed focused on Tommy.

He saw the plants rustling a few meters to his left as he ran and he knew Tsu'tey and Grace were keeping pace with him. He couldn't shout at them to order them away without the risk of drawing attention to them, so he changed directions and ran straight towards the remains of old Hometree, leading the danger away from his companions. There was an incline and he leaped as the ground sloped downward, catching hold of a low-hanging tree branch. He winced as the end of the branch cracked under the pressure of gunfire and he swung into the tree, hoping to out-distance his pursuit from above.

Tommy heard the humans swearing beneath him and he smiled grimly. Humans couldn't match Na'vi agility and even with their advanced technology, they couldn't hope to keep pace with him in the trees. They settled for firing into the canopy and Tommy used every skill he had learned to evade the bullets and put more distance between the invaders and himself.

As he ran and leaped through the branches, he reached for his transmitter again. His parents needed to know what was happening, even though they couldn't possibly bring help in a timely manner. He could lure the humans away from his companions and circle back around to meet up with them and hide out until the danger was gone or help arrived.

It seemed like a solid plan, until Tommy realized that his transmitter unit was broken.

* * *

Grace and Tsu'tey ran like a pair of _yerik_, trying to keep pace with Tommy as he led the soldiers further away from the direction where the hunting party was heading. They had both readied arrows into their bows and they struggled to get a clear shot, desperate to draw attention away from Tommy. Grace checked a cry of alarm as more gunfire peppered the greenery overhead where her mate was passing through the trees and she started to fire an arrow at the monstrous AMP suit.

"Wait," Tsu'tey protested urgently, reaching out to catch her arm before she could shoot. "He's leading them away. I don't think they can get him while he's up there, Gracie...he's too fast for them!"

She looked at him and then looked back at the shouting soldiers. She saw a flash of cyan skin in the trees overhead and she briefly saw Tommy's sleek body leap from one branch to the next. Tsu'tey's observation appeared to be correct; Tommy was leading them further away—particularly away from the two of them.

"We can't help him if he leads them out of our range," Grace fumed.

"I think that's the idea," answered Tsu'tey in a tense voice. He looked around. "Come on, I see a path we can take. We might be able to cut across and intercept but we've got to take to the trees to do it."

She didn't know how he could be so calm. Tommy's trajectory appeared to be taking him closer to the rest of the soldiers, but if his intention was to get them all focused on him, it made a crazy sort of sense.

"Tommy Sully, I hope you know what you're doing!"

Tsu'tey put his arrow away and secured his bow around his torso before leaping onto a vine and beginning his climb. Grace did the same and together, the two of them tried to find a path that would get them closer to Tommy so that they could help. Neither of them stopped to think about what two hunters with bows and arrows could do against a couple dozen soldiers armed with automatic guns and war suits.

* * *

"Oww, dammit!" Tommy hissed through his teeth and slapped a hand over his arm as one of the bullets grazed his flesh. The bloody gash wasn't deep but it was too close for comfort. He took to higher branches and made a tactical decision to move toward higher ground. Forcing the humans to run uphill would fatigue them sooner and slow them down.

He heard their frustrated yells and he smiled, feeling more confident. He couldn't contact his father but he was succeeding in making them forget all about searching for other natives in the area. He leaped into a _tautral_ tree and grunted with effort as he climbed the rough trunk. He was getting fatigued as well but once he got high enough into the canopy, he could find somewhere to hide and rest for a while. He only hoped that Grace and Tsu'tey had enough sense to at least stay back. He doubted they would go back to the others until they knew he was safe and he wondered how he was going to find them once he had misled the humans enough to make his way back.

He climbed and climbed, until he made it to the very top of the beanstalk palm. He pushed through the long, coarse leaves at the top and he emerged from the foliage. Before he could take a moment to get his bearings, he heard the sound of one of the aircrafts approaching from the east. He turned to see one of the gunships bearing down on his location and his eyes widened. He ducked back into the canopy again, swearing. He'd been paying so much attention to outrunning the people on the ground that he hadn't noticed the choppers taking to the air to help hunt him down. The deafening gunfire all around him had kept him from hearing them as well.

A hail of bullets tore through the foliage around him, leaving little doubt in Tommy's mind that he'd been spotted by the distant aircraft. It didn't seem to be a concentrated attack but the sheer power of the Scorpion's gunfire more than made up for the lack of targeted aim. Tommy's cover was quickly blown away and as he started to descend back down in search of more shelter, something hot and heavy struck him in the ribs.

The force of the hit blasted the air from his lungs and it took a moment for him to register the pain. The bullet tore right through him and out the other side of his torso, splattering the tree trunk with bright blood. Tommy gagged and clamped his hands over the exit wound, completely losing his grip on the tree. Even with his injury, he remembered to reach out for leaves and vines as he fell, instinctively slowing his descent to the ground. He landed on his stomach and he rolled painfully onto his side, coughing weakly. He curled into a fetal position and he wondered if his right lung was even there anymore.

The heavy clomp of two AMP suits approached and Tommy looked up with blurred vision as the soldiers approached and surrounded him.

* * *

Grace pulled to a stop and covered her mouth with her hand as she stared down at her stricken mate. She felt the phantom pain when the bullet hit and the shock of it would have made her fall out of the tree, if Tsu'tey hadn't caught and steadied her. The younger Sully male held her tight and placed his hand on top of hers. Tsu'tey didn't say anything but she could feel his tension and she knew he was just as horrified and lost as she was. What could either of them do to help Tommy now?

Tsu'tey released her slowly and struggled with his bow, his hands shaking. Grace likewise began to ready her weapon, intending to fire upon the humans even if it meant dying herself. Just as the two of them had the arrows sited and ready for release, Tommy looked up at them. There was a barely perceptible shake of his head and his pain-filled, golden eyes spoke louder than any words he could have uttered at that moment.

_"Don't you dare. I just busted my ass to keep you both safe. Don't do this to me."_

Grace wavered. Her eyes blurred with tears and her throat tightened. "Tommy," she mouthed. "Oh please...please don't die!"

She looked at Tsu'tey and she saw sweat glistening on his tense features. He held his position steady, but he didn't shoot. His eyes were filled with the same dread and helpless agony Grace felt as he watched the soldiers close in on his older brother. One of them nudged Tommy with his boot, forcing him to roll over more. Tommy coughed up blood and groaned.

"That's one of Sully's boys," someone said in a tight voice.

One of the AMP suit drivers looked around and Grace shrank against the tree with Tsu'tey when his eyes swept over their hiding spot. "You sure about that?" he asked. "What would Sully's kid be doing here by himself?"

The radio crackled and a voice broke through over the transmitter. "Did you get the target or not?"

The soldier standing immediately over Tommy answered the question. "Affirmative. The target's down but I think we've got a problem."

"What sort of problem, Lieutenant?"

"We're pretty sure it's one of Jake Sully's sons, Sir."

There was a moment of silence, broken only by Tommy's ragged struggles for breath. "What the hell is he doing out here?"

The lieutenant shook his head. "No fucking idea, but if he's here then there has to be more of his clan close by. He's alive, Sir. Do we bring him for medical treatment?"

"No. We're packing up this operation and leaving. I'm not taking any chances."

The soldiers looked at each other grimly. "What about the kid?"

"How long does he have?"

The lieutenant shrugged. "Maybe an hour, if he's tough. His people could find him before that happens but if they don't, he's a goner."

"He can identify us," said the other man over the frequency. "You know what's going to happen to every man in on this operation if that happens."

The soldiers tensed and looked at one another. One of the younger troops spoke up hesitantly. "Sir, the guy's in really bad shape. He's probably too stunned to identify anyone here. We can't just leave him to die."

"No," agreed the lieutenant with a frowning look down at Tommy. "We can't. It's not humane."

* * *

Tommy understood what was about to happen and his one comfort was that his brother and mate were still safely camouflaged in the trees. He looked past the faces of the humans staring down at him, risking one last look at Gracie's beautiful, agonized face high above him.

"Love you." He mouthed the words through rapidly numbing, bloody lips.

He heard the click of a wasp revolver but he paid no attention to it. He concentrated on Gracie's face as the soldier aimed the weapon down at him. There was an explosion of pain in his head, followed by a peculiar rushing sound. The next thing Tommy saw was a scintillating light and a five-fingered, cyan-striped female hand reaching through it toward him.

"Come with me, kid. I'll take care of you."

* * *

Grace's mouth was gaping wide and her eyes stared with disbelief at the still body of her lover. A moan rose in her throat and a cold hand promptly clamped over her mouth, muffling the grief she couldn't hold back. She felt Tsu'tey trembling violently against her as he held her close and restrained her. She lost all sense of time as she watched Tommy and waited for some sign of life. Tommy couldn't be dead. He was just pretending. As soon as the humans left, he would get back to his feet and tell her and Tsu'tey to stop panicking.

He couldn't be dead.

He couldn't.

The humans left quickly, most of them hardly sparing a glance at the young man they had killed. The young soldier that had protested earlier lagged behind, looking over his shoulder at Tommy with a troubled expression on his face.

Still hidden in the trees, Tsu'tey and Grace waited in frozen silence until the helicopters lifted off in the distance and carried the killers away. Grace was the first to move. Tsu'tey's arms were stiff as she pulled out of them. Her climb down was clumsy and uncoordinated. She fell the last few feet but she hardly felt the pain in her ankle when she landed badly on it. Grace stumbled over to Tommy and went to her knees beside him, pulling him into her arms and calling out to him.

"Tommy...Tommy, look at me! Tommy, stop staring at the sky like that and _LOOK AT ME!_"

"He's not staring at the sky," came a ragged voice to her right.

Grace bore her teeth and hissed when Tsu'tey tried to reach out for his brother to take him from her. She held Tommy's upper body protectively to her chest and cradled his head with one hand, ignoring the sticky wetness against her palm. She rocked him and talked to him in a shaking voice, urging him through trembling lips to come back to her.

Tsu'tey finally snapped when Gracie tried to get Tommy to put his arm around her. "Grace, he's _DEAD_! He's got a fucking hole in his head! He's not going to crack a smile and tell us he's joking, okay?"

"He _can't_ be dead!" She screamed. "He's...just unconscious! Na'vi bones are hard...the bullet—"

"The bullet was fired at point-blank range!" Tsu'tey yelled, "It went through, Grace! _Look at him!_"

She shook her head but her eyes automatically obeyed his demand. She looked into Tommy's blank, staring eyes and she tried to ignore the neat little bloody hole in his forehead. There was nothing of him in there at all. Her Tommy was really gone. She had felt it when he left but she couldn't accept it. It had to be a nightmare. She tilted her head back and screamed out her agony, unable to stop herself.

Tsu'tey covered his ears and his eyes filled with tears. He sat down in the bloodied moss and stared at his brother's lifeless face and the grief-maddened face hovering over it. The danger from the humans was gone for now, but the smell of the blood and Gracie's screams would surely attract natural predators.

"Get her out of here," a voice whispered in Tsu'tey's ear.

Tsu'tey straightened up and looked around wildly. "T-Tommy?"

"It's not safe," the voice whispered. "Take care of her for me, little brother."

He feared he was going insane. He couldn't see anyone but he heard the words clearly, as if Tommy were crouched down behind him and whispering directly into his ear. Tsu'tey looked at Grace again and he winced as another scream burst from her lips. He completely empathized with her feelings and he wished he could howl his grief right along with her, but the voice was right; it wasn't safe.

"Grace, we've got to take him to the others," Tsu'tey began, swallowing hard past the lump in his throat. "The animals...they'll smell the blood. We have to b-bring T-Tommy...home...to _Sa'nu_ and _Sempu_."

She shook her head and kissed Tommy's slack, bloody lips.

Tsu'tey was starting to weep in earnest and he didn't know how much more he could take. "Please...Gracie...I can't do this alone."

He heard a rustle off to the left and he jumped to his feet, reaching for his bow hastily. It was the rest of the hunting party, coming out from deeper in the forest. They approached with bewildered expressions and they stared down at their motionless leader with wide eyes.

"We heard the screams," said one of the females. "When the flying machines left, we thought all was well, but then...we heard..."

The other female in the party had gone to her knees beside Grace and she was trying to comfort her. One of the males crouched down on the other side and he reached out to gently shut Tommy's staring eyes.

"He walks with Eywa now," announced the hunter. He looked up at Tsu'tey and the others, his expression warring between regret, sympathy and anger. "Where are the _tawtute _responsible for this going, Tsu'tey?"

Tsu'tey shook his head. "I...I don't know. Probably all the way back to the UNEC base. That's where they came from."

"Then we will make war on these yoo-neck _swiräs_!" growled one of the other males. The rest of the party hooted in agreement, thrusting their fists into the air and bearing their teeth with rage.

"This wasn't done by the whole UNEC organization," Tsu'tey tried to explain past his aching throat. "They killed Tommy because they didn't want him identifying them to anyone."

"Of course they did not want to be identified," hissed the huntress standing close to Tsu'tey, "they broke the treaty!"

"No, they did this behind the backs of their leaders. I heard them talking. Anyway, we can't do anything about it now! We have to...we've got to bring my brother's body back—"

He abruptly dropped his bow, bent over and threw up. Someone patted him on the shoulder and someone else wiped at his face with a dampened piece of cloth. He kept heaving until he had nothing left in his stomach and then the world began to spin around him. He could hear Grace's ragged sobs, now coming out hoarse and weak from her ravaged throat. He heard one of his companions ask if he was all right and then, he fell into blackness.

* * *

-To be continued

**_Sempul_ =** Father

**_Ke'u_** = Nothing

**_Kawtu fitseng _** = No one here/this place

**_Eyktan_** = Leader

**_Yerik_** = Hexapede: a deer-like animal native to Pandora

**_Tautral tree_ **= Beanstalk palm: a native palm tree that can grow as tall as 150 meters. Na'vi often use mature specimens as lookout posts.

**_Sa'nu_** = Mommy

**_Sempu_** = Daddy

**_Tawtute_** = Sky Person/Sky People

**_Swirä _**= Creature

* * *

**Additional Author's note:** _Death happens and as some of my readers have said, I have avoided it a lot in these Avatar fanfictions I've been writing. Now you know I have it in me but I can honestly say I find it very hard to write death scenes. I get too attached to the characters—even my original ones—and then I feel like a villain if everybody doesn't make it out alive. For those who may have found the death too disturbing, I am sorry. _


	7. Chapter 7

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 7: Grief

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Thank you for the feedback thus far. I just want to say that there is simply no way to please everyone as a writer. I took this story in the direction that I felt it needed to go and those who choose to continue reading will eventually see why as the story advances. _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

_"So, this is the girl they named after me."_

She studied the crying young huntress with interest, her intelligent amber eyes rimmed with quiet sympathy.

_"She's a beauty. If there was a Na'vi version of 'Vogue', she'd be right on the cover." _

The avatar woman turned to look at her fellow spirit, looking him up and down. She sighed. _"Norm's daughter doesn't look a bit like him, but I could have mistaken you for your jarhead father easily, if I had met you back in the day when I met him."_

He regarded the avatar warily but he knew her from the photos his parents and Norm had shown him. _"So you're Grace Augustine? Are you in your avatar body because you died trying to move into it?"_

She shook her head and smirked. _"I'm in this body because I choose to be, kid. I always felt more affinity to the Na'vi than my own 'kind', once I learned about them and their ways." _

The woman suddenly shrank and her skin changed colors from blue to a pale peach tone. Now a redheaded, attractive human woman in her forties stood before him. Her hair fell to her shoulders in waves that seemed to just come natural to her and Tommy cocked his head to the side, thinking that Dr. Augustine could pass as a relative of Savanna's mother.

_"This is my other 'skin',"_ informed Grace.

He had seen some photos of her as a human, but they were old and most of them weren't that clear. _"It's a nice skin to have,"_ he complimented awkwardly. _"You're a pretty lady, Dr. Augustine."_

She smiled at him. _"You're a lot more polite than your old man, Tommy."_

Tommy had no response for that. His eyes went to his grieving widow. The ache he felt in his heart didn't seem possible, since he wasn't alive and therefore shouldn't feel pain. It was there, nonetheless. He squatted down before her and he reached out for Gracie's tear-streaked face, unable to touch the smooth skin to wipe away the dampness.

_"I want to say goodbye. I love her so much."_

Dr. Augustine's phantom hand felt solid to him as it settled on his shoulder. She crouched down with him and looked at him searchingly. _"You could if you wanted to. Do you really think it's the right thing to do right now, while she's in this condition?"_ She nodded meaningfully at the sobbing young huntress.

Tommy took a deep, shuddering breath and he pulled his hand away from Gracie's face to rub his eyes. _"No, she's been through enough today. I...I should have listened to her and Tsu'tey. If I had, this wouldn't have happened and I wouldn't be lying there with a hole in my head."_

He glanced at his body and shuddered. The other hunters had put together a stretcher to carry him and they were binding him to it now, preparing to cover him with hides from the tents to protect his flesh. Tsu'tey sat unmoving a few feet away, with his back turned to the others. He had only regained consciousness a few moments ago and his complexion was alarmingly pale.

_"Actually, if you hadn't gone to investigate, those soldiers would have found your party," _Grace revealed. _"It's very hard to communicate directly with the living—especially if the living person doesn't know you from Adam. Think of it like charades. We can touch bases with those who are receptive enough but even then, it's hard to communicate without a link in life. By the time your mate understood that her visions were warnings, you were already too far into the territory. "_

He frowned at her. _"So you're saying that if I hadn't checked it out and gotten myself shot, everyone in my party would have gotten killed?"_

The former botanist sighed, her ghostly breath fogging the air. _"The AMP drivers were just about to do a round of patrolling around the perimeter, when you went to investigate. If they had found your party and seen how few of you there were, they would have slaughtered every one of you. They were conducting criminal activity, Tommy. They couldn't risk anyone finding out what they were really doing on their 'assignment'. My guess is they could face charges of treason and attempted sabotage of an official UN treaty, if they're ousted." _She looked around at everyone in the clearing. _"You probably saved their lives. They'll finish growing up and they'll have families of their own."_

_ "But then why didn't they go looking for the others, after they killed me? If they were afraid of leaving witnesses, wouldn't they have searched the area?"_

She nodded._ "Like I said; if they knew there were only seven of you, it would have been a blood bath. They shit their pants when they identified who you are and my guess is they assumed the next Olo'eyktan would have a lot more than a handful of hunters traveling with him."_

_ "So they basically panicked," _reasoned Tommy. He swallowed, looking at Gracie again with aching eyes. She deserved a family, even if it wasn't with him. Oh, it hurt, though. The children she might someday play in the sun with weren't going to be his. All his life, he had been so _sure_ that he and Grace belonged together. Even though it hurt to find out how wrong he was, he still wanted only her health, safety and happiness.

_"You can say your goodbyes later," _Dr. Augustine said comfortingly. _"When she's had time to accept it and heal a little, you can go to her and say everything you need to say, Tommy."_

He titled his head and frowned unhappily at Gracie when she began pulling her hair whilst rocking back and forth. To his horror, several shiny strands came loose in her clawed fingers. Tommy shook his head and his vision blurred with tears. He couldn't bear it. He moved closer to her and whispered into her ear, instinctively knowing how to interact with the living as a spirit.

"Oh Gracie...please don't do that."

She froze, her breath hitching in her throat. She raised her head and looked around with wide eyes, immediately focusing on the empty shell that was Tommy's body.

_"Be careful about that, Tommy," _warned Grace Augustine seriously, _"If she can't handle seeing you, she won't handle hearing your voice coming from out of nowhere much better. Don't push her over the edge."_

He bit his lip helplessly and looked at his brother as Grace resumed tugging at her hair. _"What about Tsu'tey? Do you think I can speak to him again, or is it too soon?"_

Grace gave the younger Sully boy a measuring look before nodding. _"That kid's got more fight in him than most people realize. He has his mother's spirit. Make it quick and to the point, Tommy. Tsu'tey's hanging in there, but his nerves are going to snap sooner or later."_

He wasted no time. Crossing the distance without a sound or footprint, Tommy approached his brother and squatted down before him. He studied the glossy, half-lidded eyes quietly for a moment and he worried that Tsu'tey was going into shock. He gave his spirit companion an uncertain look and she nodded, urging him silently to say what he had to say quickly.

"Tsu'tey, stop her from doing that."

Tsu'tey gasped and sat up straighter, his heavy-lidded eyes widening abruptly. He looked around with a half-frightened, half-suspicious expression and Tommy quickly spoke again.

"Gracie," explained Tommy urgently. "You've got to look after her for me, _tsmukan_."

Tsu'tey turned his head slowly and looked over at Gracie. When he saw what she was doing to herself, he swore and climbed to his feet. He stumbled over to her and practically fell to his knees in the moss beside her. Tommy watched with a mixture of pride, envy and love as his little brother took his mate into his arms and spoke to her, gently restraining her hands to keep her from pulling more of her hair out. Even if he thought he was going insane, Tsu'tey would do as Tommy asked and help Gracie get through this.

_"Good job," _Dr. Augustine complimented, watching the younger brother comfort Tommy's grieving mate. _"But that kid's always followed your lead, hasn't he?"_

Tommy felt the bittersweet sting of tears again as he nodded. _"Yeah. He's a good guy and he always will be."_ He took a deep, shuddering breath. _"So they're safe now, right?"_

Grace nodded. _"From the people who killed you, at least. You can relax."_

_"I'm kind of tired,"_ he admitted, still squatting where his brother had been sitting a moment before. _"Can we rest for a while?"_

Dr. Augustine gave him a kind, matronly smile. _"Chatting with the living drains a lot of energy. We aren't meant to stay out of the 'network' for very long, either. Rest for as long as you need to, kid."_

* * *

_~How could this happen?~_

The question kept repeating itself in Norm Spellman's mind from the moment they brought Tommy into the village. The hunting party gently lowered their fallen leader to the ground at Jake and Neytiri's feet and they explained what happened as best they could. Grace had torn out chunks of her beautiful hair and her eyes were practically swollen shut from crying. Tsu'tey looked pale, sick and oddly guilty as he helped his companions describe the events that led to his brother's death. Through it all, Neytiri stood stiff and tense, but dignified. Jake simply stared down at his oldest son's lifeless face with the look of a man who had taken an unexpected blow to the head.

Sylwanin collapsed on Tommy's still chest, sobbing her little heart out. Neytiri picked her up and held her close, but her expression remained frozen. Jake remained as he was, studying Tommy's face with detached confusion.

They were both in shock.

Norm had taken psychology as part of his anthropology degree and he knew the signs. Grace was in a rather chronic state of PTSD and the rest of the hunters that had accompanied them on the trip were showing signs of trauma as well. At least he could say that his daughter was letting her grief out, though looking at the damage she had done to her hair, he worried that she would cause harm to herself if left unsupervised.

As Norm stepped up beside his friends and gazed upon Tommy's pale, waxen features, that maddening question continued to rattle through his mind. There he was, a scientist with some of the highest marks in his field and yet, he couldn't answer a simple question. Even after _hearing_ how it happened, he kept asking himself that question: _How could this happen_?

_~Because the answer isn't good enough,~_ Norm thought as he stared down at the young man who would have been his daughter's mate and the clan leader, one day. _~It's not fucking good enough. It doesn't make any sense and it's so far beyond unfair, I just can't accept it.~_

And it was then that Dr. Norm Spellman realized that he too was suffering symptoms of shock and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

* * *

Mo'at watched the reflections of the dull light on the surface of the water. The day was overcast and there was a chill in the air. It was an omen. She hesitated, feeling that she should link with _Ayvitrayä Ramunong_ to hear the will of Eywa. She was afraid, though. There was a feeling of dread inside of her, a sickly feeling like poison in her belly. What message would she receive if she listened to the great tree?

At once, she became annoyed with herself and she frowned down at her reflection in the water. "I am dreaming up monsters in my old age. I have always listened to the voice of the All Mother, good or bad."

She turned her back on the pond and walked the path leading to the heart of the village—the most sacred place for all Na'vi on this land mass. The beautiful tree waited for her approach and other clan members gave her gestures of deep respect, not bothering her as she approached the Tree of Souls. She tapped her walking stick on the ground as she moved, using it to support her steps until she was beneath the luminescent branches. Setting her cane aside, she knelt slowly beneath the tree and she reached out to take some of the tendrils in her hand. She hesitated with a frown as she started to reach for her queue, stricken again by the feeling that she would regret communicating with Eywa this day.

Reminding herself that bad news came in all forms, she put aside her misgivings and connected her queue to the strands. She closed her eyes and listened, sensing great distress somewhere. She felt a presence that would normally bring her joy, but feeling it through the link to the Tree of Souls only brought dread to her heart.

The male voice she heard in her mind a few seconds later confirmed her fears. "Hi, Grandma."

* * *

Peyla heard the heartbroken wail and she immediately dropped the hide she was working on and charged to the center of the village. People were muttering and watching Mo'at helplessly, utterly shocked by the unusual, abrupt outburst. Peyla's son came running up to her with a horribly worried look on his young face.

"Mother, something is wrong with Mo'at!"

Peyla patted him on the arm, her eyes staying on the distressed matron. "Go and get your father. I will see to her."

Knowing the boy would do as she said, Peyla hurried over to the tree and knelt before Mo'at, uncertain of what to do. It was unheard of for anyone to touch the great spiritual leader when she was communicating with Eywa, but never had they seen a reaction like this, before. Peyla reached out carefully and put her hands on the old woman's shoulders.

"Mo'at, it is Peyla," she called with soft urgency. "Tell me what is wrong!"

It took a moment for the aged _Tsahik_ to respond. "My grandson."

Peyla felt a cold settle around her heart and she embraced Mo'at supportively, trying to understand. "Something happened to one of your grandchildren?"

E'quath arrived before the grieving matron could answer and Peyla looked up at him to see that he had his transmitter on. His face was pale and set, stoic as always but quietly disturbed. "I have been contacted by Normspellman," he said softly, moving closer and kneeling before his mate and Mo'at. He placed a gentle hand on the _Tsahik's_ trembling shoulder. "Jakesully's eldest son is dead. Sky People killed him."

* * *

When the sun went down, the shock of what had happened wore off for a lot of people and the real grieving began throughout the village. Even if some resented the "taint" in his blood, Tommy Sully wasn't a young man who was easy to dislike. Like his father, he had a charisma about him; an open friendliness and an honest smile that made him approachable and easy to trust. People his age began to weep for him—especially the girls. Many of the older hunters were quiet, grim and thoughtful as they pondered the events and stayed a respectful distance from their bereaved clan leaders.

Even Emazu looked somewhat devastated when he stood over the prepared body of his former rival. There were whispers that he was faking his expression of quiet respect because any expressed joy on his part would be incredibly inappropriate and could lead to other candidates being considered for the role of the next _Olo'eyktan_. Those who knew Emazu better insisted that he was truly shocked. They said he hadn't believed anyone in Jake's family _could_ be killed; especially after his unwilling adventure with Tommy when the volcano erupted.

Norm selected a mixture of herbs and brewed them, making a natural sedative for those who needed it the most. Ni'nat was able to convince Gracie to drink some and Tsu'tey wordlessly complied without argument. Sylwanin was still crying so hard she almost threw hers back up as soon as she swallowed it and finally, the most traumatized were off to bed early.

The clan had set up several of the lanterns outside, around the trunk of Hometree. The people played gentle, soft music and sang remembrance songs in honor of Tommy Sully. The elders would prepare his body for funeral rites and tomorrow night, the clan would consign Tommy to the ground beneath the roots of the _Keltural_, to nourish the land and go to Eywa's side.

"Thank you." Norm took the wooden cup offered to him by his mate and he stared into the light of the glow lantern.

Ordinarily, Neytiri would lead the clan through the solemn ceremony. Since it was her own son to be buried this time, one of the elders would be doing it in her stead. Norm looked across the distance at Jake and Neytiri, who were standing near the main den entrance talking quietly with some of the elders. His heart went out to them. They should be given time alone to grieve for their firstborn, but there were arrangements and plans to make. The burial wasn't the only thing to think about; there was the matter of how to handle the situation that led to Tommy's demise.

"I don't blame them if they want to kill every last one of them," Norm muttered, his fingers clenching tight around his cup.

He hadn't touched the drink yet, though he knew he should at least drink some of it. The herbal mixture was the same he had fed to Gracie, Sylwanin and Tsu'tey to help them sleep. He almost gave some to Ralu but she was handling the terrible situation with surprising stoicism, for a girl her age. She was as sad about Tommy's death as everyone else but she was more concerned for the living right now, and that meant her traumatized older sister. Ralu was currently snuggled up in Gracie's hammock with the older girl, offering every bit of innocent comfort she could give.

The thought gave Norm a pang, even as he felt pride. He and Ni'nat had raised a pair of good girls that would become good women. Jake and Neytiri had raised the perfect mate for Gracie and now, Norm would never be able to tell Tommy so.

That was when it really hit him like a blow. His eyes went to the body of the young man that would have become his son in more than just sentiment and his tension mounted. His breath quickened as he fought against the surge of painful emotions. Tommy looked like he was asleep. They had mended the wound in his torso, cleaned him up and dressed him in ceremonial warrior garb. A beaded headband circled his forehead, hiding the head injury that ultimately claimed his life. His torso wound had been patched up but left visible to the observer, as symbol that Tommy had died a true warrior, with full honor.

"It doesn't make any sense," Norm whispered, drawing attention from his mate.

Ni'nat gazed up at him with sorrow and empathy. "You should drink that," she suggested softly, indicating the cup in his white-knuckled hand.

Norm looked down at it and he stared at the tiny leaves and stem bits floating in the hot, golden-brown beverage. He saw his distressed, confused reflection staring back up at him in the liquid and he thought it was such a stupid, helpless sight that he threw the cup away, sending it twirling end-over-end through the air. Luckily, nobody was in the flight path to get splashed by the hot tea and the cup landed with a "thump" several yards away.

He wanted to hit something...or someone. He wanted to punch his own stupid, slack-jawed face.

If he weren't mired in such dark, painful emotions right now, Norm might have laughed at the absurdity of his thoughts and the mental image of him punching himself. He had feared something like this would happen after the eruption. He knew human nature and he suspected someone somewhere would try to take advantage of the recent disaster to illegally harvest some profit from the land.

He knew, and yet he didn't try hard enough to prevent it from happening. Assigning volunteers to guard the Tree of Souls had been a smart move on Jake's part. Why hadn't Norm thought to propose a similar arrangement for the old village territory? He looked around for an inanimate object to take his rage out on and his hands clenched into fists.

"Norm," Ni'nat crooned, using her most soothing voice. She took his fisted hands into hers and stroked the knuckles, looking up at his face with shining, sad eyes.

"How could this _happen_?" Norm blurted in a rough voice. "It was _Tommy_! He was still just a kid!"

People noticed his outburst but seeing that his mate was trying to calm him, they didn't try to intervene. Everyone was grieving in their own way and it was common knowledge that Norm loved Tommy like a son.

"I have no answer," Ni'nat confessed gently. "Come, my Norm. You are upset. I will make another drink for you, so that you may sleep tonight."

He resisted her efforts to steer him toward the tree. "I just want to understand _why_," he insisted petulantly, beyond logic or reason.

Ni'nat embraced him. "His life was short, but it was good."

"He had everything going for him," agreed Norm huskily. "He was so much like Jake. Sometimes he pissed me off—just like his father—but overall there wasn't a mean bone in that kid's body. I never got to tell him, Ni'nat." His emotions were getting to him and Norm felt the wetness of his own tears sliding down his face as he bowed his head over his mate's shoulder.

"Tell him what, my Norm?" She rubbed his back, encouraging him to let it out.

"That day when Trudy found the kids and brought them back to Hell's Gate, Gracie told me how Tommy threw her out of the way when the ground opened up. He didn't care what happened to him, as long as Grace and his brother were safe. That was when I realized there's nobody better for our daughter and all I wanted to do was encourage them to be together. I'll...I'll never get to tell him, now."

"I think he knew," she comforted, kissing him on the cheek. Tears were welling in her eyes too and she sniffed. "He knew you loved him, Norm. You were only being a protective father to Grace. He understood."

Norm remembered the day he interrupted the "show and tell" session between his daughter and Tommy. He remembered the talk they had after Norm calmed down and the way Tommy smiled at him with respect and genuine affection before promising to always protect Gracie...even from himself.

"I think you're right," Norm said, sniffing to keep his nose from running. "Tommy wasn't quite as thick as his Dad. He had to have known how I really felt."

He swallowed hard and shut his eyes, taking a few calming, slow breaths. Ni'nat hummed softly to him, pausing now and then when her emotions thickened her voice. After exchanging comfort with his mate for a little while, he pulled away and took a step back. He sniffed again and wiped his eyes, embarrassed.

"Eywa, I'm such a dork," he muttered. "Wait, I take that back; I'm a jackass. Jake and Neytiri lost their firstborn child and all I can think about is _my_ feelings." Never mind that the bereaved parents in question weren't exactly morning the way one would expect them too. He looked over at Jake and Neytiri again and he realized that the latter hadn't spoken so much as a word since they brought Tommy home. Her face was as still as a sculpture and he was positive now that both Neytiri and Jake were still numb with shock.

"Tommy touched the lives of many people," excused Ni'nat, ever patient and understanding. "You do no wrong by honoring his memory for what he was to you, sweet mate." She took his hand again. "Come. I will make that drink for you now."

"You're determined to drug me, aren't you?" Norm managed a shaky chuckle. "I'm okay. I just...needed to vent. Ni'nat, I'm going to say this now because there's no telling what could happen tomorrow. I love you and I appreciate everything you are. You're the kindest person I've ever met and I _still_ can't believe you're my mate, to this day."

She smiled at him through her tears and she embraced him, laying her cheek against his chest. "I wish I had your gift for clever words," she whispered, "but know that I feel the same way about you."

* * *

Late that night when the activity in the village died down, Jake approached Norm and asked to speak alone with him. The two of them went up to the highest branches of Hometree, where the ikrans nested. After checking to be sure they were alone, Jake spoke. His expression was cold and hard.

"Have you contacted anyone at Hell's Gate about this yet?"

Norm shook his head. "No. I've only reached E'quath, so far. We should probably get in contact with someone at UNEC as soon as possib—"

"No."

Norm sputtered to silence and regarded his friend with confusion, his ears drooping with unease at the unrecognizable person he saw staring back at him. "Jake, I know it's hard for you right now and that's why I'm offering to do the talking for you, until you feel like you can do it. You need time to—"

"I don't want _anyone_ contacting UNEC _or_ Hell's Gate, understand?"

Norm stared at him, blinking. "Why?"

"Because I don't want them to see me coming."

"'Them' who, Jake?" Norm had the urge to pound on his chest with his fist when he felt his heart stop for a moment. "The people responsible for this weren't acting under official orders from UNEC or Hell's Gate. Tsu'tey said so himself! You can't just go on a massive killing spree, Jake! Our _friends_ are human and we used to be human, too! We—"

"Would you shut up and listen?" interrupted the chieftain harshly.

Norm's babbling tumbled to a stop and he watched Jake warily. He knew what a marine was capable of but even so, his friend had always put off a warm aura of 'humanity', for lack of a better word. Jake Sully killed when he needed to, not because he enjoyed it. That man appeared to be gone, now. It also occurred to Norm with a little shock that Jake was speaking in Na'vi. Usually when they had these private talks, he spoke English. As much as Jake had adapted to the Omaticaya lifestyle, his language of preference was still his "mother tongue".

Norm felt a terrible chill in his blood. "What are you going to do, Jake?"

Jake took a deep breath. "I'm going to find the people that did this and make them pay."

Norm should have expected something of the sort. The day Tommy was born, Jake publicly vowed to give him everything he possibly could. His pride and love for the boy had been apparent from day one and now, people from his former race were responsible for snuffing that light in his life out forever.

He had to be very careful here. He could see by the red-rimmed eyes gazing back at him that the wrong step could result in disaster. "Jake, I'm your friend. I don't want you or your family hurt anymore. Please, take some time to think about what you want to do. You and Neytiri _both_ need to grieve."

"I'll grieve when I'm finished," Jake answered, his hard gaze unwavering. "So will Neytiri. Do you _really_ trust _them_ to give these people the punishment they deserve?"

By "them", Jake obviously meant the people at UNEC. Norm looked at his old friend with sincere regret and ultimate sympathy. "Sometimes human justice works, Jake."

Suddenly, Norm found himself shoved hard against the trunk of Hometree. The knots of wood and bark dug harshly into his back and he struggled for breath as he stared into the reddened amber eyes of a man pushed over the edge.

"Jake," he choked, trying to dislodge the hand from around his throat. He tried to kick out but Jake blocked it with maddening ease. With horrifying clarity, Norm realized that he could quite possibly die by Jake's hand.

"He was my _son_," Jake growled.

Norm didn't know what was worse; the reality that his best friend was slowly crushing his throat or the barely restrained agony in his eyes. "I...didn't...kill him!"

The vice-like grip on his throat suddenly released and Jake stepped away from him...or more accurately, _staggered_ away. The _Olo'eyktan_ looked at Norm with furrowed brows and a stricken expression of guilt.

"Norm, I didn't mean to do that."

Norm resisted the urge to rub his sore neck. His pity was greater than his fear and he took a ragged breath before daring to step closer to his tortured companion. "What do you want me to do, Jake? How can I help?"

Jake tilted his head to the left and smirked. For a moment, he _almost_ looked like the Jake Sully everyone knew. "I want you to keep your promise."

Norm frowned, struggling to understand. "What promise?"

Jake stepped closer to him, oddly intense. Norm took a step back and he nearly slipped on the edge of the tree branch. "You promised me that if anything ever happened to Neytiri or I, you would watch over Tommy and help him become a good leader."

_~Oh fuck...he's really lost it._~

"J-Jake...I can't do that," Norm protested. He felt like he was going to cry again. "Tommy isn't—"

"I know," interrupted Jake with a frown. His eyes lowered, hiding the fury in them for a moment. "Tommy is dead. But Emazu is the next candidate for the job. The council has decided, Norm. I can't do it, so I need you to do it for me."

"W-what? Jake, that promise was made for totally different reasons! I can't foster Emazu, he's not Tommy!"

"I know he isn't Tommy," snarled the shorter male, "but he's next in line. Emazu has the will and the strength, Norm. The council sees it. He needs a good influence and if you can be half the influence to him that you were to my son..."

Jake broke off and coughed, looking away. He blinked several times and clenched his jaw. Norm watched with a horrible kind of fascination, thinking that if _anyone_ deserved to break down and cry, he did. Norm realized why Jake was asking this of him.

"You don't plan on staying, do you?"

Jake wiped a hand over his face and braced one palm against the trunk of Hometree before looking at Norm with hollow eyes. "I'm going to see my son put into the ground. After that, I am going to go to get the information I need to make sure every single person responsible for Tommy's death gets put in the ground with him."

Jake pushed away from the tree trunk and walked over to Norm slowly, never taking his gaze away. "You give me two weeks, Norm. Two weeks to hunt these bastards down, before you tell anyone at Hell's Gate or UNEC."

Norm found the proposal strangely rational. "What about...leadership of the clan?"

"It will be just like what we planned, back when we talked about covering things in case Neytiri or I died," Jake assured him. "Until Emazu passes his trials and earns his place as _Olo'eyktan_, you'll lead the clan."

"But what about you?"

"Trust me Norm; when I leave this village, it's best for the clan that I don't come back. The Omaticaya can't support anything I do when I go."

Norm forgot about his Na'vi influence and fell back into human language habits. "_Jesus,_ you're asking me to take over this clan and keep my mouth shut while you take the law into your own hands, Jake!"

"I _am_ the law, when it comes to my clan and my family," Jake answered. "And they _broke _it. Are you going to help me or not, Norm?"

The scientist looked at his friend helplessly. Odds were, Jake would act on this no matter what he said. He didn't really have much of a choice. "What about Neytiri? Doesn't she have something to say about this?"

Jake looked away and frowned. "Neytiri can't talk."

Again, Norm blinked. "Excuse me?"

Jake looked at him again and this time, he glared. "I thought I spoke clearly."

There was really no way to respond to that announcement, except to give another slack-jawed "what the fuck" expression that would have made the old Jake laugh. "She...she can't _talk_? At all?"

Jake shook his head and his gaze remained unnervingly level on Norm. "Not a word since she saw our son carried into the village like that. I can tell you one thing though; she's _with_ me on this. One way or the other, we're going to get them."

Norm felt like he could throw up. "Jake...what about Tsu'tey and Sylwanin?"

"Tsu'tey is almost a man now," answered the other man. "And Sylwanin has you and Ni'nat to look after her. You'd both be better parents to her right now anyway. Look at me, Norm. I can't rest until Tommy's killers are dead. What kind of a father can I be to her right now?"

"So you'll just take off and leave me to do it for you," snapped Norm, finally losing his temper. "You're running away, Jake."

"I'm doing what I have to do," growled Jake. He began to tremble visibly, barely holding his emotions in check. "Ask yourself what _you_ would do in my place. You know me. Do you think I want to abandon my little girl? My son? This clan?"

Norm unwillingly considered how he would feel in Jake's place and he had to admit, he wouldn't trust the UNEC to bring the criminals to proper justice either. On Earth, what Jake was talking about would be considered vigilante justice. However, this was Pandora and Norm couldn't honestly say that the UN would treat this crime with the same gravity as they would treat the murder of a human kid.

"You're going to do this no matter what I say."

Jake nodded gravely, his lips twisting into a snarl. "I'm not asking you to help me. All I want you to do is watch over my kids and be the same positive influence to Emazu as you were to Tommy. If I don't finish this in two weeks, you can call it in. Do this for me, Norm. Do it for Neytiri and our son."

Norm shut his eyes. "Do you _swear_ that you'll only take action against the people _directly responsible_ for this?"

Jake nodded. "You know it."

With a sigh of defeat, Norm slumped his shoulders. "What do you want me to say to the clan and when are you going?"

Jake relaxed a little and he stepped towards the taller man. His hardened expression softened for a moment and regret shone in his eyes. He cupped the back of Norm's head and drew him closer to bump his own forehead against his. "Knew I could count on you, _tsmukan_. I'm sorry it has to be this way."

Norm looked at him and laid a hand over his shoulder. "You're an asshole."

Jake managed a brief, faint little smirk and for a split second, he looked more like himself again.

* * *

Tsu'tey still felt horribly detached the next morning when he awoke. He could blame some of it on the medicinal potion he'd been given the night before, but he knew that stress was a large part of it. He gently eased his little sister away and he kissed her on the cheek, tasting the salt of her dried tears. He carefully got out of the hammock and he stretched, easing away the stiffness in his limbs and the kink in his neck. He started to yawn but the mental image of his brother's lifeless body in Gracie's arms struck him at that moment and a sob arose in his chest.

Tsu'tey squatted down on the wide branch and covered his mouth, looking around as he stifled the emotions that wanted so badly to come back to the surface.

_~Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry. Tommy wouldn't like it.~_

Bullshit. Tommy wouldn't _care_ if he cried and Tsu'tey knew it. What his brother _really_ wouldn't like was the self-blame that chewed Tsu'tey up inside and provoked the bitter uprising of tears.

"My fault," Tsu'tey choked behind his hand. "Should have been me."

A strong, calloused hand caught hold of his arm just as Tsu'tey started to sway dizzily on the branch and he turned his head to stare at his father's grim face. "_Sempul._"

Jake's eyes bored into his and his voice was soft but intense. "When it happened," he said in Na'vi, "what was your first instinct?"

Taken off-guard by the question, the young man answered automatically. "To attack. To t-try and save him."

"But you didn't."

Tsu'tey's eyes filled with tears and he shook his head. He couldn't look away from that unreadable stare. "No. I d-didn't."

"Why not?"

He took a shuddering breath and recalled with painful clarity the way Tommy had looked up at he and Grace in those final moments before his death. "Because he warned me not to. There were t-too many and he shook his head and...and..._Sempul_, I didn't mean to! I would have saved him if I could! I w-wanted to!"

Jake's stoic expression cracked and sorrow bled into his features, making him for once look his age. He put his arm around the weeping young man and drew him close, sitting beside him on the branch.

"Tommy was right and so were you, for listening to him," Jake advised gruffly. He hugged Tsu'tey and spoke against his hair. "If you and Gracie tried to save him, all three of you would be dead now. I just wanted you to say it yourself."

Tsu'tey couldn't disguise his bewildered expression as he pulled away to look at him. "But Dad—"

"No more self-blame," Jake insisted sternly. "Your mother wanted me to tell you that and I agree with her. We don't want Tommy's death to turn into yours and he wouldn't want that either. Does that make any sense?"

Tsu'tey imagined his mother saying the same thing in different words. Yes, it made sense. Logically, he knew there wasn't a damned thing he and Grace could have done to save his brother. That realization was what had made him put his weapon aside and stop Grace from acting. It hurt, though. A brave man would have attacked anyhow and died at his brother's side.

Jake somehow read his thoughts and he shook his head, frowning deeply. "Don't go there, son. You had someone else's safety to think about too. You and I both know that Tommy would have rather you protect Grace than die with him."

Tsu'tey heaved a shuddering sigh and returned his father's embrace. "How can you and _Sa'nok_ ever forgive me?"

A painful, brief chuckle rumbled in Jake's chest before he patted the young man's back and answered him. "What is there to forgive? We'd be burying two sons instead of one, if you hadn't used your head."

Tsu'tey nodded, but he still felt miserable. "Just tell me what I can do, Father. And please, don't say 'just pay your respects' because I already plan to do that for the rest of my life."

Jake pulled away from him and looked him in the eye. A weary little smile curved his lips and he sighed. "There _is_ something else I need you to do."

"Anything," Tsu'tey said with passion, perking up.

Jake measured him with his eyes. "Show me the face of the man that shot Tommy in the head. Show me _exactly _what happened, Tsu'tey. I need every bit of information you can give."

He was confused. "Show you? How?"

Jake held up his queue. "Link with me. I need to see it all, Tsu'tey. I need to see every face, every detail."

Tsu'tey felt a chill go down his spine. "Will that work?"

Jake nodded. "I helped Savanna's father by linking with him. You can help your brother by linking with me. Show me everything you saw and I swear, your brother's killers won't get away with it."

Tsu'tey knew very well that _tsahaylu_ served many purposes, but a criminal lineup wasn't something he'd ever considered before. "What are you going to do, Dad?"

Jake didn't blink. "I'm going to do what I've got to do. I won't lie to you, Tsu'tey. You're going to have to be stronger than you've ever been before. You will have to take care of your sister and you're going to have to help Norm and Ni'nat manage tribal affairs."

Tsu'tey felt the threat of tears again and he smashed his emotions down ruthlessly. "You're going after Tommy's killers."

Jake nodded. "But I can't do it without your help. I need to identify them, if I'm going to get the right people."

A part of Tsu'tey wanted them _all_ to die, but he remembered his friends at Hell's Gate and he remembered the regretful, helpless expression on that one young soldier's face. Like Norm, he could see the resolve in his father's eyes and he knew with certainty that Jake was going to go after those people no matter what.

"You'll only hurt the ones that killed Tommy?"

Jake nodded. "If I can help it, son. Unless they get in my way, the authorities can deal with the rest."

Tsu'tey considered it for a few moments and his father waited silently, pulling away from him to give him some breathing room. The young man picked up his queue and looked at it thoughtfully, before glancing sidelong at Jake. He shivered. The chieftain's body was as toned and agile as the strongest, youngest hunters. He had fought in wars, both on Earth and on Pandora. Tsu'tey had little doubt that if he cooperated with his father, Tommy's murderers were as good as doomed. However, Jake could die in the process of seeking his revenge as well.

"If I don't do this, you'll never be able to rest," Tsu'tey said aloud, stricken by the expression on his father's face. "Neither will _Sa'nok_."

Jake looked away, tensing. "I don't want to lay this burden down on your shoulders, kid. Eywa knows, you've been through enough. It's got to be your choice."

But there wasn't a choice. Not really. Tsu'tey saw that clearly. "I'll share what I saw with you, father."

Jake looked at him and his stoicism finally cracked. The strong, capable chieftain shuddered and bowed his head, curling his hands into fists on his lap. "Tsu'tey."

Seeing the sparkle of two tears falling in the morning light, Tsu'tey scooted close to his father and hugged him. "It's not your fault either, Dad."

Jake returned the embrace and a single, ragged sob tore through him.

* * *

Later that night, they gave Tommy his funeral rites. Norm held Gracie close as the young woman wailed heartbrokenly. Her friends cried as much for her sake as for their own grief and Norm ended up carrying Ralu away when the little girl became too upset by the event. Tsu'tey struggled not to break down as he comforted his little sister, while Jake and Neytiri stood solemnly and did their part in the ritual.

Neytiri knelt before her son's body, just before it was time to lower him into the hole carved at the roots of Hometree. She stared down at him with a loving, longing expression and she lowered her head to kiss him on each closed eyelid. Behind her, Mo'at stood—supported by Jake. The old _Tsahik_ had come as soon as she learned of her grandson's death and she beheld the ceremony with far more dignity than she had retained upon first learning of Tommy's death.

Peyla and E'quath stood with their son nearby and the petite huntress wept softly against her mate's shoulder while they lowered Tommy's body into the hole. Emazu raised his bow and howled, paying a warrior's respects to his deceased rival. Other hunters joined him. Tsu'tey nearly yelled at them to shut up but he stopped himself just in time. Even though he detested Emazu, he couldn't accuse the man of being disrespectful or insensitive. Whether he was doing it for appearances' sake or not, Emazu was honoring Tommy openly.

After his body was gently secured and positioned beneath the roots of Hometree, the clan took turns dropping _atokirina _into the hole and whispering prayers to Eywa over the grave. Ni'nat led the sacred hymns and as the clan sang and danced, the roots of their beloved _keltural_ closed up over Tommy's body and the ground mended itself as if by magic.

It was done. Tommy Sully would forever nourish and protect his clan, through Eywa and through the great _Keltural_ that sheltered them. His mortal life was over but his body gave back to the tribe, as it should be.

* * *

Jake informed his brother of Tommy's death after the funeral. There was no way Tom could have made it there in time to be there. He told him of his plans and like Norm, Tom wasn't able to come up with a convincing argument to deter him. The younger twin was left with the task of informing his children that marauding humans had killed their older cousin. He tried to break the news as gently as he could, but even a man with Tom's linguistic skills couldn't be expected to word things perfectly under the force of his own grief.

Karyu decided that she blamed the combat practice dummy near the forest and other villagers her age watched as she took her fury out on the construct. Kato would have liked to go and cry in his cave for a while, but upon seeing his sister going rabid he was forced to intervene.

"Karyu, I think you should cut it out."

She ignored him. She kept striking the wooden practice dummy. This wouldn't normally upset Kato, but she had cut one of her palms on a hard edge of one of the out-thrust pegs and now the blood was staining the structure. The furious shouts, yelps and yowls coming from his sister surely didn't inspire comfort, either.

"Karyu...that's enough!"

Still, she ignored him. She took a running leap at the training dummy and the idiots who were watching in the background made "ooh" and "ahh" sounds when she knocked the structure at an angle with her kick.

At the end of his rope, Kato turned around and snarled at their audience. "Why don't you all just fuck off, before I set her loose on you?"

That seemed to do the trick. While some people might find it amusing for someone to threaten to sic a petite, pretty little Na'vi girl on them, those who lived with the twins were more than respectful of the damage said small person could do. Karyu might be smaller than the average Na'vi woman, but like her mother, she was much stronger than she looked. The onlookers quickly vacated the area and Kato approached his sister with a sigh.

"Quit it." He grabbed one of her wrists in mid-swing and he glared into her angry eyes as she shot a challenging look at him. "Hurting yourself won't bring him back. Look at your hand."

Karyu stared at the palm of her right hand as Kato forced her wrist up to show her. She shrugged and sniffed. "It's just a gash. It will heal. Now let me go before I decide to start smacking _you_ around instead."

Kato sighed and shook his head. "Threaten all you want. I'm not letting you go." He proved his point by drawing the protesting female further into his arms. "Shouldn't you be making plans to kill his killers, instead of your palm?"

Karyu suddenly pulled at his hair, making him wince. She shuddered against him and sniffed. "Don't tempt me."

Their father's voice cut into the brief conversation and Kato couldn't say he wasn't a little relieved at the interruption. "Kids? Is everything all right?"

"We're okay," Kato called, hugging his sister closer.

Tom came into view as he crested the hill and he looked down at them with tired, sad eyes. "You should come back to the village and eat."

"I don't want food," announced Karyu with a sniff.

Tom gave her a patient smile. "How many ways can you punish yourself, you little fighter? You can't fight wars if you don't keep your strength up and by the looks of it, you've cut yourself."

"Yeah, she did," Kato agreed. He winced and snarled at his sister when she poked him in the ribs. "Well, you did and he's right!"

"What are they doing about this, _Sempul_?" Karyu pulled away from her brother and she stomped over to Tom expectantly. "You won't let us talk to our friends at Hell's Gate about it, so something _has_ to be getting done, right?"

Tom hesitated, looking exceedingly uncomfortable. "I shouldn't have told either of you."

"What?" Now Kato was getting pissed off too. "How can you _say_ that? Tommy is our cousin and our friend!"

"They have to pay!" Karyu said with a snarl. "They killed your namesake, Father! How can you just stand there and—"

"I'm _not_ just standing here," roared Tom, startling both twins so much they staggered backwards a step. Tom's face was flushed and his eyes filled with tears. "My brother named that boy after me and I watched him grow up. Don't you _ever_ accuse me of not caring!"

Unused to seeing their father blow his stack like this, both twins fell silent and they watched him warily. Tom deflated after a moment, his shoulders sagging under a great weight of emotions. "I'm sorry. This is hard on everyone and I remember what it was like to be your age. Dealing with emotions has to be...well, I'm worried about you two."

Karyu approached the human-dressed scientist first, forgiving him for his outburst. "Why can't we at least talk to our friends at Hell's Gate, _Sempu_?"

"I want to see Savanna," agreed Kato huskily. "You won't let us go to Hometree and you won't let us talk to our other friends. What's going on?"

Tom sighed and he sat down on a natural rock formation, motioning them to sit with him. When they did, he took a steadying breath and tried to explain. "You can't visit Hometree because you can't visit Hell's Gate."

The twins frowned at each other and Karyu again lost patience. "That doesn't make any fucking sense."

"Karyu," Tom warned half-heartedly, "Oh, why bother. This is what I get for letting you two watch Earth television. Whether you believe it or not, there _is_ a good reason behind keeping this event quiet."

Kato crossed his arms over his chest and narrowed his eyes. "Care to tell us what that reason might be, Dad?"

"I don't _care_ what the reason is," Karyu informed them both. She squirmed off of the rock formation and stood before her father and brother in a challenging pose. "Someone has to make those murderers pay!"

Tom took a deep sigh again and he rubbed his eyes. When he looked up at Karyu, his expression was carefully neutral. "You aren't going to have to worry about that, sweetheart. Those men are as good as dead."

* * *

"You are sure this is the path you both wish to take?"

Jake paused in his actions of strapping supplies to Shadow and he looked at his mother-in-law with gentle fondness. He patted the animal before placing his hands on the matriarch's slim shoulders and kissing her on the forehead.

"Give us your blessing, Mo'at. After everything you've lost to the Sky People, I know you understand why this has to be done."

The wise yellow eyes glistened with tears and Mo'at nodded. "My children," she whispered. She held her arms out and Neytiri wordlessly joined Jake in the embrace. The three of them shared a last exchange of family warmth, knowing that it might never be possible again. When they finished, Jake climbed onto his toruk's back and he helped Neytiri up behind him.

"I'm sorry," Jake said sincerely to Mo'at. "You shouldn't have to deal with this."

Mo'at shook her head and smiled. "When your children awake, they will have their grandmother to comfort them. Watch yourself and my daughter, Jakesully. This will be for nothing if you both do not return."

She remembered something she carried in her pouch and she held her hand up to delay her companion's take-off. Reaching into her pouch, she felt around until she found the precious object and she retrieved it with an aching little smile.

"Here," Mo'at said to Neytiri as she lifted the object up. "It was Tommy's. I carved it for him when he was just little...before he could ride on his own."

Neytiri took the little toy from her mother and she held it up. Her eyes filled with tears. It was a wooden direhorse, lovingly hand-crafted. She spoke for the first time since her son was brought home to her.

"I...remember this."

Mo'at thrust her chin out in an obvious effort to control her emotions. "You keep it with you, Daughter. It comforted him and now, it may comfort you."

"_Sa'nu_," Neytiri choked, cradling the toy to her chest. Jake twisted around to hug his mate close.

"Better put that away somewhere," suggested the chieftain huskily. "We don't want it to fall out and get lost."

Neytiri nodded and she placed the wooden toy carefully into one of the small pouches on her gear harness. She looked down at Mo'at with aching, traumatized eyes and the older woman reached up to her and took her hand.

"You will do what you must and I will watch over your children." Mo'at kissed her daughter's hand and patted Jake's leg. "_Eywa ngahu_."

Jake took a deep breath and nodded. "_Eywa ngahu, Sa'nok._"

Mo'at stepped back as Jake directed his old toruk to spread its wings and prepare for flight. The formidable beast stirred leaves and snapped branches as it took to the air, carrying two vengeance-minded Na'vi leaders with it.

* * *

Trudy was more than a little surprised to see Jake walking through the compound. She was just on her way to inspect the hangar when she spotted her old friend and she immediately called out to him.

"Hey Sully! You never called this one in, man. How ya doing?"

Jake gave her a brief nod, a wave, and a rather flat explanation. "I'm just here to see Sebastian about something. Say 'hi' to Max for me."

Trudy stopped in her tracks and stared after her friend, finding his stalking footsteps and cold demeanor strange. Then again, she didn't know everything that was going on in the background of Jake's life and everyone was entitled to a bad day.

"Damn...everyone's on the rag lately," she grumbled.

She stared after her tall blue friend again though, unable to shake the feeling that something wasn't quite right.

"If it's any of my business, he'll say something."

* * *

Jake breathed a sigh of relief when he made it into the bio-dome and out of Trudy's line of sight. That little chica had an uncanny knack for spotting weirdness from a mile away. Neytiri stayed outside the perimeters of Hell's Gate for this endeavor because she couldn't stand the thought of even looking at a human right now...not even their friends. Jake felt her rage and anger through _tsahaylu_, which was the only way Neytiri could really communicate now. He didn't realize how much he empathized with his mate's feelings until he set foot inside the human compound.

Part of him reminded Jake that the woman he'd just blown off was one of his oldest, dearest friends. Another part of him kept replaying the scene that his younger son had witnessed, when a human soldier pulled the trigger and ended Tommy's life.

_~Sorry Trudy...rage wins over friendship right now. I love you but you're scissors under a rock..~_

He hated the exopack he had to wear in order to traverse the bio-dome, but there was no help for it. Jake walked the streets of the brilliantly engineered human city and he forced himself to nod or wave at people who recognized him in passing. An avatar pulled up on a scaled-up motorcycle after a while and Jake recognized the driver as Corporal Ellis.

"Darren?" Jake asked uncertainly. He found it unreasonably difficult to speak in English.

"Yeah, " answered the avatar. "I haven't seen you here in a while, Corporal Sully. Where are you heading? I can give you a lift."

Jake almost refused, but he remembered that he was on a schedule. He didn't want to leave his mate alone out there for long. "I was going to visit Katherine and Sebastian. Uh...are they going by Thomas or Hart?"

Ellis chuckled and gestured to the back of his bike. "It doesn't matter, I know where they live. Hop on."

* * *

If he weren't so happy to see Jake Sully again, Sebastian might have asked what in the hell the man was doing standing outside his apartment unit. It was still early in the day, which meant Katherine was still in her lab and Savanna was still at school. The first unpleasant thought crossing Sebastian's mind was that something might have happened to Kato Sully.

While he wasn't thrilled with the idea of a loin-cloth-wearing, bow-shooting, alleged killer of rapists dating his daughter, he was actually quite fond of Kato and aside from the inevitable wailing he would have to endure upon the boy's death, he could honestly say such an occurrence would not have pleased him.

"Corporal Sully?" Sebastian said as he stepped out of the little transport cab.

Jake looked at him and there was something a bit off with his smile. "Hey Bastian. I need a favor from you. It's really important."

"Nothing serious, I hope?" Sebastian took his little datacase and he paid the driver.

"Not really. I just need to find a couple of old...friends...of mine."

Sebastian looked up at the taller male with puzzlement. "And you need _me_ to do that?"

Jake smiled. "They work with the UNEC and I don't want them to know I'm looking them up. It's kind of a surprise."

"Ah, I see." Sebastian chuckled and fished through his pockets for his keys. "You want me to hack the network, do you? Well, just don't tell anyone. I don't want to start a war over a prank."

He opened the door and Jake ducked a little, following him in. "Yeah, that would be a shame."

* * *

Sebastian began to suspect that something more was behind Jake's actions as he dug through the UNEC files—which he really shouldn't have had any access to, whatsoever.

"I'm really not sure I should keep doing this," Sebastian murmured after searching through military files for twenty minutes. "I understand that you want to surprise your friends, but this could land me into _serious_ trouble, Corporal Sully."

"How many fucking times do I have to tell you to call me 'Jake,'" replied the taller man irritably, his golden eyes flashing over the screen. "Just keep going through them. I only need to find one person and I can go from there."

Sebastian stopped cold and looked up at his visitor with perplexity. Jake had never, ever been that cross with him before. "Is there something going on? You seem unusually tense."

Jake glanced from the screen to his face almost absently. "I just need to find this guy. I'm sorry if I'm being rude. I'll make it up to you."

Sebastian stared at him for a moment longer. Jake hadn't spoken a word of English since they had begun filtering through the UNEC military files. It was making him more than a little nervous. Deciding that he owed the man some consideration before drawing silly conclusions, Sebastian kept filtering through the hacked personnel files.

"Stop...that's him."

Sebastian reversed the screen to the last chart and he looked between the data and Jake questioningly, feeling increasingly uneasy. "This is it?"

A cold, feral smile spread over Jake's lips as he stared at the image on the screen. "Yeah, that's it. I need you to find out who his commanding officer is and give me the names of everyone in his regiment."

"Jake, I'm already breaking protocol," Sebastian reminded.

"It's okay," Jake assured him. "I can clear it all up. Nobody's going to worry about you at all...trust me."

Sebastian shrugged. "Okay, then."

* * *

When Katherine returned home, she found her husband hunched over his computer desk with his forehead in one hand.

"Sebastian? Are you all right? Where is Savanna?" Katherine went to Sebastian's side and looked at him urgently.

Sebastian took his hands away from his temples and he looked at his wife with guilt-laden eyes. "Katherine, I think I did something really bad."

She raised her eyebrows. "You? Please share...I can't wait to hear it."

He grimaced. "I think I may have helped start a war. Laugh at _that_, my dear."

* * *

She shaved his skull with reluctance. She always loved Jake's hair and though the war mohawk suited him well, the look seemed oddly out of place for such a warm-hearted man. Neytiri dipped the sharp bone blade into the water again and she swished it around before making another sweep. Jake sat still and quiet, with his eyes shut in mediation. The sharp edge of the blade scraped slowly and reverently over his head.

Neytiri mourned with each sweep.

When she finished removing the hair from either side of his head, she began to weave colored beads, feathers and plant fibers into the multiple braids. She thought of the last time they had dressed for war and she paused for a moment, holding her hands out with her fingers spread on either side of her mate's head.

Jake's hands reached up and he tilted his head back as he held her hands. His eyes gazed into hers, hovering above him. Their queue's were connected, so there was no need for words. She knew that he would fight, knew that he would help her bring down the greedy _tawtute_ that had taken their son. They took her sister, they took her father and now they took her oldest son. She knew, somewhere deep inside, that her friends at Hell's Gate weren't responsible. She was afraid to face any of them now, though.

"J-Jake," Neytiri sputtered, pausing her task.

He reached up and stroked her hand. "I know, baby. We're going to get them. All of them. I know their schedules now and we'll intercept them. Just be patient, okay?"

She nodded but she couldn't explain to him why she was so disconcerted until they bonded again. Neytiri concentrated on binding her mate's hair, saving her concerns over her speech for later. Her son's murderers had to pay. She would shout her pleasure for days, once Tommy's killers were dead.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Ayvitrayä Ramunong _**= Tree of Souls

_**Tsmukan**_ = Brother

_**Sempul**_ = Father

_**Sa'nok**_ = Mother

_**Atokirina**_ = Seeds of the great tree; sacred to all Na'vi as symbols of ultimate spiritual purity

**_Eywa ngahu_** = Eywa be with you.

**_Tawtute_** = Sky Person


	8. Chapter 8

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 8: On the prowl

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. I've only lightly proofread this chapter, because we're in the middle of moving our belongings into the new house and I honestly am lucky to have found the time to sit down and write at all. I will give it a more thorough examination when I have the opportunity. I will not have regular internet access for approximately another week; everything I do online right now is dependant upon borrowed/rented access. Thank you kindly for the feedback and patience. _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar"

* * *

film. **

"Go on, honey. Tell Dr. Patel what you told me."

Sebastian gave his wife an annoyed look, feeling like a little boy being coaxed to tell Santa what he wants for Christmas. "I'm not a child or a geriatric, Katherine. I know I seem paranoid but you don't have to patronize me."

Katherine bit her lip and smiled. She patted his arm apologetically and cleared her throat. "I didn't realize I was doing that. I'm sorry."

Max regarded the couple with patient curiosity. "I don't want to rush you, but I should remind you both that I _was_ in the middle of an avatar cloning procedure when you insisted on speaking to me. What's the matter?"

They looked at one another and Katherine nudged the stunted avatar encouragingly. "Tell him, Bastian. He might be able to shed some light on it and ease your mind."

Max raised his eyebrows with intrigue. "It must be something pretty interesting."

Sebastian hesitated, gathering his thoughts before speaking. He didn't want to insult anyone by overstepping himself and appearing nosey. Katherine was right, though; Max and Trudy were closer to Jake than he was, so they might have insight into his private life that Sebastian lacked.

"Corporal Sully came to my apartment for a visit yesterday and his behavior was a little...off."

Max frowned. "I didn't even know he was on base. What do you mean, when you say his behavior was 'off'?"

"Well, he was unusually impatient and he seemed angry about something. He wanted me to...um...look up some information for him."

Max took his glasses off and started wiping them, his tanned features troubled. "Sebastian, would this be related to illegal hacking?"

The avatar gave his spouse an "I _told_ you this was a bad idea" look and swallowed. "I might have slipped past a few security blocks. He assured me that he only wanted to identify a couple of people. He claimed that he thought he knew some of the military personnel that were recently stationed at UNEC. I had no reason to doubt him...he's not known for lying and after what he did for me, the least I could do was look up some personnel files."

Max held up one hand to stall Sebastian's string of excuses. "You broke into restricted UNEC files?"

Sebastian again felt like a little kid and he sighed, nodding. "I didn't think there was any harm in letting him have a peek and confirm the identification of his 'friends'. However, I began to have second thoughts when I noticed the odd intensity in his eyes. He just wasn't behaving like the Jake I thought I knew, Dr. Patel."

Max put his glasses back on and his expression of concern grew more pronounced. "Can you give me more details about this 'strange behavior'?"

"As I said, he was impatient," answered Sebastian, "even rude. He snapped at me over something as trivial as my habit of calling him 'Corporal Sully'. Jake has always been good-natured about that admittedly silly habit of mine. The man has never been cruel to me or anyone else before that I've seen, but yesterday, he was like a different person. He was...cold—for lack of a better description. There wasn't any of the usual warmth in his mannerisms. Then there was the way he smiled when he found the man he was looking for." Sebastian shuddered.

"Yes?" Max prompted curiously.

"I hesitate to say it, but there was a kind of madness behind it. There was none of his usual light-hearted mannerisms in it. I'd even say there was something diabolical behind that smile."

"You're being a little dramatic, sweetheart," Katherine sighed.

"I know what I saw," countered Sebastian seriously, frowning at her. "Kath, you're always teasing me about my respect for the man, saying I think he can do no wrong. Do you _really_ think I would care this much if he only seemed a little cranky?"

"All right," Katherine said in a soothing voice, "it's just that everyone has their bad days...even Jake."

Sebastian shook his head. "This wasn't just a case of a man waking up on the wrong side of the bed." He looked at Max. "Well? I know it isn't any of my business but we thought that as one of his close friends, you would know if something's happened in his life to provoke this behavior. You don't have to tell me what it is, of course. I would just sleep better knowing that there was some reasonable explanation for it."

Max looked faintly disturbed. He scratched his chin and regarded both of them with puzzled, dark eyes. "And this happened _yesterday_?"

Sebastian's hope faded and the dread he felt increased. "You didn't know he was here." It wasn't a question.

"He never called or stopped in to visit," confirmed Max in a puzzled tone. "That _is_ strange. Of course, I was very busy yesterday. It's possible he came by, realized I was swamped and chose to wait." He looked at his watch. "It's early. He's probably still here, waiting for a better time to visit."

"So you haven't heard of any problems he might be having?" pressed Sebastian.

Max shook his head. "I'm sure that if something's going on, he'll say something as soon as we speak. Hell's Gate isn't exactly a small place and it's very possible that he's off doing something else right now. I admit I'm very curious about why he wanted details on UNEC personnel but if he told you he knew the man, I'll trust he had good reason."

Sebastian still couldn't quite shake the feeling of a dark cloud hovering overhead, but he did feel a little better. "To tell you the truth, I feared I might have helped start a conflict of some sort."

Max smiled comfortingly and shook his head. "You shouldn't worry about that. Whatever put Jake in such a bad mood couldn't possibly make him jeopardize the peace he worked so hard with us to achieve. If he's investigating someone at UNEC, I'm sure he'll come to us to discuss it if he finds anything worthwhile to be concerned about."

"He wanted to know who this soldier was working with," Sebastian said. "He wanted the names of everyone in his regiment and who his commanding officer was. He has their mission schedule for the next week, too."

"Interesting," said Max. "Well, that just reinforces my theory. It sounds like Jake suspects someone of criminal activity and rather than get everyone worked up, he's having a closer look himself. He _does_ have to be careful about sharing information like that with the other clans. Most of them trust us now but UNEC is a different story. Jake wouldn't want to get a Na'vi uprising started by accident, so whatever he's doing is deliberately low-key."

"You think so?" Katherine asked—probably more for Sebastian's sake than anything else.

"Absolutely," Max assured. He reached out and patted Sebastian on the shoulder. "I know Jake is usually a nice guy even when he's stressed, but everybody gets fed up once in a while. I'm sure he's just trying to deal with this without getting too many people involved, to avoid un-necessary worry until there's a need for it."

Sebastian relaxed a little, after hearing the explanation. "You're probably right, doctor. I suppose it would be unreasonable for me to assume Corporal Sully doesn't have his limits, like everyone else. We can't expect him to be cheerful all the time."

Max nodded. "That's right. I'll ask him about it when I see him and I'm sure there's a logical explanation for all of it. In the meantime, try not to worry."

* * *

Max checked around but nobody could confirm that Jake Sully was in the compound. More dismayed than he cared to admit, he reminded himself that Jake could be doing any number of things on the base that didn't involve going to the lab building. He was so used to being contacted right away whenever Jake or the others came to visit, he just took it for granted that they'd always come and see him or Trudy first.

Trying to put it out of his mind for now, Max went to the cafeteria for lunch and he met up with Trudy. They sat at their usual place and talked about how their day was going . Max brought up the discussion about Jake as he sprinkled some pepper over his peas.

"It's funny...I think I'm a little spoiled. My feelings were actually a little hurt when I found out he's been here for so long without so much as a 'hello'."

Trudy put her fork down and reached for her bottle of water. "Come to think of it, he _was_ acting a little weird when I saw him yesterday."

Max almost choked on the mouthful of peas he had just spooned up. He hastily reached for his napkin and covered his mouth as he coughed. When he recovered, he took a sip of his juice and responded. "You saw him and you never said anything?"

Trudy shrugged and began to stir her rice mixture around to cool it. "I only saw him for a minute. He was on his way to the bio-dome and he acted like he was in a rush. Oh...he said to say 'hi' to you for him. Sorry, Maxi."

"Well, did you talk to him at all? Did he say how long he'd be here or how his family is or anything?"

"He said he was just here to see Sebastian about something and to say hello to you," answered the pilot. "I got the impression he was just passing through. He's probably not on the premises anymore."

Max grimaced. "Weren't you even a little curious about why he'd stop in just to see Mr. Thomas, without spending so much as ten minutes visiting us?"

"Well yeah," she admitted, lifting her eyebrows, "but I was swamped yesterday and I figured Jake must have had his hands full too. If he's got anything important going on, he'll let us know. He always does."

Max sighed, thinking of the way Sebastian had described Jake's behavior as "cold" and "diabolical". He wondered if he should have asked the technician for more details concerning the files he looked up. He also began to wonder if he should try contacting Hometree to ask Jake directly what was going on or ask Norm if he knew.

* * *

Norm heard the transmitter go off and when he put it to his ear and heard Max's voice requesting a response, he sighed. With great regret, he turned down the volume on the device and put it back into his pouch. Ni'nat saw what he did and she crossed the distance to him. She rubbed his arm and gazed up at him in silent support, understanding his actions.

"Max is bound to notice something in my voice and start asking questions," Norm said to her in a guilty whisper. "I'd rather not speak to my friends at all than be forced to lie to them."

Ni'nat nodded. "You are an honest man. You should not compromise yourself."

He grimaced and looked up into the _keltural's_ branches; where his daughter lay resting, somewhere up above. Grace had finally stopped sobbing her guts out, only to exile herself to the hammock. Norm didn't try to pressure her to get up and he warned Ralu and Sylwanin to leave her alone as well. She needed time to go through her stages of grief at her own pace and they had just buried Tommy two days ago.

As for Tsu'tey, he was quiet and pensive, moving about like a zombie when he wasn't trying to comfort and care for his little sister. Norm's heart broke every time he looked at the kid and he wished Jake was there, just so he could punch him for leaving his son to cope without him. True, Mo'at was there and she was obviously a great comfort to the kids, but Jake and Neytiri were there parents—their protectors and role models. Whether Jake thought he would be a good father in his emotional state or not, Jake Sully was needed and so was Neytiri. They should be pulling their family together in this tragedy, not going away on a quest for revenge that could orphan their remaining children.

"Damn it, Jake. The least you could have done was leave your mate behind to try and heal and be here with her kids."

Ni'nat frowned with disapproval. "My Norm, do not judge him, or the _Tsahik_. Their son died to save our daughter. Their actions may seem selfish—to those that have not lost a child."

He stared at her helplessly and suddenly, _he_ felt like the selfish one. "But, don't you think they could have waited for a little while and at least spent a week or so comforting the kids?"

"They could have," she agreed, "but perhaps they chose not to because they feared their resolve would fail. Who are we to assume we understand what goes on in a grieving parent's heart and mind? Our energy would be better spent caring for the People and praying to Eywa that our _Olo'eyktan_ and _Tsahik_ don't harm the innocent and come back to us safely."

Norm was quickly losing the battle of reasoning with his mate, but he was more impressed than annoyed. "You're almost always right about things like this," he conceded.

* * *

Gracie Spellman didn't drag herself out of her cocoon until just before sunset. She half-heartedly groomed her tangled hair with a brush constructed of wood and sturdy plant bristles. Usually, this soothing ritual went on long after the tangles were gone, because she loved the feel of her hair being brushed or combed. Now the massage of the brush against her scalp and the tingling tugs on her hair brought her no pleasure. She barely felt them and she stared off into the thick tangle of branches and leaves as she sat on the limb and went through the motions. She sighed heavily and replaced the item on her _chey _when there were no more snags.

She moistened dry, cracked lips and looked around dully, undecided over what she wanted to do—if anything. Leaning over a bit, she looked down over the edge of the branch, peering through the leaves at the activity far below on the ground. Furrowing her brows, she got to her feet and realized just how far the drop _was_. It made her a little dizzy, in fact. She had never noticed it before.

Someone grabbed her arm and she gasped and twisted around, stumbling. Her companion steadied her quickly and when she got her bearings, she recognized Tsu'tey's sorrowful, sculpted features looking back at her.

"Whatever you were just thinking of doing, please don't."

Realizing what he meant, she became immediately defensive. "Aren't I allowed to mourn and be sad without people thinking I want to kill myself?"

He tilted his head slowly to one side and let go of her arm. "Aren't we allowed to worry?"

She could think of nothing to say in response to that, so she looked away. She sniffed and wiped at her swollen eyes, realizing how she must appear to others. "I must look awful."

"You look like a woman that lost someone she loves," excused Tsu'tey gently. "Here, I brought this for you."

For the first time, she noticed the little wooden bowl in his other hand. It looked like he managed to bring it all the way up there without spilling a single drop, but that sort of finesse was typical of Tsu'tey. Gracie thought he might make a better _Tsahik_ than she would, but she was sure Neytiri and Mo'at knew what they were doing when they chose her.

Tsu'tey held the bowl out in offering and the aroma of vegetable broth reached her nostrils. She shook her head and swallowed, the action making her throat hurt. "I'm not hungry."

"You haven't eaten or drank anything all day long," Tsu'tey persisted. "Its only broth, Gracie. I brought some bread that your _sa'nok_ made from wild grains she gathered in the forest. You can dip it in the broth and eat slowly." He reached into the pouch at his hip with his free hand and produced a hunk of the freshly made bread.

When she didn't take the offerings, his expression softened and he gave her one of those pleading looks that had always won her and Tommy over. "I promised him I would look after you. You're dehydrated and you'll get sick if you don't eat and drink something. Please, Gracie?"

She knew she appeared resentful and petulant as she took the broth and bread from him. "If it will make you stop _looking_ at me that way, I'll eat." She felt immediately bad for being cross with him and she tried to soften her tone. "Um...thank you, Tsu'tey."

Tsu'tey shrugged with youthful male awkwardness. "It's okay."

Grace sank back down onto the tree branch and she waited expectantly as she held the food in her hands. When Tsu'tey didn't leave, she looked up at him uncertainly. "Do you want to say something else?"

He shook his head and leaned against the trunk of the tree. "No. I'll just wait until your finished and then I'll take your bowl back down to wash it. Oh and uh...drink some water, too." He detached his water skin from his harness and laid it down beside her on the wide mass of the branch.

"Thanks," Grace said uncomfortably. The way the setting sunlight highlighted his face reminded her of Tommy and she swallowed a lump. "You can go and do whatever you were up to before."

"I will," he promised, not moving from his spot, "after I've seen you eat."

She favored him with a supremely annoyed look that couldn't have possibly been missed. He only responded with his quiet, hopeful little smile. Cursing him silently, she dipped the bread into the broth and nibbled at it. True to his word, Tsu'tey didn't leave until she finished the bread, the soup and half the skin of water.

* * *

After her semi-coerced meal, Grace handed the bowl and water container back over to Tsu'tey and she watched him leave. She felt unreasonably bad and she wasn't sure why, at first.

"He lost his brother and I made him worry about me," she said to herself after some reflection. She caught her breath on an unexpected sob and she covered her face with her hands.

_~Tommy...Tommy...I miss you so much! It isn't fair!~_

She felt a warm breeze over her shoulder and suddenly, the scent of her Tommy reached her nose. She inhaled and shut her eyes, imagining him next to her. She didn't exactly _hear_ anything, but she felt a need to go down to the bottom of Hometree and stand over Tommy's grave. She took a deep, shuddering breath and she finally left her branch, to climb down where her beloved mate was buried forever.

* * *

"How could you leave so soon?"

It wasn't a fair question. She knew why he left so soon and she knew he didn't want to. Still, she imagined that familiar smirk and she wanted to chastise him.

"Tommy, we were going to pass through _Iknimaya_ together!"

Grace stood over the spot where they had consigned her love to the ground and though she said nothing out loud, she arched her head back and screamed inwardly—with everything she had. When she calmed down a bit, she took a deep breath. "Tommy, please...if you're here, talk to me?"

She listened, long into the night, when others sought their bedding and after her parents had come to her asking questions she paid no attention to. There was utter silence and no answer from Tommy.

Gracie looked down at her mate's resting place. She walked over to it on hesitant feet, wishing to feel something she knew she would never feel again. She knelt over the burial location and she placed one hand on the loose earth.

He was under there.

Her Tommy.

She stood up quietly, frowning in concentration. Something inside of her had changed and it wasn't due to grief. She slowly placed her right hand over her abdomen. She stared off into the distance and she took several deep breaths. "Tommy."

* * *

"We'll pass through our trials a little early," Tsu'tey explained to Grace the next morning. "There's...not much hurry since..." He trailed off and looked at her, biting his lip.

"I know." She looked down at her hands, folded into her lap. She was sitting on her ankles and he was squatted down next to her, watching the sunrise. She looked at him sidelong. "Tsu'tey, I can't finish my trials. At least, I can't finish _Uniltaron_ for a while."

He looked at her in puzzlement. "Why not?"

"I'm not ready."

He relaxed and he stroked her hair. "Right. We can put it off, Gracie. You don't need to do any of it until you're ready."

She looked at his earnest, kind face and she broke down. "No...I can't!"

Bewildered, Tsu'tey half-embraced her and did his best to comfort her. "It's okay. I didn't mean to pressure you, Gracie. Everybody knows you've been through a lot and you can't be expected to just leap into it."

"It isn't that," Grace admitted. "Tsu'tey...I...I can't do it because the venom could make me miscarry."

Her companion abruptly went stiff against her. "Huh?"

Grace gulped and she pulled away from Tsu'tey. "You know your brother and I um..."

He looked at her with an expression that was torn somewhere between disbelief and confusion. "Are you _sure_, Gracie?"

She put a hand over her lower abdomen and she again felt that quiet little stirring within her. "I'm sure."

He looked utterly bewildered. "Oh...oh, Grace!"

"Please don't judge me," she said, mistaking his reaction. "I went into heat and we knew we were going to become mates anyway, so one thing led to another."

"_Judge_ you? Gracie, I could kiss you, toss you on a throne and shower you with jewels!" Tsu'tey gave her the first genuine smile he had produced since before the tragedy of his brother's death. "Do you know what this means?"

"I...well, it means I'm going to be having a baby," she responded, flustered. "Without my mate."

Tsu'tey calmed down with visible effort and he sobered. He put his hands on her shoulders and gazed at her with serious yellow eyes. "Hey, you aren't alone. He...Tommy might not be here in the flesh but you've still got your family and me. You know we'll be right there by your side, don't you?"

She looked at him with hopeful, frightened confusion. "What will people say?"

"It doesn't matter," he insisted with a painful little smile. "Part of my brother is growing inside of you. I'm not violent, but the first person that says anything bad to you is going to get a mouth full of my fist, okay?"

She managed a hesitant smile of her own. She should have already known that she could count on Tsu'tey to help her protect this baby. The more worrisome problem for her was deciding how to explain to her family that she would be giving birth to Tommy Sully's child in nine months.

"Please don't tell anyone yet," she urged. "I've just realized it myself and I need some time to absorb it. I need to figure out how I'm going to tell _Sa'nu _and _Sempu_, Tsu'tey."

He nodded. "Of course. I'll do whatever you want me to do, Gracie. If you need me there for morale support when you tell them, just let me know." He glanced down at her abdomen and he gave her a severe look. "Just make sure you eat right, from now on. I don't care what it takes...I'll make whatever weird food you're craving, as long as you're getting enough of it for yourself and the baby."

She blurted a tragic little laugh and hugged him, sniffing as her eyes welled with tears. "Tsu'tey...I don't know what I would do without you."

He hugged her back. "We'll get through this."

* * *

Tsu'tey guessed that he must look like a crazy person to other villagers. He couldn't stop smiling after discovering Gracie's secret and the concerned glances he was getting reminded him to try harder to control his facial expressions. His emotions were on a roller coaster and when he didn't want to laugh aloud with exuberance, he wanted to sob bitterly over the loss of his brother. Grace was still having trouble eating anything with solid substance, but with encouragement from him and her family, she nibbled fresh fruit, soups and nuts to keep her strength up. Tsu'tey saw his grandmother busily tanning a hide outside the den and he smiled at her, grateful for her presence. The morning sunlight shone on Mo'at's bowed back and she murmured under her breath, speaking soft prayers to Eywa as she worked.

"Can I help you with that, Grandma?"

Mo'at looked up at him and she gave him a loving smile, reaching out for him. "Come, Tsu'tey. Let me look at you."

He swallowed, suddenly nervous. His grandmother was a sharp woman and he knew that too much observation on her part would lead to questions. He knelt before her and he tried to keep his expression neutral as her gentle fingers roamed over his face. She frowned and he winced inwardly.

"Something is different about you today," Mo'at announced. "There is light in your eyes again, Grandson."

Tsu'tey thought that now was a good time to mention hearing Tommy's voice—not only as a distraction so that he wouldn't blurt out Gracie's pregnancy, but because he truly wanted to know if he was imagining things.

"Grandma, can people hear their dead relatives?"

She smiled. "Everyone can hear their ancestors, through the Tree of Voices or the Tree of Souls. I trust this is not what you mean, though. You have spoken with Tommy?"

He swallowed and nodded. "Just after he died, I heard his voice asking me to get Gracie away from there because it wasn't safe. I heard him again when we were getting ready to return to Hometree. He asked me to watch over Grace and keep her from hurting herself. Do you think I imagined it?"

She examined him silently, until he wanted to squirm. "No, I don't think you imagined it. You were close to your brother and he would trust you to care for the woman he loves. Remember, the People never go away forever, Tsu'tey. We live within Eywa, long after our energy leaves our bodies."

Tsu'tey's throat tightened up and his vision blurred with tears. He looked away and scrubbed at his eyes, embarrassed to cry so easily—especially over something that was meant to be comforting. Mo'at reached out and stroked his hair, her own eyes bright with unshed tears. "The living must suffer longer, I think. Don't be ashamed of your grief, Grandson. No one would blame you for missing him. Even if you hear his voice at times, you will mourn. It is natural and good for you."

Tsu'tey nodded, not trusting himself to speak. At least now, she wasn't probing with questions. He only hoped Grace wouldn't wait too long to announce her condition, because he didn't know how long he could look his family or hers in the eye without giving something away.

* * *

He watched her silently, brooding over the events that technically opened the way to Grace for him while at the same time, putting her farther out of his reach. He was a little surprised to feel no joy from Tommy Sully's demise. If anything, he found it depressing. After thinking about it for a while, Emazu realized why.

Tommy was the most worthy opponent he'd ever gone up against. There was no challenge in competing with the skills of other, lesser males. Tainted blood or not, Tommy made Emazu _work_ to best him and he lost as often as he won. In short, the man was his equal in most things, his better in some and his lesser in others. As much as he disliked him, Tommy brought balance to his life and Emazu admitted to himself that he respected him.

Now the way was open to leadership of the Omaticaya and quite possibly, the mate he'd always desired.

It didn't feel like a victory.

He wasn't the first choice as _Olo'eyktan_ and even if he managed to court Gracie and claim her, he would forever be competing with Tommy's memory. Even in her misery, she was beautiful. Her sleek, lean curves drew the eye when she moved, calling attention to the gentle, feminine sway of her hips and the swish of her tail. She was returning from the creek with a full water skin. Her eyes were reddened and swollen from crying, but it hardly distracted from the lovely symmetry of her facial features.

Grace noticed Emazu watching her and he tensed a little as she approached. He knew it was inappropriate to admire her the way he had been and he could see the wariness in her eyes. He nodded respectfully to her as she came to a stop before him.

"How are you feeling today, Grace?"

Her stiff poise loosened up a bit and she managed a tiny, quivering smile for him. "Better than yesterday, thank you. Is there something else you wanted, Emazu?"

He shook his head, feeling a flush trying to creep up his neck. "I was only watching you out of concern. You should not go to the creek by yourself, from now on."

She frowned. "Why not? I do it all the time."

"Yes, but...you are grieving," he explained awkwardly. "You may not be alert enough to react quickly if a predator comes. Someone should go with you when you collect your water, until your pain fades."

"It will _never_ fade," she said with unexpected vehemence.

He found the statement disconcerting, as well as the certainty in her eyes. It would be a pity if Grace really _did_ spend the rest of her life mourning over Tommy. She might never honor some lucky male with companionship and children. It seemed a crime to Emazu—especially since he stood to miss out with all the other young men that panted after Gracie.

"I will not tell you what to do," he said carefully, having enough sense to realize how easily the wrong words could slip out right now, "but you should consider your own safety and avoid going out of the village alone."

He was just about to offer his services as an escort when another male voice cut in from behind him. "I'll go with her."

Emazu turned with annoyance to see Tsu'tey strolling over to them. The young man stopped before Grace and smiled sadly and gently at her. "That is, if you don't mind, Gracie. He's right; you shouldn't go far from the village alone and I probably shouldn't either. We can keep each other company and look out for one another, for a while."

Grace's expression softened and she nodded, looking at the youngest Sully male with obvious affection. "I guess you're right. I'd feel better knowing you're safe, too." She shifted the water skin in her arms and sighed. "Well, I'd better bring this inside."

"I'll come with you and help," Tsu'tey offered.

Grace nodded and she turned to Emazu. "Thank you for your concern and your suggestion, Emazu. I hope you have a good afternoon."

He nodded stiffly and watched her go with Tsu'tey. The younger male looked at him for a moment and Emazu knew he wasn't imagining the warning in his eyes.

_"I may not be as strong, fast or aggressive as my brother, but I'll fight you if you overstep yourself with her."_

Having never seen gentle-natured Tsu'tey look at _anyone_ that way—let alone him—Emazu was forced to take the look seriously. He had no doubt he could win in a fight against Tsu'tey but doing so would only earn Gracie's anger and possibly contempt from the other villagers. A good leader wouldn't beat up a recently bereaved clan brother. The fact that Tsu'tey's personal loss also happened to be the loss of the now absent clan leaders would only make it worse for him, if Emazu chose to challenge the other male.

"One of you leaves and the other takes his place," muttered the warrior under his breath as he watched Tsu'tey and Grace leave.

Perhaps his father was right. Maybe Eywa was trying to tell him something. It didn't lessen his desire for Grace, though.

* * *

While Norm took on task of advising Emazu to prepare him for leadership, Tsu'tey spent most of his time training for _iknimaya _and preparing his mind for the journey it would go on during his Dream Hunt. It was very difficult to focus through the grief—especially when he looked into Gracie's haunted eyes. Knowing that his nephew or niece was growing inside of the young woman's body helped ease the sting, day by day. Sylwanin finally began to cope better and with the help of Ni'nat's tender care and her friends, she started behaving more like herself again.

Mo'at took over where Neytiri left off, teaching Gracie the ancient ways of spiritual communication and medicine. She was very patient with her and she kept their lessons short, aware that the girl's attention span had limits at this time. Tsu'tey joined the lessons whenever he could and he rarely left Grace's side for long. He could tell Emazu was getting frustrated and a part of him couldn't help but feel amused.

Tommy would have called what Tsu'tey was doing "cock-blocking", but there was no doubt he would have approved of it. Tsu'tey had no intention of letting Emazu pressure Grace into anything, though he suffered the illogical fear that he might somehow use his leadership status later on to coerce her into pairing with him. What would happen when Emazu discovered she was already pregnant with another man's child, if he did manage to get Grace to be his mate? Would he slip her something to make her miscarry? Get violent with her? Shame her and exile her?

Again, Tsu'tey reminded himself that he had no basis for some of his fears. Emazu wasn't quite the bully he used to be and he had never been one to use underhanded techniques. He had never given reason for anyone to believe he would be an abusive mate, either. It was just so hard to be rational about things when Gracie's safety and the survival of Tommy's progeny were on the line.

"_Sa'nok,_" Tsu'tey sighed several nights after his parents left. "_Sempul_. I don't know where you are right now but I hope you're both alive and safe. I know you want to see Tommy's killers punished for what they did and I do too, but not if it means losing my parents. You're going to be grandparents. Please make it home again okay."

He looked up at the stars and he wished he could get the message to his parents. They were on communication silence, however. They told Norm they would contact him when it was over and Jake warned Tsu'tey that they might not be able to come back and live with the clan anymore, after their objective was completed. He said that by taking action instead of allowing the law to handle things, he and Neytiri could become fugitives and it would be bad for the clan to associate with them. Peace had to be maintained and neither Jake nor Neytiri wanted to risk losing that for their clan.

Tsu'tey honestly didn't care about any of that, though. As he tucked his little sister in and wished Gracie and her family goodnight, all he cared about was seeing the people he loved safe and happy again.

* * *

Parker Selfridge stared out the window with a slack mouth and furrowed brows. He was so absorbed in the sight he had glimpsed that he didn't notice his visitor walk into his office.

"Mr. Selfridge?"

He gasped and slapped a hand over his chest, whirling around to face the approaching woman. "Archer," he sighed, willing his heart to stop pounding so hard.

She arched an elegant, dark brow. "That would be '_Commissioner Archer_', Administrator. I would appreciate it if you would address me properly or if you must, refer to me as '_Miss Archer'_."

"Right." He rubbed his hand over his eyes and grimaced. "That wasn't professional of me. What can I do for you, Commissioner?"

She held out a data screen, offering it to him. "I came to give you these annual reports, like I normally do each Wednesday." She frowned, her dark eyes sweeping over him curiously. "Is everything all right, Mr. Selfridge? Pardon me for saying so, but you look pale. Paler than usual, that is." Her mouth twitched ever so slightly at the right corner, suggesting she was making a subtle dig about his pasty complexion.

Selfridge took the data file from her, glanced at it and set it on his desk with a shrug. "Guess I need to get out more, sometime."

"I think that would be good for you," she agreed.

He looked at her thoughtfully. "You think it's professional to talk like this?"

She cleared her throat and looked out the window. "I suppose not. It was just a suggestion. I haven't seen you set foot outside of this building all month."

"I'm a busy man." Parker looked out the window as well and he impulsively began searching the treetops and the distant skyline for signs of what he saw earlier.

Mistaking his intensity, Archer walked around his desk to stand a respectable distance away from him by the window. She crossed her arms over her blazer-clad chest and followed his gaze. "It really is beautiful land. You shouldn't fear it the way you do."

Parker laughed and it was an ugly, grating sound that hurt his own ears. "Fear it, yeah. I respect what it can do. The rest of you have no idea."

"Did you just see something, to make you this nervous?" She pressed.

"Thought I saw a leonopteryx," he answered with a shrug, still searching the forest beyond the security fences.

"A great leonopteryx?" she repeated, staring out the window with a frown. "Here? You must be mistaken."

"Jake Sully rides one," reminded Parker. "Have you heard anything about him coming in today?"

She shook her head. "No. I think we both would have heard something by now if he were here or expected to come in. The Omaticaya chieftain causes quite a stir when he shows up."

Selfridge blew a sigh. "You could say that." He kept staring out the window, certain that he hadn't imagined seeing the beast swooping into the jungle earlier. He didn't see a rider on its back, so it was possible that it was a wild specimen. What the hell a wild leonopteryx would be doing this far away from their known territory was a mystery, but Parker had learned that Pandora and its creatures were far from predictable.

* * *

Jake had initially set out to kill everyone involved in the operation but as he and Neytiri traveled to UNEC territory and waited for their first opportunity, he had time to calm down and shorten his list. The man that fired the final shot, the gunship pilot that shot Tommy down from the tree and the major that gave the order to finish him off were the main targets. Anyone who got in the way would go down with them, but he only wanted to kill the three directly responsible. When he accomplished that, he would allow Norm to call it in and expose what their regiment was doing behind the scenes. The law could take care of the rest of them.

If Tsu'tey hadn't agreed to share the memory of the event with him and Sebastian hadn't cooperated, Jake doubted he would have been able to identify the culprits. Lt. Chad Baker was the man that fired the final, killing shot. Major Dale O'Connell was his commanding officer and leader of the regiment. Tsu'tey didn't realize the significance of it, but the glimpse he got of the Scorpion that fired at Tommy enabled Jake to identify it by number. The pilot assigned to the AT99 UNEC Scorpion 13 that day was Warrant Officer Geoffrey Hamel.

Jake peered through the leaves and watched as he convoy exited the UNEC compound. The sky was overcast and thunder rumbled in the distance. It was just past noon and if his information was accurate, the man who shot Tommy in the head was riding in one of the three rovers leaving the base. He and Neytiri had waited for two days in the forest, biding their time until the killer's next scheduled assignment took him away from the security of the compound.

He motioned to his companion and she came up beside him to look. Neytiri exchanged a nod with him and they waited until the convoy was almost out of visual range before they began to follow. Shadow followed a fair distance behind as instructed by his rider, while the Na'vi couple traversed through the thick jungle. They took care to avoid being seen by the guards at the distant compound and to stay out of range of the convoy's motion detectors.

The moved along for miles, until they were well out of the base territory. It was mid afternoon when they reached the hills. Just beyond those hills, the land opened up into the plains. Jake wasn't surprised when the convoy came to a stop in the hills and began unloading mining equipment from the vehicles. There were only two AMP suit operators in the group, but even two of the combat exoskeletons were generally more than a pair of hunters should want to be up against. One of the workers was a woman and she fooled with a scanner of some sort, searching for signals. Jake automatically tensed and he prayed any motion the equipment might detect from he and Neytiri would be written off as animal activity. When the woman located what she was looking for, she informed her companions. They began to clear away plants from the area and one of them marked the ground, guided by the female with the scanner.

"Digging for unobtanium," guessed Jake with a scowl.

At least this time, they weren't desecrating burial ground, but they were digging in Horse clan territory and Jake was confident that they hadn't officially cleared it or obtained permission from Akway. His suspicions were confirmed when one of the soldiers began to walk the perimeter to scout for danger and he spoke to someone over the transmitter unit around his throat. Jake had to strain to hear what the soldier was saying.

"We've got to get this done fast and get out. No sign of native activity so far. What's the ETA on the minimum quota?" The man listened to the response and frowned. "Gotta move faster than that. We're on the edge of the territory but we're still _in_ it. Don't want another incident like the last time."

Jake growled under his breath at what he assumed to be mention of his son's death. He quieted and went perfectly still when the soldier stopped and searched the area with his eyes, reaching for his gun. Beside Jake, Neytiri reached for her hunting knife in a smooth, subtle motion. The thick vegetation provided good camouflage for the couple but they respected the trained eyes of the soldiers. Both of them held still and took shallow, slow breaths. The MP scanned the area with his eyes for several heartbeats before he was satisfied. He relaxed a little and moved on. His companions began to drill and dig in the payload area, moving with practiced efficiency to gather the most resources in the least amount of time.

One of the MP's took a break and moved away from the dig area. When Jake saw his face, he tensed. Neytiri noticed the way her mate's fingers dug into the soil beneath them and she patted his shoulder, nodding at the human with a questioning look in her eyes.

"There he is," Jake confirmed in a choked whisper.

He had brown hair, was average in height, mildly attractive and in his early thirties. Lieutenant Chad Baker would die this evening, even if they had to take out every soldier in the convoy to do it.

The one thing Jake worried about was his mate's safety, but he knew Neytiri was quite capable of taking care of herself—and others—in a fight. He had to focus on the mission and trust Neytiri to handle herself. He had to—

He noticed that his mate had started to move and he quickly reached out and caught hold of her bow. She frowned at him and tried to pull away but he put an arm around her waist and drew her down to the moss with him. She hissed and struggled, her ears laying flat and an expression of angry betrayal on her face.

"Not yet," Jake explained in a whisper. "I want to get him too, but we've got to at least _try_ to do this without getting killed ourselves. We've got two other kids, remember? Even if we have to watch from a distance, I'd like to see them finish growing up."

She deflated and bit her lip, looking like she was going to break down and cry. Jake immediately wished he hadn't said his last sentence that way. He didn't mean to sound like he was accusing her of not caring for Tsu'tey and Sylwanin. He looked down at her lovely, desperate face and he frowned in remorse.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean anything by that. We just have to wait until we have a better advantage, okay? There's too much light and we will be attacking in the open if we make a move now. Wait until dark and we can get Shadow in on the fight, after we scatter them."

Flying directly into battle on the great leonopteryx might seem like a good idea, but the troops would detect Shadow's hulking mass coming in before Jake and Neytiri could take advantage of an aerial attack. To take full advantage of the toruk's power, they needed the element of surprise. This was where the "tag team" method came in.

She considered his words and flicked her ears. Finally, she shut her eyes and nodded. Jake lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her softly. "We just have to be patient."

* * *

"Take this back to your rover," the major ordered the private, indicating the load of ore the others had just brought to him for inspection.

The younger man saluted and got out his remote for the small, automated transport unit. Once he activated it, he "drove" it to the vehicle he came in, which was waiting by the edge of the forest. He stopped to speak with a couple of other low-ranking MP's that were waiting at the rover. They lowered the ramp and the corporal drove the transport into it, to be emptied and sent back out for another payload.

Lt. Baker came up beside the major and he watched the lower ranking soldier in the distance suspiciously. He knew he wasn't the only one to notice Private Franklin's decrease of enthusiasm in the mission assignments since the day they had to dispose of the witness. It made him sick to think about it too—not because he felt guilty for following his orders but because of the identity of the native.

"Do you think he'll tell anyone, Sir?"

Major O'Connell grunted and glanced over at the progress of the next haul being loaded up. "If he does, he's just as screwed as the rest of us. You keep an eye on him, Lieutenant. So far, the General doesn't suspect anything but I can't keep us undercover if one of the men starts stirring up a scene."

Baker nodded. There was no way Jake Sully would have mistaken those injuries for anything other than bullet-holes. It seemed impossible that his son—the next leader of the clan—would have been that deep in the wilds completely alone. They all assumed he had to have a large hunting party with him and trying to cover up a dozen or more deaths on top of that one would have been a nightmare.

So the question was, why hadn't they heard a peep about Tommy Sully's death? Why hadn't the Omaticaya approached either of the human settlements with questions or demands? He didn't know much about Na'vi practices but he was pretty sure the young man's companions wouldn't have just buried him on the spot and called it a day. Maybe a predator got to him before his hunting party could find him. Maybe it dragged him off and didn't leave enough for them to identify the cause of death, or maybe it just ate him whole and the Omaticaya were still looking for him. He supposed that could be the case, but the last time Jake's sons were missing, Hell's Gate was in on the search and rescue mission and UNEC soon got word of it and helped.

"Sir, have you heard anything about the...incident yet?"

The major looked at him sidelong. "Such as?"

"Reports. Have the Omaticaya—"

"That's on a 'need to know' basis, soldier," interrupted O'Connell. "But let's pretend you didn't step out of line, just now. No, there haven't been any reports of Omaticaya deaths or requests for investigation."

Baker grimaced. He looked up at the cloud-darkened sky. Daylight was quickly fading and thunder rumbled overhead ominously. They should have heard _something_ by now, even if the witness' body was mangled beyond the point of basic forensics. The passing of the _Olo'eyktan's_ son should have been big news, far and wide—yet there wasn't so much as a peep.

A horrible thought occurred to him at that moment. They had _assumed_ the target was dead, but Na'vi bones were notoriously resilient. What if the shot to the head only _stunned_ the Sully kid? He could be recovering right now, getting ready to identify everyone in the squad and tell the respective leaders of each colony what they were seen doing.

"Get your head out of your ass and pay attention to the operation, Lieutenant."

Baker jerked out of his morbid thoughts and he tried to concentrate on his current task. Irritated with himself and with the guilt-ridden private for making him think about these things, he took his ire out on his men.

"Is that C-4? What the _hell _are you doing? We aren't blasting on this site."

The MP carrying the case of explosives stopped and looked a bit flustered. "But the surveyor thought we could shave some time and get more if we set one small pack off, Sir."

Baker glanced at his superior to see if he wanted to take over. When the Major only nodded at him, he turned back to the MP. "No. Put it down and get back to digging, soldier. Blasting attracts attention we don't need."

The MP shrugged, set the case on the ground immediately and saluted. "Right, Sir."

He took off without another word, leaving the C-4 sitting there on the ground in the middle of the camp. Baker stared at it and then stared after the departing MP. Well, he _had _told the man to put it down and go dig. Cursing under his breath, he debated over whether he should take it back to the rover himself or just leave it there until they were finished. He decided he was better off doing the former—otherwise O'Connell might think he was being lax.

Night began to fall and the plant life in the forest started to glow as the last of the muted daylight faded. O'Connell sighed and checked his watch. "Well, that's a wrap. Let's pack it up and start heading back. Round up your team while I check on the vehicles, Lieutenant."

* * *

Jake watched as his prey moved around, ordering his men to wrap it up and board the transports. He squeezed Neytiri's hand when she growled softly and he begged her in a whisper to wait just a little longer. Her eyes were fixated on the man that ended Tommy's life and Jake was silently glad that he hadn't identified the major as the one who gave the order in the first place. He was beginning to doubt his mate's ability to do this with a clear enough head and he regretted agreeing to bring her with—even though he didn't have much of a choice in the matter. Neytiri had lost enough to the Sky People and considering that his purpose here was to execute three men to avenge his son, Jake appreciated her sentiments completely.

"Try not to kill them," he mouthed. "We can use their weapons. Stay out of the open as much as you can, okay?"

She understood his logic and she nodded grimly with agreement. They were going to be using guerilla tactics to do this. It was two against twelve and trying to fight "fair" out in the open would only result in a quick, bloody death for the both of them.

Satisfied that Neytiri would do her part to the best of her ability, Jake slowed his breathing and waited motionless for the first targets to come within range. From the corner of his eye, he saw Neytiri's ears lay flat against her head as she also waited, like a tigress ready to pounce when the time was right. He almost felt sorry for the MP's that were about to get caught up in her wrath, but he trusted her to focus on subduing first and killing only when necessary.

* * *

To the soldiers, it appeared as if the jungle itself was attacking them. The two patrolling MP's barely had time to detect the motion on their scanners before a pair of Na'vi decorated with war paint jumped out at them and dragged them into the brush. They hardly uttered a yelp of surprise before they were rudely knocked out, robbed of some of their weapons and left on the forest floor. Jake and Neytiri bounded through the undergrowth, moving with swift, deadly intent. The first soldier to notice the disappearance of the two patrollers was just about to speak up about it to his companions when a huge arrow shot out of the darkness and pierced his right thigh, all the way through.

As the soldier fell to the ground screaming, two of his companions went to his aid and the rest fell into defensive positions and searched for the source of the attack. Major O'Connell hollered for the teams to get to the armored rovers for cover. Lt. Baker was amongst the first to make it to cover and he yanked his motion-tracking device out. He signaled to the two AMP suit drivers and jerked his thumb over his shoulder, indicating that the attack had come from the movement he was picking up in the forest. The AMP soldiers circled around either side of the rovers and checked their scanners.

Major O'Connell was still in the process of directing the rest of the team to move into defensive positions when something sailed through the air from the depths of the forest and hit the ground near one of the rovers. The first MP to recognize the powerful modern version of a classic explosive shouted at the top of his lungs.

"_Fucking grenade!_"

The hasty shout of warning sent all but one of the MP's near the rover diving away for cover. The man that didn't flee grabbed the grenade in a brave move and drew his arm back to throw it away from the vehicles. He wasn't fast enough. Baker had time to lunge around to the front of his rover and cover his head before the grenade went off. The yells and curses of the men were drowned out as the fuel tank in the first rover combusted from the contact with the grenade blast. The vehicle was too solid to fly apart from the explosion, but shrapnel from the outer casing shot out in various directions—along with charred bits and pieces of the soldier caught up in the blast.

O'Connell threw himself flat on the ground to avoid decapitation when a flat bit of metal from the rover whistled toward him like a deadly metal Frisbee. The solider beside him wasn't as fortunate and he copped a glancing blow to the shoulder. The gash was deep enough to nearly sever his arm from his body and he dropped to his knees with a shout, clasping his hand over the wound desperately.

The Major gritted his teeth and picked up his carb rifle. He squatted beside the injured MP and took aim at the jungle. "Open fire!"

"Sir, we've got no visual," protested one of the AMP drivers over the transmitter.

"They're in there somewhere," shouted O'Connell, "Shoot where the scanners picked up movement! We'll force them to take cover and regroup. Do it _now_, people!"

Baker repeated the order to the soldiers nearest to him to be sure they got the instructions and then he got down on his belly. He readied his weapon just as the shots rang out. As the bullets ravaged the plant life in the targeted area, the bioluminescent glow faded. It had the eerie effect of making it appear as though a hole of blackness was spreading through the jungle. More gunfire joined in and someone shouted that the attackers were moving again.

Baker checked his sensor and saw that the two blips outside the perimeter of the group were indeed moving again—in separate directions. They were circling around on either side and he cursed as three arrows shot out from the jungle growth to the right, one after the other. Another soldier went down with a scream, clutching at his left forearm. The thick shaft of the native projectile had impaled his arm smoothly. Another man barely avoided getting hit by the second arrow and the third buried itself in the thigh of the surveyor. The woman's scream overpowered the yells of the men and two of the soldier's went to her first, out of sheer instinct to protect.

Another arrow shot out of the forest, opposite to where the first three came from. The projectile hit the soldier on the left of the injured woman in the ass and he howled, clawing at it impulsively. Automatic gunfire rang out from where the arrow came from and the second soldier got a knee-cap blown off. The two MP's fell in a heap, trying to protect the woman, concentrate through their own pain and retaliate with their own guns. One of the AMP drivers came to their aid and stood over them as he fired into the trees where the gunshots came from. The other driver had ignited his torch and he sprayed a jet of fire into the forest where the first three arrows originated.

O'Connell generally would have had a conniption over his soldiers using flame throwers—due to the questions it would raise if it started a forest fire that couldn't be contained in time. Considering the amount of damage his people had already taken, he was inclined to let it go.

"Check the goddamned scanners," he ordered between his own shots. He was aiming for the area where the gunfire had come from. "There's got to be more than two of these bastards!"

Private Franklin was crouched next to the lieutenant, but he wasn't firing his weapon. Instead, he observed something that the others failed to notice. Na'vi hunters—even the young ones—tended to hit more vital areas than limbs when they intended to kill something. So far, every one of the direct hits were wound-shots, not kill shots. He shared his finding with the major over the transmitter. "Sir, whoever they are, they haven't been shooting to kill."

"Well goody for them," snapped Baker with a scowl at the younger man, checking his motion detector. "They probably saw us digging and want to drag us to their mud pit to be burned alive! Just do as you're fucking told or we're all dead!"

"Incoming!"

The shout distracted Baker from his annoyance with the young private and he sputtered every nasty word he'd ever learned when he saw another grenade land by his rover. He moved faster than the soldier from earlier and he chucked it away before it could go off. It exploded in mid-flight to the forest, illuminating the area briefly with an orange glow.

In that moment, Lt. Baker caught a glimpse of one of their attackers and his heart lodged in his throat. The Na'vi body was striped with iridescent war paint that glowed like the plant life under the blue light of Polyphemus. Painting one's self in glow-in-the-dark markings would seem like a stupid move for an ambush, except that nighttime on Pandora was nothing like on Earth. The markings worked like camouflage against the backdrop of the forest, matching the bio-glow of the plants. Baker only spotted the hunter because the fiery glow briefly dimmed the luminance of the undergrowth, changing the light properties.

He wasted no time. He took aim and began shooting, trying to follow the swift movement. If he hadn't just seen a glimpse of the Na'vi, he wouldn't have noticed the faint rustle in the torn, broken bushes caused by the target's passing. There was no time to admire how effortlessly the Na'vi moved through the brush. The other attacker was still firing arrows into the ranks, forcing the soldiers to seek cover. Only the two AMP drivers could move with any measure of safety, though there was still a chance that an arrow could pierce the reinforced glass protecting the cab. One of the drivers was firing his GAU cannon into the forest where the most recent attack of arrows came from. The other continued torching the undergrowth.

Baker started to move but he was forced to roll aside as bullets peppered the ground, only inches away from him. They came from a different angle this time and he knew that if he had been situated just a little to the right, he might have been hit. Remembering Franklin's comment about the attackers not aiming to kill, he realized with a chill that he and his small group were being kept separate from the others by the attacks.

There _did_ seem to be a deliberate motive behind the aggression and whether his people were up against two Na'vi or twenty, Baker knew they were at a disadvantage. Somehow, the attackers managed to wound or incapacitate most of the soldiers in the group. The rest were doing their best to respond to the threat but the abruptness and brutality of the ambush put them at a disadvantage. They thought they were prepared for any accidental native contact but they didn't expect such a violent attack from what appeared to be only two protagonists.

The gunfire and flames stopped for a moment as the men got their bearings and searched for movement from the intruders again. Smoke began to billow as the moist plant life smoldered from the fiery assault on it. Some of the smaller vegetation was burning, but the fire wasn't strong enough to spread to the trees or heavier ferns, yet. An odd, screeching call arose from the forest where the gunfire had come from and Baker looked down at his scanner to see the target moving away quickly. The other one was still circling around toward the hills.

"There! I see one of them!" The excited exclamation came from one of the AMP drivers. He moved into position to the northwest, where the forest began to give way to the base of the hills.

"Watch it, Soldier," reminded O'Connell over the transmission.

He motioned to a couple of the few MP's that weren't incapacitated and they followed with him behind the AMP suit. The driver began to spray the forest with bullets where he had seen the glimpse of the target.

The other AMP driver had stopped firing and was checking his motion sensors again. "I've lost the other one," he reported. "He either stopped moving or got out of range. Maybe we got him."

"Sir, I think we might need to call this one in," Private Franklin suggested nervously. He was looking around this way and that, with sweat beading his face and dampening his hair. The groans of the wounded were drowned out by the powerful shots of GAU cannon.

"If we call it in, there's going to be an investigation," Baker snapped, still searching for any sign of the missing target. "They're going to want to know why these savages ambushed us and they won't believe it was just an unprovoked act of violence! Keep your mind on the situation and your mouth shut."

An odd half-screech, half-roar caught their attention next and they looked up to see a monstrous shadow blotting out the light of Polyphemus and the moons. Other soldiers stopped what they were doing to stare as well, briefly stunned by the awesome sight. They got their senses back mere seconds later, when the Na'vi riding the diving creature started shooting arrows down at them.

"Open fire!" Baker ordered, just as one of the arrows pierced the outer hull of the AMP suit nearest to them.

The driver swore as the hit damaged some of his exoskeleton's functions and the toxic Pandora air started filtering in through the break. More gunfire rattled off as the soldiers followed the lieutenant's order and shot at the menace overhead. Major O'Connell turned at the ruckus and when he saw what was happening with the other group of soldiers, he decided it was time to call it in. To hell with the consequences—his people were dropping like flies and if getting some backup meant they all went on trial, so be it.

"This is Major Dale O'Connell, requesting military backup. My detachment has been ambushed by hostile natives, over." He gave their coordinates. "UNEC security, do you copy? Over."

"We copy, Major," came the blessed answer from a female operator. "I've dispatched your distress call and we'll have—"

Whatever else she said was lost on him, because at that moment something whizzed through the air from the forest with a whistling sound. He understood what it was when a sturdy Na'vi bola wound around the AMP suit's legs, hampering its movements and throwing the driver off-balance.

"Motherfucker," complained the driver. He was forced to put down his cannon and try to untangle the mess. It wasn't particularly hazardous, except that it would trip him up if he kept trying to walk with the object wrapped around his legs.

The slight setback wasn't what drew O'Connell's attention so thoroughly, though. The grenade lobbed at the AMP suit from above did the trick. The flying hunter was either a very good shot or just very lucky; the explosive landed on top of the exoskeleton and rolled, wedging directly into the shoulder joint. The soldier inside of the suit let loose another explosive string of curses when the right "arm" locked up, but he wasn't aware of his danger.

"Get out of there, Corporal!" The major hit the dirt as soon as he shouted the warning.

Knowing better than to question the order—especially after seeing his companions duck and cover—the driver slipped his emergency exopack on and hit the hatch release. The control pit hatch popped open and the soldier jumped out as soon as he freed himself from the driver seat. He rolled away and threw his hands over his head just as the explosive went off. Bits of metal and tempered glass flew out in all directions from the blast.

"We need reinforcements immediately," the major shouted into the transmitter, now convinced that they were up against more than two opponents. He didn't know how but their attackers must have discovered a way to cheat the motion scanners and hide their true numbers. The toruk shrieked as it flew overhead with its rider and gunfire followed in its wake. The lieutenant and his group were still trying to shoot the flyer down, but at least Baker had the sense to assign a couple of his men to keep an eye on the forest and the sensors.

"UNEC, get that military support to us," O'Connell demanded.

He started to say more but his words froze on his lips when he saw part of the jungle detach itself from the forest and drag the hapless driver of the ruined AMP suit into the brush. The soldier's surprised yell ended abruptly and if it weren't for the brief glitter of amber eyes, the major might have actually believed the forest itself was attacking them. The camouflage was so effective; it was hard to spot their attackers until it was too late. The soldier to O'Connell's left started to shoot at the spot where their comrade disappeared to but the major stopped him.

"You're more likely to hit our AMP driver than the savages," he reminded the private. "Concentrate on defense, kid!"

The great leonopteryx had circled around and was coming back for another pass. The major noticed it, but he suspected that part of the rider's intention was to distract the soldiers. The strategic hits on the AMP suits didn't escape O'Connell's notice, either. Instead of giving the air-born threat his full attention, he checked his motion detector again and followed the blip representing the only other visible assailant.

"Ground attacker's heading back your way, Baker," announced the major through communications, "keep your head on and stay sharp, kid. They've been tapping us on one shoulder and stabbing the other one when we look."

"Understood, sir."

At that moment, the toruk dipped low and its rider dropped off of its back and into the canopy—opposite from where the other aggressor had been sighted. Baker saw it and he reported it over the frequency. "Looks like they're trying to flank us, Sir."

Unfortunately, the realization of what their opponents were doing came a little too late for any adjustments in tactics to make much of a difference. Understanding part of the strategy being used against them didn't result in an understanding of the individuals using them.

* * *

General Nathan West frowned as he looked over the reports on his computer log. Something wasn't adding up. The work that should have been getting done by O'Connell's group was lagging behind. On the surface it appeared to be getting done, but the reported activity wasn't matching the results. Major O'Connell had a reputation for getting things done fast. The man didn't play around and while he wasn't a masochist, he certainly wasn't soft on his men. Why then, were his regiment's weekly quotas coming up so short?

Nathan sat back in his chair and rubbed tired green eyes, shaking his head. Maybe he'd missed a report. It wasn't impossible, given how much he'd had to deal with since the latest ISV arrivals from Earth. He prided himself on his sense of discipline but even the staunchest soldier was still merely mortal. He looked over the files again, determined to find an explanation that wouldn't result in unpleasant questioning.

The light on his screen comm. flickered on and the artificial chime of the buzzer took his attention away from the computer. He reached out and pressed the "answer" button on the touchpad, annoyed with the interruption. A female soldier's face appeared on the little screen and he could tell by the background that she was in the military communications room. He recognized her as one of the Navy officers serving on base.

"Make it quick, Officer. I've got a lot of work to do today."

Her expression was tense but disciplined. "Sir, we've had a distress call from Major O'Connell. His squad is under attack by hostile natives. We've dispatched support troops to fly to their coordinates. Are there any orders you would like to add, General?"

West frowned. He couldn't think of a simple reason why any of the clans on this continent would attack humans. For years now, both sides honored the peace treaty between the indigenous and the Terrans. Unless this attack was instigated by some impetuous, hot-blooded young warriors trying to impress someone with their balls, something must have gone wrong. Whether the error was on the human side or the Na'vi side, he couldn't know without further investigation.

"I want to hear the transmission myself," he ordered. He would decide how personally to get involved in this when he had more information to go by. He expected his men to clean up their own messes, but sometimes intervention was a necessary part of leadership.

"Right away, sir."

West listened as the dispatcher patched the frequency and fed the transmission through his comm. unit. Hazel eyes flicked back and forth absently as he concentrated on what he was hearing. A deep frown carved his expression to stone, but the color slowly drained from his face when he realized just how severe the situation was. Major O'Connell wasn't the only soldier in that regiment putting out a distress call now. Two others evidently took it upon themselves to add their opinions to the distress call and they sounded on the verge of panic.

"Christ, I can't get a clear shot!"

Major O'Connell's voice came through. "Tighten that ring, people! Treat it like a wagon caravan and face all sides! UNEC base, we need that backup!"

Another young man's voice broke through the frequency. "Shit, it's coming right at me! I need—" The cry ended abruptly with a groan, leaving the listener to speculate over whether the solider was killed or rendered unconscious.

The rattling of automatic gunfire could be heard, along with the whistle and thunk of arrows hitting something. Curses, yells, grunts and rustling came through the transmission as the embattled soldiers fought to hold their positions until help arrived.

West had heard enough. He broke into the transmission to inform his subordinates that he would be there to deal with it personally. "How many targets have you confirmed, Major?"

"Only two so far, General." O'Connell paused to shout an order at some men.

"Two?" West scowled. "Are you trying to tell me that a team of two hostiles are taking out a dozen trained soldiers?"

"We've only confirmed two sightings," answered the other officer, "but there's got to be more out there. I don't know how they're doing it, but they've managed to trick our motion sensors. One of them attacked on a leonopteryx."

West's eyes went blank. "A leonopteryx. Are you sure?"

The crackle of interference interrupted the communication and the major was forced to repeat his response. "Yes Sir. It sure as hell wasn't a normal banshee and it matched the descriptions."

West only knew of one man that could ride such a creature, but he couldn't imagine that man opening an attack on anyone without good reason. He started to tell the major that he would be moving out to oversee backup efforts himself, but things went from bad to worse on the other end.

"Bloody hell…they're all out."

West paused in the action of putting an order out for a pilot and a troupe of his choosing. "Major O'Connell, what's going on?"

* * *

The major was too pressed to answer the question. The barrage of attacks never fell into a discernable pattern and the timing was too random to predict. Both of the AMP suits were rendered useless, the drivers were too injured to fight and most of his people were either out cold or heavily wounded. Aside from himself, Baker and two of the grunts, there wasn't a single able-bodied fighter available. He was separated from the others, too. The troops nearest to him were either writhing in pain or unconscious.

Acting on a combination of instincts and training, he reached for his flair pack with one hand while keeping his carbon rifle ready with the other. He snapped the fuse and made a shushing motion to his fellows across the distance, having the strangest feeling that the minute he tried to move toward them or vice-versa, they would be under attack again. He tossed the flair.

…And then he saw why the jungle appeared to be moving to some of his men. He shot at the swiftly moving, painted Na'vi body that was bounding through the thick vegetation but he failed to notice the forest moving behind him.

* * *

"I've got a sighting," Major O'Connell's tense voice said over the transmission, "It's a woma—"

His sentence abruptly ended in a gurgle and a grunt of pain.

Frowning, West hunched closer to the comm. device and demanded the other man finish. The next voice he heard was familiar to him, but it did not belong to Major O'Connell.

_"Nga tspang ma 'itan!"_

The snarl of grief and fury was apparent in the masculine voice, even over the radio transmission.

* * *

The knife slid in between the major's ribs, finding his heart quickly and piercing all the way through to the other side. Jake saw the shocked faces of the remaining opposition across the way and he held his enemy's body against him when Baker and the other two fired some shots. Neytiri was coming up behind them. He needed to buy her some time. One of the bullets gouged a hot, painful gash in the outer edge of his left hip but Jake kept running towards his remaining opposition, carrying the major's lifeless body before him as a shield while hopping over the injured in the process. He heard Shadow shriek in the distance and he hoped the animal would stay away as he instructed, until he called for him.

Jake saw the wide blue eyes of his son's killer as he closed in and he hardly noticed the terrified brown eyes of the young man nearest to him. He dropped O'Connell on the ground and picked up Baker, slamming him against the harsh metal door of the remaining rover. He stared into his eyes and tried very hard to speak clear English.

"You…killed my son."

* * *

At first, Baker thought that a ghost was hoisting him. The face snarling at him from behind the mask of war paint was so much like the face of the young man he'd shot, he could only stare with bulging eyes. The shock was quickly replaced by recognition and with that came the realization that he was about to die.

"C-Corporal Sully," he choked out—as coherently as he could around the constriction of his field armor choking him. Sully was holding him up by the straps and his own weight was causing constriction against his throat.

"Glad you know me," answered the avatar form with a growl. He cast a glance to the left as his companion came out of the jungle and Baker got his first glimpse of the other protagonist. Seeing the distinctly female delicacy to the lean curves, he realized who she must be.

"I'm sorry!" He cried desperately, "I was just following orders!"

The woman stepped over the prone bodies of the other soldiers, holding her bow in one hand. Her yellow eyes devoured him as she closed the distance but she didn't speak a single word. Her shapely lips were parted in an almost inquisitive manner and she looked at the man that held Baker by the body armor.

Jake nodded and returned his gaze to Baker. "Go ask my son to forgive you." He lifted a stolen carbon revolver and pressed the barrel against Baker's forehead.

The lieutenant didn't get three words into his prayer before he met the same end as his Na'vi victim.

* * *

The almost supernatural energy that had allowed them to conduct the mission quickly abandoned the grieving couple, once their sons' killers were gone. Neytiri went immediately back into the brush, knowing that any one of the humans could recover the strength to fire at her if given the chance. Jake paused, though. He noticed one of the younger soldiers staring at him as he let Baker's body drop to the ground and he looked down at the young man with hard eyes. He recognized him from Tsu'tey's vision as the soldier that disapproved of the whole ordeal.

"You know who I am?" He doubted it, given the blood streaking his face along with the war paint. Still, there was a chance he was recognizable through all of that.

The young man swallowed. "Yes."

Jake knelt down before him and kept his gaze steady. "You tell them everything you saw and heard. You tell them that I'm responsible, got it? Only me. I did this—not the Omaticaya."

Mystified as well as traumatized, Private Franklin could only nod convulsively. Jake was satisfied that the private would keep his word. His was the only honest, regretful face in the group and Jake felt sure that the young man was just a victim of circumstance, caught up in a mess over one bad, impulsive decision. He nodded, gave the private a quick examinations and upon seeing that he was unharmed, he stood back up and left to join his mate.

* * *

The call rudely awoke Max and Trudy from a well-earned sleep. Trudy leaned over the side of the bed, grabbed the shoe she'd left there and threw it in the general direction of the noise. Max was more diplomatic and he assured her between yawns that he would see what the emergency beeping was all about.

"It's probably nothing," he mumbled, kissing her. "I'll straighten it out." He got out of bed and picked up the phone to answer it in the living room, so that the conversation wouldn't disturb his lover.

She grinned beneath the pillow she had stuffed over her head. Max was always doing things like that. He was always quick to look after Dustin when he was a baby, insisting that Trudy pump so that he could do some midnight feedings and let her get some sleep. He always tried to let her rest, even when he was exhausted himself. With a sigh, Trudy gave up on trying to change his ways and she shut her eyes, prepared to drift off into sleep again. Max was only gone for a few minutes before he came hurrying back into the room. He went to the closet and started grabbing a change of clothes, prompting Trudy to lift her head and stare at him in puzzlement.

"What's going on, Maxi?"

"Something not good," he answered in a rush. "We've got to go to the control room in the security building."

She sat up and frowned. "Max, what the hell?"

He looked at her with dread in his eyes as he tossed a t-shirt onto the bed for her. "One of the UNEC teams deployed for cleanup duty was attacked last night. Three people died."

Trudy's mouth fell open, but she was too disciplined to let her shock turn her senseless. She hurriedly began to dress and when they were both ready, they left a note on the kitchen counter for Dustin and took public transport out of the bio-dome. It was still in the dark hours of the morning when they made it to the military complex.

* * *

They had General West on web screen communications when Trudy and Max arrived in the control room. Trudy gave Max a nod, indicating that she preferred him to start the conversation. He was generally better with social etiquette than she was and when it came to diplomacy, she let him do most of the talking.

Max took a seat in front of the monitor and obliged. "Good morning, General West. We came as soon as we were told what happened. Can you tell us what happened and have you identified who the aggressors were?"

"Good morning," greeted the other man. He looked out from the monitor at Max and Trudy with a grim expression on his chiseled face. "We've got some conflicting reports from the members of that team, but so far we're assuming the attackers were from the Horse clan. We're not through interviewing everyone yet and most of the people from the squad are hospitalized. They just arrived an hour ago. We _do_ have the voice of one hostile recorded, however. He spoke to Major O'Connell just before he killed him, and the major was in the process of communicating with the base at the time. I've sent for a translator but I assume you understand some Na'vi yourself, Doctor."

Max nodded. "I can probably translate. Can you play the transmission back for me?"

"Of course." General West fooled with something off-screen and with a crackle of static, sounds of a struggle came through over the transmission.

A growling male voice spoke up and the hairs on Max's arms stood up as a chill swept through him.

_"Nga tspang ma 'itan!"_

The voice was raw; savage with anger and grief—but after years of knowing the owner, it was impossible not to recognize it. Max looked up at Trudy, whose eyes were bugging out with equally shocked recognition of the voice. Thankfully, she was out of visual range of the screen, so the general couldn't see her expression. Thinking quickly, Max improvised. He needed a moment to gather his wits and decide what the hell to do.

"General, I'm sorry but we seem to be having technical difficulties." Max pretended to fiddle with the control panel and he gave one of the communication technicians a subtle look of warning when she frowned at him in puzzlement. "Can you excuse me for a moment while I correct the issue?"

"I can wait," answered West calmly.

"Thank you." Max looked over the screen at nobody. "Mark, can you do something about this? I'll get out of your way."

The two technicians present stared at each other, then at Max. One was female and neither of them were named Mark. Trusting that Dr. Patel had a reason for his weird behavior, they kept their mouths shut and resumed working while Max and Trudy stepped outside of the room.

"Max, tell me that wasn't Jake's voice I heard over that transmission recording," Trudy hissed as soon as they shut the door behind them.

"It was," confirmed Max, compressing his lips. His stomach felt like it was twisted in knots and his heart was heavy.

"Well, what did he say?" Trudy demanded. "The only word I understood out of that was 'you'"

Max looked her in the eye and swallowed. "_'Nga tspang ma 'itan'_ basically translates to _'you killed my son'_ in English."

Trudy's brows hedged over wide, horrified eyes. She shook her head slowly with helpless confusion and dread. "Max…what the _hell_ is going on?"

"I wish I knew," he answered, taking her hands. "Something awful, that's for sure. I hope I misheard it, Trudy. I hope to God there's been some mistake and both of Jake's boys are alive. Right now we've got to get back to the General and avoid identifying the voice as Jake's until we know more about this. After we finish speaking with West, we'll try to contact Norm again and ask him what's happened."

Trudy drew a shuddering breath and nodded. "I should have known something was fucked up. Jake was acting totally spastic that day I saw him and Sebastian warned us something was wrong!"

Max squeezed her hands. "We'll find out what's going on, Trudy. In the meantime, let's just try to stay calm."

* * *

They were high up in the Hallelujah Mountains, where they could see to their injuries, clean themselves up and rest without worrying about anyone tracking them down. They both knew that once UNEC found out what happened, there would be a manhunt. By avenging their son, Neytiri and Jake had become fugitives.

"I don't think we could have pulled that off again in a million years."

Neytiri looked sidelong at her mate, who was on his knees beside her at the waterfall-fed pool of fresh water. Jake had cupped his hands into the water and was scrubbing the blood and paint from his face. Some of the blood was his own and it still trickled from several cuts and grazes in various places on his body. Neytiri looked down at herself and took note of her own superficial injuries.

No, they weren't likely to succeed against such odds again. Neytiri went into that fight expecting one or both of them to die. She did not fear death and to go down fighting the men that took her son away would have been a good way to die. She even would have welcomed death, if it weren't for her two surviving children and her mate. Eywa was with them in the fight—she could feel it. Even if the All Mother did not approve of their actions, she watched over them and Neytiri strongly believed that was why she and Jake were still alive and in one piece. Eywa had a plan for them and they would not find their final rest until they fulfilled their roles.

Her musings were interrupted when Jake leaned in to brush his lips over her cheek. "I'll see what I can scavenge for breakfast while you finish bathing."

She nodded and gave him a soft look before dipping her hands into the clear water. The first light of dawn brightened the horizon and the sleepy calls of birds and day-dwelling insects grew slowly and steadily louder. Neytiri watched the blood drift away from her hands and forearms as the water blended with it. She thought of her son and imagined his blood flowing out of his body on the moss. She took a deep, shuddering breath and shifted, accidentally knocking the little pouch attached to her weapon harness askew. Something tumbled out of it and landed in the water with a plop. Recognizing Tommy's carved toy _pa'li_, she made such a frantic grab for it that she almost tumbled face-first into the pond.

Neytiri clutched the toy to her chest when she caught it and she bowed her head. Her braids fell forward to conceal her face as she looked down at the object and remembered bits and pieces of Tommy's life.

She remembered the day she told Jake they were expecting Tommy. She was sure that finding out he was going to be a father played a big part in helping Jake find the strength and determination to recover from his near paralysis.

She remembered Tommy's first words. The first thing he learned to say was _Sempu_—which meant "daddy" in English. She and Jake had been so proud and she thought it was fitting that Tommy looked up to his father from the very beginning. She was so sure he was destined to be a fine leader for the clan.

She remembered his first steps and the many steps to follow afterwards. Once Tommy began to walk, he was constantly mobile. He liked to run away from his father when Jake told him to come to him, but he learned early on not to test his mother. Neytiri almost smiled as she thought of all the times Jake had chased Tommy through the den and around the outer trunk of Hometree, always making threats that she and Tommy both knew he would never follow through with.

She remembered him coming to her with a cut or scrape, and how little he complained when he hurt himself.

She remembered how excited he was to find out he was going to have a sibling, when Neytiri conceived Tsu'tey. He loved to rest his head against her expanding belly and listen, insisting that he could hear his little brother speaking to him from within the womb.

She remembered how protective he was of Gracie Spellman and how he got into his first fistfight defending her honor.

She remembered how easily he laughed, how he loved his younger siblings and how brave, supportive and warm-hearted he was. Like his father, Tommy had a light within him that seemed to radiate whenever he smiled. He had grown into a fine young man, an ideal mate and a strong leader. The clan had such high hopes for him and so many girls anxiously tried to get his attention—but he only had eyes for Grace.

Now, Tommy would never fulfill all the things Neytiri knew he would be wonderful at. He would never be the supportive, strong mate or the doting, proud father. He would never bring home his own ikran. He would never make up his own song to share with the clan. He would never become _Olo'eyktan_.

Perhaps the most painful thing of all to Neytiri was the realization that her son would never again smile at her, hug her and tell her how glad he was that she was his _Sa'nu_.

At that moment, Neytiri exceeded her threshold and she finally broke. The grief burst free of the cage she had put it in and the first raw, bitter cry rose in her throat before she could stop it. She pressed the back of her hand against her mouth and tried to stifle it, but once the first sob came out, the rest followed no matter how hard she tried to hold them back. She rocked back and forth as she held her son's toy horse against her chest and wailed. Exhausted from trying to maintain her dignity for her people, hunting down Tommy's killers and hiding from her sorrow, Neytiri couldn't stem the tide. She cried as hard as she had cried when she found her _Sempul_ dying in the burning ruins of old Hometree.

She heard something approaching but her mate's scent reached her nose, so she didn't move to defend herself. Obviously, Jake had heard her distress and turned back immediately to check on her. Neytiri's pain was too great to hide and she continued to wail as he bounded over to her through the mountain plant life. He went to his knees beside her and he drew her into his strong embrace. He didn't speak her name or say anything because he was so attuned to her by now that he already understood what provoked her ravaged cries.

"I've got you," Jake murmured to her in a tight voice as he held her against his chest.

The wooden horse pressed hard against their skin as the embrace sandwiched it between them. Jake stroked her hair and kissed her on the forehead, murmuring some nonsense that she couldn't understand. Neytiri found her voice for the second time since the tragedy as she curled her fingers into the multiple braids of his ceremonial Mohawk.

"Our T-Tommy. Our son. Jake…my Jake…he is gone!"

Something warm and wet landed on her forehead, where Jake's face hovered over it. "I know." His voice broke the slightest bit and he held her tighter. "This was all we could do, baby."

His heartbeat was soothing and steady beneath her ear and his warm embrace reminded her that there were still things to be thankful for in life. Her light-hearted, handsome mate had traded his hunter's braids for a war Mohawk. Their remaining two children were left to grieve without them and the slaughter of Tommy's killer hadn't brought their son back to life.

"Jake…I don't want to do this any more."

There was no need to explain what she meant. He nodded slowly and rocked her. "There's still one more of them out there. Are you sure?"

She pulled away enough to look him in the eye. Though her vision was blurred with tears and her heart ached at the thought of one of Tommy's killers getting away, she nodded. "The People are hunters. We kill when it is needed—not for pleasure. The troubles of those men are finished now, but we still suffer."

He brushed her tears away with the pads of his thumbs. "I never should have brought you with me. I don't mind being a fugitive but you…I should have just said 'no'."

"It would not have changed anything," she insisted. "You are my mate and Tommy was my son. I would not have listened, if you had told me to stay behind."

He gave her a smirk that was a mere shadow of his usual charming half-grin. "I still could have tried harder. I'll admit it: I didn't want to go without you. Pretty selfish of me, huh?"

She laid her head on his shoulder and shook her head. Her eyes went to the orange-lit sky and she drew a shuddering breath. "We are a mated pair. It is the way of things for us to want to be together. I would not have forgiven you if you had left without me."

He nuzzled her hair. "Let's finish getting cleaned up and find a place to rest for the day. We can decide where we're going from here later on and we can travel by night."

Neytiri nodded. Wherever they went, it couldn't be back home—at least, not right away. For the safety of the Omaticaya, it had to be clear that the clan had nothing to do with Jake and Neytiri's vengeance.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Chey_** = Informal term for a "P'ah s'ivil chey", or personal belongings rack.

**_Sa'nok_** = Mother

**_Iknimaya _** = Final rite of passage in a young Na'vi hunter's trials to become one of the People.

**_Uniltaron_** = Dream Hunt

**_Sa'nu_** = Mommy

**_Sempu_** = Daddy


	9. Chapter 9

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 9: Trial and error

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Warning: this chapter contains graphic sexual scenes. Cavity warning from sweetness overload, too. _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

When Norm got word from Jake that he could tell their friends and UNEC what happened, it was a great relief for him. He was happy that Jake and Neytiri were alive and seemingly well, though he had hoped they would change their minds about what they planned. At least they had kept their wits enough not to slaughter the whole team. Jake said most of them were injured but alive. Three men died but one was not by intention. He apparently tried to toss away a grenade that Jake threw at a rover to force the soldiers into the open. The other two that died were the commanding officer that ordered Tommy to be finished off and the soldier that shot him in the head. Jake said there was one more directly responsible party, but Neytiri's thirst for revenge was quenched and she asked that they let it go. Evidently, vengeance tasted bitter to her.

Norm finally answered Max and Trudy's steady, constant attempts to contact him and it came as no surprise to him when Max informed him they had tried to contact Tom as well. They didn't take the news of Tommy's death well and Max told Norm in a sorrow-heavy voice that he had hoped for another explanation to what he had heard over the recorded transmission. He shared what he and Trudy knew of the ambush, confirming Norm's fears that the death of his son turned Jake into a killer.

"So what's the plan?" Norm asked when they more or less got their facts straightened out. "I know this is going to put them on the record as criminals. How do you and Trudy plan on dealing with it?"

There were a few moments of silence on the other end and Norm could easily imagine Max and Trudy looking at one another in silent communication as they contemplated. Finally, Trudy spoke into the transmitter. "I don't know _whose_ voice that was in the recording, man. This is UNEC business and we'll let them handle it."

Max spoke again, adding his own input. "Of course, Hell's Gate will offer any assistance they need…on the record."

Norm nodded grimly, understanding what his friends were saying. They had no intention of hunting Jake and Neytiri down themselves to arrest them, but they would have to cooperate with UNEC if they were asked to help with a manhunt. Knowing Trudy, she'd find some way to sabotage things and warn the fugitive couple if the law started closing in on them.

"I wish I could have talked them out of it," Norm sighed. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys sooner. Jake made me swear not to until he was finished and since his son died protecting my daughter….well…" He trailed off and his voice thickened with the lump that grew in his throat. He coughed and blinked several times, taking a moment to regain control of his emotions.

"Jake's still a Marine, deep down," Trudy said. "He did what he thought he had to do and there's nobody on Pandora or Earth that could have changed his mind, Norm. Let it go and be glad he and Neytiri are safe—at least for now."

"She's right," agreed Max. "We should count our blessings. All that we can do for them now is remain loyal to our friendship. I understand why Jake didn't want word getting out. He knew we would try to stop him and we would have stood a better chance at doing it than you, Norm. He knew we could have arrested him and detained him until his madness cleared up."

"Which would have flushed our friendship with him down the toilet," Trudy added with a sigh. "Jake might act like a doofus sometimes, but the man's a lot deeper than most people realize. He's got smarts he keeps hidden and this is a prime example."

Norm had to agree with their observations. Trudy and Max would have been duty-bound to try and stop him if they had discovered Jake's plan. The knowledge only made Norm feel worse. If he had broken his vow and told them what was happening from the beginning, they might have tracked Jake down and stopped him—even if it meant destroying friendships. At least the Omaticaya leaders wouldn't be fugitives and their kids wouldn't be left wondering if their parents were safe or not.

As if she read his mind, Trudy spoke up over the transmission. "Norm, I'm telling you there's not much else you could have done to change this. Even if we knew what happened right away and sent out search teams, Jake knows how to avoid detection. He's a veteran. Stealth was part of his training and he used it in Venezuela _and_ here on Pandora. That guy is going to evade the authorities for a long, long time before he gets caught—if they catch him at all."

"That doesn't really help," Norm sighed. "Don't get me wrong; I'm glad Neytiri and Jake have a good chance of staying free in the wilds but I'd rather have them here. Tsu'tey's been too busy trying to take care of everyone else to stress much over it but Sylwanin isn't doing so good. They need their parents."

"I think Jake and Neytiri will find a way to see their children again, without endangering the clan," Max said with confidence. "I can't imagine anything keeping them away for long. They love their kids."

"Yeah," Trudy agreed optimistically, "and 'till then, they've got their Uncle Norm. They can come visit Hell's Gate too. Maybe a weekend away will do them all some good—especially Gracie and Sylwanin."

Norm thought that wasn't a bad idea. "I'll talk about it with Ni'nat tonight, but we may need you to send air transport to pick the kids up. I can't afford to go away right now. I've got tribal affairs to deal with and Emazu isn't ready to start taking on the responsibility yet."

"Are you sure that kid's _ever_ going to be ready for it?" Trudy asked dubiously. "He's always been a trouble-maker, right?"

Norm looked around to be sure nobody wandered close enough to the mushroom grove to hear his next words. "It's not totally his fault, though. His father isn't the best role model I'd pick. He's…well, he's basically a racist bigot and the thinks everything is accomplished with muscle and aggression."

"And sons learn from their fathers' examples," sighed Max.

Norm swallowed again. Yes, they did and that was a damned good thing. Jake's boys were honorable, compassionate and protective of those they loved. Grace might not be alive now if Tommy hadn't grown up with Jake's examples guiding him through life. Now it was up to him to undo the damage Emazu's father had done and try to put the young man on a more enlightened path, so that he could be half the leader Tommy would have been. Again, Norm resented Jake for leaving it all in his hands. He strongly believed that Emazu's attitude had improved over the past couple of years because of Jake's influence. Taking on the responsibility of guiding young hunters through their training really helped the younger generation to bond with their _Olo'eyktan_ and the time Jake spent with Emazu did the boy some good.

"Emazu's not as bad as he used to be," Norm assured. "He's not very friendly but he's a strong hunter and he doesn't scare easily. If I can hammer some compassion into him, he could make a great leader."

Trudy snorted. "Emazu 2.0. Good luck with that, Norm. Upgrading people is a lot harder than upgrading electronics."

"Then maybe I can get Sebastian to come in and help me," Norm said, managing a little humor to match Trudy's. The attempts to cheer one another up was a bittersweet reminder that they were all still the best of friends.

Max joined in with his own bit of gentle humor. "Given his field of expertise and the things Emazu has said about Savanna, Bastian would be just as likely to give the boy a virus."

They shared a round of reserved laughter before sobering again.

"If only we _could_ reprogram him," sighed Norm. "Well, I've got to get back to the village and start a council. Emazu's Dream Hunt is coming up next week and ideally; he should go for his banshee shortly after that. The elders have to decide if he'll be ready for it or not."

"And we've got to break the news to Dustin," Max said without enthusiasm. "It seems nobody has an easy day ahead of them."

"Norm, take my advice and kick back with a drink when you're finished having the council," Trudy suggested. "In fact, I think we've all earned a couple, tonight. I'm going to make myself scarce because I know when this really hits me, I'm going to lose my cool."

"That sounds like a good idea," Norm agreed. "I'll contact you again when Ni'nat and I decide on a date to send the kids in for a visit."

* * *

When the communication ended, Max started to unlock his office door but he hesitated and looked back at Trudy. "Did we do the right thing, Trudy? Jake is our friend, but I don't know that we should get into the habit of making exceptions for him."

Trudy firmed her jaw. "Everybody involved in that illegal harvesting operation knew what would happen if somebody caught them in the act. They went into it fully intending to use aggressive actions to keep word from getting out. Maybe only one guy pulled the final trigger but the others stood by and watched him murder a kid."

"But he would have just been following orders to protect the group," excused Max uncertainly.

Trudy shook her head. "Maxi, being a soldier doesn't make it okay to give the finger to morals. If I never questioned my orders things could have turned out a lot different with Quaritch and the Omaticaya. Let me tell you something else, bud; if I ever gave the order to blow out som kid's brains and none of my people questioned it, I'd have to wonder about their fucking humanity."

Seeing the warning sparkle of unshed tears in her eyes, Max put an arm around her shoulders and drew her close. He wished he had never second-guessed the decision to stay more or less neutral, especially after listening to her perfectly reasonable words.

"I'm sorry, Trudy. I didn't mean to upset you more and you're right. Soldiers aren't mindless automations without thoughts or consciences of their own."

She sniffed and nodded. "Besides that, they weren't operating under official UNEC orders. They can't even use _that_ as an excuse. This was cold-blooded murder."

Max thought that some could argue what Jake and Neytiri did was also cold-blooded murder, but he reminded himself that they only deliberately killed the two men directly responsible for their son's death. It was a conundrum for him. He generally didn't approve of violence and he certainly didn't approve of killing, but there were always exceptions to the rules.

"Do we have the right to hamper justice, though?" He didn't mean to say it out loud, but poor Max was so emotionally confused and stressed, he couldn't think straight.

Trudy pulled away from him and stared at him with sincere dark eyes. "Would you turn me in if someone killed our boy and I went out and put them down for it?"

"Trudy, that isn't fair." Max could practically feel the color drain from his face at the mere thought of such a thing.

"Damn right, it isn't!" Her hands clenched into fists. "That boy's life was cut short because of someone else's greed. His parents did what felt right by them and nobody can say for sure they wouldn't have done the exact same thing in their place. If we'd gone after those murderers and they resisted arrest, we would have shot them too. How is it any different?"

"Because our people would have announced that they were under arrest and given them a chance to surrender to our authority," Max pointed out with a frown. "Jake and Neytiri obviously had only _one_ intention when they tracked the group down and arresting the guilty party wasn't it."

She heaved a shuddering sigh and laid her head on his shoulder. "All I know is I'd be a shitty friend if I turned them in now. We've got to at least be sure they'd get a fair trial. I couldn't live with myself if they got executed because of us, Max."

A chill swept through him and he hugged her closer. That had been one of his passing thoughts as well, when they were discussing the issue with West. His uncertainty faded and a grim frown twisted his lips. "You're right. We can't know we'd be doing the right thing by cooperating with UNEC authorities. I'd rather err on the side of caution than do what's socially 'right', at least until we have some evidence that our cooperation won't result in Jake and Neytiri's death."

Trudy nodded. "Glad you see it too, Maxi. Now we've just got to gear up to break the bad news to Dustin."

"He's a sensible young man," Max said hopefully. "This is going to upset him, but I don't think we need to worry about him going off on a tangent and doing something stupid."

* * *

The beaker crashed against the wall and broke into hundreds of glittering pieces. Max stared wide-eyed at his son and held his hands out in a pacifying gesture. Unfortunately, he was rendered speechless by the unexpected demonstration of rage from his normally level-headed son.

Trudy kept her wits better and she spoke to the teen in a stern tone. "Dusty, calm down. Breaking all of your lab equipment won't change anything."

He took a deep breath and glared. "Are they even punishing the people that were in that group?"

"They are under arrest until the investigation is finished," assured Max. "General West isn't going to allow a single member of that team leave the base and they'll go on trial eventually. Some of them aren't coherent enough yet to give a full account of what they saw and UNEC is going to find out how many outsiders are involved."

Dustin shut his eyes and took another steadying breath. "What do you mean, 'outsiders'?"

"He means people on Earth or in rotation," Trudy guessed. Max nodded in confirmation and she continued. "Somebody has to have offered a pretty penny for Pandora resources and they've got to face the music too. When UNEC finds out who this team was supplying, they'll have them arrested and put on trial too."

"You hope." Dustin spat the response almost accusingly.

"What do you want us to do, son?" Max spread his hands helplessly. "Tommy's parents have already executed two of the responsible people and now they're going to be fugitives, until we can think of a way to clear this up."

"You can _help_ them," Dustin insisted, wiping his eyes angrily. He sniffed and swallowed, visibly fighting tears. His voice steadily rose as he argued. "They're your friends. Send some teams out to make those people pay for what they did! They need to learn that they can't just take what they want and kill who they want!"

"Who are 'they', kid?" Trudy kept her voice admirably calm as she tried to force her son to think through his grief and anger.

"_Them_," sputtered Dustin, pointing wildly at the ceiling. "The people from Earth! They come here thinking they can do whatever they want, that the laws don't apply to them and the natives are just expendable animals!"

"_We're_ from Earth," Trudy reminded him, walking slowly toward him. "You might have been born here but you're still as human as any of those jackasses, Dusty. Think about what you're saying. You know a few bad apples don't spoil the bunch."

"But they have to pay," insisted Dustin almost petulantly. A tear escaped, followed by another.

Max approached the young man and put his hands on his shoulders, sighing with concern and sadness. Sometimes, it was so easy to forget that Dustin was only sixteen. He usually handled things with maturity beyond his years, but this time it just proved to be too much for him.

"Dustin," Max spoke very gently and held the young man's eyes, "we have to do this by the book and follow government laws. The criminals are in custody and they're going to answer for what they've done. Maybe their punishment won't be as severe as you or I think it should be, but they aren't going to get away with jeopardizing the treaty. Earth government stands to lose too much if negotiations become hostile."

"If we hunt them down and slaughter all of them, its just going to make things worse," Trudy added. "We can't start a war with UNEC over this. Tommy wouldn't have wanted that and I think when you've calmed down and started thinking more like yourself again, you'll see that too."

Dustin clenched his jaw and averted his gaze, trembling from the struggle of containing his emotions. Max pulled him close for a hug, patting his back soothingly. Trudy joined the embrace and encouraged the boy to let it out. Dustin shook his head after a while and pulled away.

"I can't," he said in a miserable, tight voice. "I...I need time."

"Why don't you go over to Andrew's house?" suggested Trudy. "Hang out with your friend and try to get your mind off things for a little while."

Dustin heaved a shaken sigh. "But I've got to tell Savanna."

Max and Trudy looked at one another, both of them thinking the same thing. Such young shoulders shouldn't have to carry a burden like this. "Leave it to us," Max insisted. "We'll contact Sebastian and Katherine and they'll break the news to Savanna. I'm sure they'll send her over to Joyce and Allen's house to be with you and Andrew."

"Right now your friends are going to do a world of good for all of you," Trudy predicted. "Go on, kiddo. You don't have to go back to classes again until you're ready."

"Now, hold on a minute," Max objected. Dustin and the others had already missed a lot of school because of the volcano incident. "We don't want to cripple his education."

Trudy glared at him. "Give the kid time to grieve. He's got the brainpower to make up for it when he's ready to go back, Max."

"Please, don't fight," Dustin interjected before Max could open his mouth for a counter-argument. He was already starting to sound a little more like himself again. "It's okay, Ma. I might want a couple of days off to cope with this, but I'm not going to want to stay out of classes for long. It'll give me a distraction so I don't have to think about all of this."

Max relaxed a little, relieved that his son was regaining his wits. "I think that's a fair compromise."

Trudy managed a limp smirk. "Yeah, but I think we're in agreement that you need to spend some time with your friends. Go on, Dusty. Get out of here and let us handle the rest."

* * *

Andrew wasn't expecting Dustin to show up out of the blue. He usually called before coming over or inviting him to his house. When the blond teen opened the front door and saw his friend, he was briefly stunned. Dustin's curly hair was free of the usual ponytail he wore it in and it tumbled around his face to the top of his shoulders in a black tangle. His eyes were red-rimmed and watery. He looked awful.

Having no idea what happened, Andrew blurted the first sentence that sprang to mind. "Dude, who died?"

He meant it sarcastically, of course. When Dustin's face screwed up and he started to cry, Andrew realized his mistake. He put an arm around his friend's shoulders and guided him through the door. He still didn't know what the problem was, but he knew it must be bad.

"Come on, Dusty. It's okay."

* * *

Savanna couldn't believe it when she heard the news. Like Dustin, she didn't think it was good enough and she shocked her parents by declaring that she hoped Tommy's killers suffered before they died.

"Savanna, becoming the very thing they hate won't help Corporal Sully or his mate," Sebastian reminded her gently. "And the fact that they only shot to wound the rest of the crew makes me believe they knew that."

"So people that murder innocents should just get away with it?" Savanna demanded. "Papa, I've put up with being bullied all my life because I'm different. You're always telling me to persevere and feel sorry for the people that pick on me because they're only suffering low self esteem, but it doesn't stop them from bullying! How far are we supposed to let people go before we say: 'enough is enough'?"

Katherine nodded slowly. "You aren't wrong, Sweetheart. Eventually, someone has to draw the line but there are rules to follow. Otherwise we would have a lawless society and people could just kill anyone that looks at them cross-eyed."

Savanna covered her mouth on a sob and took a moment to regain some control. "I want to see my friends," she said when she could speak again.

"Of course," Sebastian agreed. "Dustin is already over at Andrew's house. Go and spend some time with your friends, dear."

"I will, but they aren't the friends I'm talking about," Savanna corrected between sniffles. "I'm talking about Kato and Karyu."

"Oh." Sebastian cast an uncomfortable look at his wife, who was equally doubtful. "Savanna, I don't know if right now is a good time for you to visit the Ikran village. Tommy was a blood relative to their leader's mate and their future leader. The Omaticaya are their allies as well, so I'm sure they'll be honoring his memory."

"It's already been over a week," Savanna reminded, "Most of the honor songs have already been sung by now. Mother, you _promised_ I could go and stay with the Ikran clan for a while and I need to do that now more than ever! My friends lost their cousin! Let me go and be with them."

Katherine would have liked to remind the young woman that Tsu'tey and Sylwanin lost their older brother, but Savanna had always been closer to the twins and to be fair, they didn't have the support base that the Omaticaya kids did. Between their eccentricity and lack of social skills, Karyu and Kato only had a small number of people they could call true friends and Savanna was at the top of that list.

"Sebastian, let's give her a moment and talk in the other room," suggested Katherine tactfully.

Knowing that they were going to discuss what to do about her request, Savanna gave them both a demanding look as they walked out of her bedroom. Her hazel eyes said that she would never forgive them if they didn't let her be with the twins at a time like this.

* * *

"I think we should let her go."

Katherine looked at her husband searchingly, having her doubts that he was sincere about the proposal. Sebastian always tried to be a good sport about it but she could tell he wasn't as comfortable with their daughter's relationship with Kato as he let on. "Are you sure?"

He groaned softly and lowered his gaze. "As with all things related to parenting, no I'm not. Still, the twins have always been protective of our Savanna, even if they put questionable ideas into her head. This tragedy is hitting them all hard and I don't want to be the villain that gets in the way of them seeking comfort from each other."

"I feel the same," Katherine admitted softly, her eyes going to the shut door of Savanna's bedroom. "At least Dr. Sully can be counted on to take good care of her if she gets injured or—"

Sebastian paled. "Please, don't even mention the possibility of her getting hurt."

Katherine smiled up at him and combed her fingers through his hair. "She's going to get hurt in life. That's unavoidable. I'm only suggesting that at least she'll be in good hands if she happens to get hurt while she's visiting the Ikran village."

He sighed and nodded. "Right. I suppose we're better off sending her there for now anyway, with what's happening."

Katherine frowned. "What do you mean?"

Sebastian glanced absently out the living room window. "If UNEC comes here to collaborate with our people, we don't want Savanna moving around in plain sight. Since Corporal Sully has such strong ties with the people here at Hell's Gate, there's bound to be some investigations and interviews conducted here. Savanna may be better off in a remote location like the Ikran village for now, until the activity dies down. I trust them more than I once did, but I'm still not willing to advertise our daughter's existence to UNEC."

Katherine clasped her hands before her hips. She and Sebastian had done what they could to keep the rumors about their daughter to a minimum. There was no help for it though—chances were, people at UNEC had already heard tales of the natural hybrid girl at Hell's Gate. They probably thought it was just a silly rumor but one good look at Savanna would change that quickly. "I agree that she's better off there for a while, now that you mention it. Let's start making arrangements."

* * *

When Savanna arrived at Andrew's house, Joyce answered the door, took one look at her and gave her a hug. She directed her to Andrew's room and left the kids alone to hug it out and talk about what had happened.

"I just don't understand why nobody tried to contact us," sighed Savanna after blowing her nose and wiping her eyes for the fifth time. "The twins at least should have found some way to sneak a call in."

"They've probably been too devastated to take the time to do it," Dustin hypothesized. "As bad as this shocked us, imagine what Tommy's family must be going through. Poor Tsu'tey and Sylwanin. When Mom and Dad first told me, all I could think about was how much those people deserved to be hunted down for what they did to Tommy. Now I just feel bad for the whole family."

"And Grace," sighed Savanna. "She was just starting to blossom. Tommy would have been her mate, I'm sure of it."

Andrew grumbled under his breath and stood up, tugging the blinds open to look out his bedroom window. The sky over the dome was partly cloudy and the wind outside the protective barrier was gusty. "This is so fucking depressing."

Savanna looked up from her cross-legged seat on the floor, offended. "Sorry to bum you out. The next time one of our friends dies I'll be sure not to talk about it in front of you."

"I didn't mean it like that," Andrew hastily amended, looking down at her with apologetic gray eyes.

Savanna immediately felt bad and she lowered her eyes and sniffed. "Sorry. I shouldn't have taken it out on you like that. It _is_ depressing, even for people that didn't know Tommy that well. It could happen to any of us. Age doesn't matter."

Andrew grimaced and looked at Dustin, who sat quietly on the edge of the bed. "Makes you want to make the most of life, doesn't it? Dusty? You with us?"

"Yes," he answered, almost mechanically. He looked up at the taller boy and sighed. "I promise I'll make the most of life, as soon as I can stop thinking of how terrible this is. It's a little hard to be thankful, right now."

Savanna got off the floor and sat next to him on the bed. She hugged him and sighed. Andrew watched them both with awkward sympathy, afraid to say more and jam his foot further into his mouth.

"I'm going to stay at the Ikran village for a while," Savanna announced softly after a few moments.

Dustin nodded. "I think that would be good for you. The twins, too."

She gave him an uncertain look and combed her bangs away from her forehead with her fingers. "Maybe I should wait. I don't want you to feel like I'm taking off and leaving you to deal with all of this on your own, Dusty."

He managed a little smile and he shook his head, taking one of her hands and squeezing it. "Don't feel that way, Sav. I've got Andrew to keep me company and I've got other friends, too."

"That's right," agreed Andrew. "Not that I'm much help, since I keep saying the wrong things."

* * *

_Three nights later:_

Evening fell in the Ikran village and the twins waited in their parents' lodge for the _Olo'eyktan_ to come in with the elders' verdict on what to do about their hunter trials. Just before supper, Tanhi ducked into the lodge entrance and stood before her family with an unreadable expression. Her face was painted in her customary ceremonial colors and her pride and dignity made her appear taller and larger than she actually was.

"The council has decided."

Karyu and Kato looked at one another with anticipation before looking back at their mother. Tanhi gazed steadily at the two of them, holding their eyes solemnly. "You will undergo _Uniltaron_. When you complete that and succeed as sky hunters, you will be initiated as adults."

Tom's eyes widened and he impulsively stepped between the twins and their mother. "Tanhi, they aren't even eighteen yet! It's too soon and they just lost their cousin!"

She didn't waver. "They will be given time to prepare and grieve for their cousin. The council has agreed to wait until their eighteenth birthday. Their choices have shaped their paths, my Tom. Early adulthood is the consequence of their actions."

Tom's tension faded only slightly at the news that the kids would have time to prepare. "What if they still aren't ready when it's time?" He looked from Kato to Karyu, who both had faintly bewildered expressions on their faces.

Tanhi studied her children and her expression remained immobile. "They must be ready. They chose this. I can do nothing more, save help them prepare." Her golden eyes settled on Tom and her stoicism cracked the slightest bit, revealing the anxiety in her gaze that she was trying to hide. "If you wish for them to succeed, you must help them as well."

Tom parted his lips and tilted his head to one side, trying to think up some kind of argument that would save his kids from having to endure such a trial prematurely. He could see by the warning in Tanhi's eyes that there simply was no argument good enough. The twins broke the rules and the council debated the matter carefully before arriving at the decision. This way, tradition was still more or less being followed—except not precisely in order and two years earlier than normal. It occurred to Tom that the Ikran clan had bent tradition a lot since he got involved with them and he sighed.

"This is how it must be," Tanhi said softly, looking at each of them in turn. "I will go and bathe the paint from my body now. I will join you around the fire pit afterwards." With that said, she left the lodge.

It was only because they knew her so well that her family was able to detect the masked tension in her stride as she left. The twins and Tom looked at one another wordlessly for a few seconds once they were alone again. The microbiologist heaved a sigh and stuck his hands into the pockets of his pants.

"Well, you kids really did it this time. I'm going to have a heart attack before long, at this rate."

"Sorry, Dad." Kato looked somewhat contrite.

Karyu only shrugged. "The rest is easy, compared to _iknimaya._ Don't look so worried, _Sempul_."

Tom grunted. He honestly hoped that some day, his kids would have kids of their own so that they could finally understand what it was like to feel a parent's anxiety. The death of his nephew was a painful reminder that it could happen to anyone, anytime—including his kids. Looking at the teenagers, his heart softened again. They had put one arm around each other and the sorrow was lurking quietly in the background of their gazes. He could at least offer something that might cheer them up.

"I was going to wait to tell you about this, but since your mother dropped that bomb on us I may as well tell you now. Savanna is coming to stay with us. She should be here by the weekend."

The twins visibly brightened and Tom felt a rush of affection for them as they smiled at one another. "How long can she stay?" Karyu inquired.

Tom hesitated, frowning as the reality of the reason behind the girl's visit intruded on the joy of the news. "For a while. Because of what's happened, there's a good possibility that people are going to be coming and going from UNEC. They're investigating the incident and bringing up charges against the personnel that participated in the illegal mining and the attack against Tommy. Savanna's parents don't want to risk someone seeing her and raising too many questions about her heritage."

"What about Uncle Jake and Aunt Neytiri?" Karyu asked. "Are they going back to Hometree, now that they've finished off Tommy's killers?"

Tom couldn't help but wince. He hadn't really wanted to tell the twins the details he got concerning Neytiri and Jake's most recent activities but he knew they would find out eventually. "They took vigilante action. UN authorities won't be able to ignore that, no matter how justified it was. They are obligated to try and bring them in to face charges."

"Charges for _what_?" Kato demanded. "Those people started it when they killed Tommy!"

"It doesn't matter," Tom tried to explain, shaking his head. "Neytiri and Jake didn't kill them in self-defense or the defense of another. It was pre-meditated and by Earth law, that makes it murder."

"We aren't on Earth," reminded Karyu coldly.

"No, but we _are_ under an agreement with them," Tom corrected. "I know it's hard to understand but there are certain rules we have to go by when dealing with humans and one of them is to avoid killing their people unless its necessary. Those men struck first but that won't get Jake and Neytiri off the hook for what they did."

"So you're on UNEC's side?" Kato scowled at him accusingly.

"Don't be ridiculous," Tom sighed. "I don't want Jake or Neytiri to get captured and arrested, okay? I just want you both to understand why UNEC can't let this go. Sometimes part of being an adult and a leader is doing things you don't want to do, for the greater good. Look to your _Sa'nok_ for an example. She made her mark on that peace treaty because she knew it was for the best—not because she wanted to. She would have sooner skewered the UN people and called it a day, if she weren't thinking of the well-fare of the Na'vi clans."

Karyu lowered her gaze thoughtfully. "Do you think they'll catch them?"

Tom forced a little smile. "I think they'll have a very hard time doing that, considering who they're trying to catch. We have to be optimistic, kids. It's possible that the investigation could lead to a pardon for Jake and Neytiri. I just hope they lay low and keep safe, in the mean time."

Karyu tapped the glow bladder lantern, awakening the insects inside to produce a warm glow in the lodge. She approached her father and stood on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on his cheek. "You should go and speak with _Sa'nok_. You can comfort each other."

Tom might have chuckled under less stressful circumstances. For someone that still insisted romance was dumb, Karyu seemed to like pushing people together—even if she complained when they showed affection in front of her. He smiled at her, sighed and patted her cheek in a gentle paternal gesture.

"Go and get something to eat. I'll see to your mother."

Karyu nodded and walked out. Kato started to follow but he peered at Tom with interest as he passed. He cocked his head to one side and reached up to tug at a strand of hair hanging down from his father's temple.

Tom's eyebrows went up. "Is something the matter?"

Kato frowned and then shrugged. "You've got a streak of gray hair coming in. I didn't think Na'vi went gray."

Tom self-consciously pressed his fingers over his temple where the young man had plucked at the suspect hairs. "Are you sure it isn't the light?"

Kato shook his head. "It's not the light. The whole strand is full of gray hairs, Dad."

Tom sighed. "Hmph...I wonder where _those_ came from."

Kato smiled weakly. "Must be the human DNA."

"I was thinking more along the lines of my brother and kids driving me insane with worry," Tom answered dryly, "but you aren't wrong. Without the human DNA the stress wouldn't be doing this to me."

Kato patted him on the back. "Sorry, _Sempul_. We'll try to go easier on you."

* * *

Tanhi stood still in the middle of the small river, absently watching eddies and currents of the water. She had washed the paint from her face and arms but now she stood half-stupefied, swaying a little as the gentle flow of the water caressed her. Chill bumps sprang up on her skin and she hugged herself with her arms, listening to the sounds of nocturnal life all around her. She could have chosen one of the mineral water pools inside the caves dotting the cliff side, but she wanted to bathe under the starlight and hear the sounds of the forest.

She sensed someone approaching and she immediately started to reach up overhead, where she had hung her bow and arrows on a low-hanging branch arching over the water. When she heard her mate's voice, she relaxed.

"Mind if I join you?"

Tanhi looked over her shoulder at Tom, scanning him up and down. "Peel your layers off and come."

He gave her a brief flash of a smile and began to undress. Tanhi absently resumed scrubbing her skin with the sea sponge she had brought and she listened to the faint rustle of sound as Tom undressed. After a few minutes, she heard the slosh of water behind her as he waded into the river and she looked up at one of the smaller moons when she felt his warmth against her back. His arms came around her from behind and his lips nuzzled the side of her neck, prompting her to tilt her head.

"I thought you would be angry with me," Tanhi admitted softly.

"Why? For doing your duty as _Olo'eyktan_? You should know better, by now."

"But the way you reacted when I told you spoke differently," she insisted, shutting her eyes with pleasure as his mouth brushed against her ear.

"It was a knee-jerk reaction," he explained in a murmur. "After everything that's happened, my protective instincts get the best of me sometimes. After you explained that the council is willing to at least wait until the twins' eighteenth birthday, I felt better about it."

She pressed backwards against him, comforted by his strength and warmth. "It worries me too. They will be the youngest in the clan's history to finish the trials. The council believes that if they are mature enough to tame ikrans, they must be mature enough to pass into adulthood. To choose otherwise would have set a bad example and given the impression of favoritism."

Tom nodded. "I know. Karyu made me feel a little better about it after you left, believe it or not. She said they've already completed the hardest, most dangerous part and she's right. At least if something goes wrong during the Dream Hunt, there will be someone on hand to take care of them."

"This is true," agreed Tanhi. She drew a deep, heavy breath as Tom connected his queue to hers without warning and the next sound that came from her parted lips was a low moan of ecstasy. She leaned backwards against him and he supported her, sighing with pleasure himself as the neural contact drew them into the bond. "You gave no warning," Tanhi accused, though she smiled helplessly in bliss.

"You aren't easy to take by surprise," Tom answered in satisfaction. He spread his fingers and spanned her waist with his hands, sliding them sensually up her ribcage. His mouth pressed delicate, teasing kisses along her shoulders and neck as he caressed her body and pressed firmly against her. "I want both of us to forget about all of these sorrows for a little while, tonight. Let's celebrate each other, Tanhi."

"Yes," she agreed softly.

She purred with delight as his hands cupped her small, firm breasts and her tail wound around his right thigh. Tom took his time fondling and caressing her with his hands, fingertips, tail and mouth. The days of hot-blooded, urgent couplings were all but gone for them. Now their intimate moments were unhurried and leisurely, sometimes lacking the actual act of mating altogether. _Tsahaylu _provided an exchange of pleasure in addition to foreplay that often satisfied them both enough.

Tonight, Tanhi could sense that the bond wouldn't be enough on its own for either of them. Tom was hard against her backside and each tingling caress of his fingertips made her throb inside with need. She enjoyed the feel of his hands on her body for a while and she returned his caresses, deftly fondling his most sensitive parts until he was panting softly against her ear. She turned around in his arms and looked up at him, admiring his features and the glowing pattern of spots on his face and throat.

"I need more of you," Tanhi insisted in a whisper.

She conveyed that need through the link and he lifted her against him immediately, understanding and evidently agreeing. She clung to him and kissed him sensually as he carried her out of the water and onto the mossy ground. She could hear the sound of the waves in the near distance, mingling with the closer sounds of the forest. It was oddly harmonic and she sighed, relaxing as her mate's wet, hard body covered hers. She embraced him and she moaned his name thankfully when he gently eased into her.

His eyes gazed into hers while he made love to her and Tanhi let him set the pace, enjoying every moment of it. As usual, he was a thoughtful lover and he used his hands and mouth in addition to his thrusts to bring her the most pleasure. He paused at one stage and grimaced in concentration, sucking in sharp breaths. Tanhi felt his rising surge of pleasure and it blended in with hers to bring her to climax. Her mate held back with effort, grunting her name through his teeth while she clenched around his stiffened flesh. When Tanhi was sated and trembling beneath him, he smiled and kissed her, resuming his pumps.

Tanhi smiled against his lips before she could stop herself. This was her reward for letting him remain on top. He always lasted longer when he set the pace, with or without tail stimulation. His tongue lanced into her mouth insistently as he rocked harder on top of her. She pressed her heels against his lower back and licked droplets of water from his chest and throat, enticing and teasing him. His rhythm changed to shallow, quick thrusts and he propped himself up on his hands, arching his back as he began to peak. She traced his spine with her fingertips and purred his name as his body went taut and he came inside of her.

Tom shut his eyes and groaned, holding steady until he was spent. Gasping for breath, he looked down at her again and lowered his head for another kiss. She reciprocated and after a while, he eased off of her and lay beside her. Their queue's disconnected but they remained comfortably stretched out on the ground, caressing with eyes and hands under the starlight. Polyphemus rose higher in the night sky and by its light, Tanhi noticed something for the first time. She brushed her fingertips along the hair at Tom's temple, staring in wonder.

"Some of your hair has gone white!"

Tom heaved a sigh and nodded. "That's typical of humans when they age. Haven't you noticed any of the gray-haired men and women at Hell's Gate?"

"Yes, but you are not human."

He smirked. "Part of me is. Remember, this body is both Na'vi and human."

She had honestly forgotten. Her eyes went to his five-fingered hand, resting intimately on her hip. The pigment of his skin was a little faded like hers, but it wasn't aging the way human skin did. In his old body, Tom probably would have had more aging lines than he did now. "Will all of your hair go white?"

He managed a soft, dry laugh. "Like I told Kato when he noticed; it probably depends on how stressed I get. I'm pretty sure these gray hairs are as much from anxiety as age."

A horrible thought occurred to Tanhi and she frowned, thinking of how often she saw middle-aged male humans with thinning hair or none at all. It wasn't the same as deliberately shaving it for a mohawk or similar hairstyle, either. It seemed to occur naturally for these men as they aged and it wasn't a flattering look at all on some of them. "Will it fall out?"

Tom looked a little worried for a moment but upon reflection, he shook his head. "I don't think so. Not naturally, anyhow. Male pattern baldness doesn't run in our family, thank Eywa."

"What is that?"

"It's what makes human men lose their hair as they age," he explained. "It's usually passed down from the parents. Besides, I don't think the Na'vi DNA would allow baldness even if it were in the human genetics. Hair is essential for protecting the queue."

She relaxed, understanding enough of his explanation to be satisfied. She stroked the pale strands of hair again in awe. They weren't the dull grey color she saw so often on older humans. They were more of a silvery-white pigment, like moonlight reflecting on the water. She actually didn't mind the thought of having a mate with a full head of silver hair.

"What?" Tom was watching her with curious interest, while tracing the striped patterns on her skin with his fingertips.

Tanhi shrugged and gave him a subtle, coy smile. "I like it."

"Baldness?" Tom's eyebrows furrowed.

She rolled her eyes. "Do not be stupid. I like the silver in your hair."

He grinned a little bashfully and she was reminded of the young, modest doctor he had been when she first began to fall for him. Now he was more confident, wiser and better humored than he had been in those days, but that smile hadn't changed and it drew her to him effortlessly. She stroked his chest with her fingertips and scooted closer to him, helpless to resist the urge to cuddle.

"You like the gray? Really?" Despite his faintly shy inquiry, his eyes remained searching on her. "Because if I'm anything like my father, I'm probably going to get 'wings'."

She blinked, distracted from her renewed explorations of his body. "Now you expect me to believe you can grow wings?"

"I didn't mean it literally," he amended. "I meant I'll probably get streaks of gray growing out from my temples, the way my father did. If my family keeps making me worry so much it could spread further."

"Oh." She shrugged and traced his features with her fingertips, again admiring his looks. "Whether your hair is black or silver, you are a fine looking male. I think the silver will only make you more exotic to our people."

"As if I don't draw enough attention to myself," he sighed, but his spots brightened and his skin pigment darkened with a flush of pleasure.

Tanhi kissed him and reached for his queue, wanting the intimacy of the bond back. He allowed it and he held her close and shuddered as they connected again. They forgot about supper and lay there quietly by the water, taking simple pleasure in kissing and holding one another. Eventually, Tom began to drift off to sleep and Tanhi almost followed suit until he murmured drowsily and roused her from her doze.

"I wonder if Jake's got any grey hairs yet."

Tanhi patted his cheek gently and sat up, urging him to get up with her. "Come, Tom. It is not wise to fall asleep here."

He took a deep breath and arose to a sitting position, blinking with disorientation. "I didn't mean to nod off." He looked up at her as she disconnected the queues and stood up. "You see? That's how comfortable and safe I feel around you now."

Tanhi smiled down at him, feeling warmth spread over her as his admiring gaze caressed her naked body. "Come. We should return to the village and eat. We have busy days ahead of us."

* * *

When Savanna arrived at the village that weekend, Tanhi noticed how fixated her son was on watching the aircraft land. She frowned, considering the detrimental effect his girlfriend's presence might have on his training.

"Do not get distracted from your training just because your intended mate is here," Tanhi warned the twins when Savanna's flight landed outside the village.

She shaded her eyes from the sunlight with her hand and watched the hybrid girl exit the craft with her parents, Dustin, Trudy and a young male avatar that Tanhi wasn't familiar with. Sebastian and the younger avatar helped Savanna carry her bags onto the pathway leading down to the beachside village. Tanhi glanced at her offspring and she frowned to see that Kato's eyes were glued on Savanna as if he hadn't heard a word she said.

"Son, did you hear what I just told you?"

Kato glanced at Tanhi sidelong and nodded. "Sure, _Sa'nok_. Don't get distracted. I know." He took off after that, jogging up the rocky path to meet up with the mixed group.

Tanhi sighed and turned to her daughter. "You will help your brother stay focused, Karyu?"

The young woman snorted. "Mother, he's a teenaged _boy_ and his mating interest is staying with him for an undetermined amount of time. I can make no promises."

Tanhi barely concealed a wince. Sometimes she wished her daughter didn't take after her quite so strongly. Karyu wasn't afraid to tell it exactly as it was, no matter how unpleasant or awkward the truth might be. While Tanhi had come to accept her son's courtship with Savanna and had even grown fond of the hybrid girl, she was aware of the human blood in both their veins and the differences that could make in their needs and behavior.

"Just do what you can, until he is a man."

Karyu looked at her and tilted her head thoughtfully. She nodded, understanding the chieftess' meaning. "I'll be sure and remind them both that he has certain expectations to live up to before they can 'go for it', _Sa'nok_. Short of threatening to beat them both up if they don't behave, that's the most I can do."

Tanhi nodded, her eyes on her son as he finished closing the distance between himself and Savanna and took her into his arms for a hug. "It is all I ask. You are coping well, daughter."

She reached out and squeezed the younger woman's shoulder, offering a moment of support. She knew it couldn't be easy for either of the twins to have all of this responsibility heaped on them in the midst of their grieving, but Karyu had a connection to her brother that would prove useful in keeping him from crossing a line.

* * *

Karyu greeted Savanna warmly and promised to help her style her hair into a tribal fashion later on. She exchanged greetings with the hybrid girl's parents next and then exchanged a careful hug with Dustin and his mother. She frowned at the avatar carrying one of Savanna's duffle bags and she asked him point-blank who he was.

"Don't you recognize him?" Dustin asked as the avatar stammered a bit. "It's Andrew. This is his avatar body. You've met him before, Karyu. You were fighting with him over the movie projector, the last time we were all together watching films at Hell's Gate."

The reminder sobered everyone. That was the last time Tommy was with all of them alive. Kato looked away hastily, finding a sudden interest in an insect hovering nearby. Savanna chewed her bottom lip and blinked. Dustin bowed his head solemnly and Andrew looked acutely uncomfortable. The adults looked at the kids with expressions of sympathy and helpless frustration. Karyu lapsed into silence and tried to think of what to say to salvage the situation.

Unlike her chieftess mother, Karyu vented her rage and grief when she heard the news. She was like Tanhi in many ways, but when it came to expressing her feelings, her methods were different. She beat up training dummies, rode a safe distance away from the village to scream aloud, swam until she nearly drowned of exhaustion and wept in the privacy of a small cave. It had worried Kato and Tom but she felt much better for it all. Since her friends seemed so reluctant to mention Tommy or memories that included him, she could only assume they hadn't cut loose since hearing the news.

"Just because he's gone doesn't mean he should be forgotten," Karyu said, straightening her shoulders defiantly as she looked from one young face to the next. "If anything, we ought to talk more about Tommy and some of the things we all did with him. We _want_ to remember him, right?"

Trudy gave a thumbs-up. "Amen, kid. I'm surprised someone besides me said it first."

Karyu saw the warning moisture in her brother's eyes and she sighed. "I'm just sick of people putting their heads in the sand and trying to pretend it didn't happen or pretend Tommy never existed. It's stupid and arrogant and pointless. Tommy deserves to be remembered—especially by his friends and family."

The teens looked at each other with slightly guilty expressions and Kato wiped his eyes. "You're right, sis. Even if he weren't my blood, I'd think someone like Tommy deserves to be remembered. He was someone to look up to and admire. I always felt a little envious of him, because he got along with most people so easily and he had a sense of honor that just came naturally to him. Most people have to work at that."

Savanna nodded. "He was a great guy. A lot of people our age admired him—even the humans."

"He was one of a kind," Dustin agreed softly, swallowing. "He always put other people before himself."

Though he'd only gotten to know Tommy briefly before his untimely demise, Andrew had a positive comment about him as well. "He had a great sense of humor. The guy was easy to hang out with and talk to."

Tanhi gave the other adults a meaningful look and jerked her chin at the path, hinting that they should leave the kids to talk and get their feelings out in the open. Max and Trudy understood the silent request and they walked away with Tanhi, giving the kids some time alone. They saw Tom's trailer off the path as they neared the entrance to the village and Max asked if he was inside, surprised that his colleague hadn't come out to greet them when they arrived.

"Yes, he is doing his science," Tanhi confirmed with a sigh and a glance at the trailer. "He spends most of his time in there, now. He says it distracts him, so I don't complain."

Max had a sympathetic expression on his beige features. "I can relate."

Trudy gave Max a wry look. "Just like a sciencoid. Don't let him drown himself in the lab too much, Tanhi. You may have to drag him out of there from time to time for some fresh air and remind him he's got a mate and kids to distract him, too."

Tanhi graced the human woman with a bare hint of a smile. "You know him well." There was no jealousy in her tone. Those days were long gone and if anything, she and Trudy shared a sort of alliance against their brainy mates and swapped advice on how to deal with them from time to time. "Tom does his part, when he is not doing science. He has been helping our children with their training. It does leave little time for his attentions to include me, though."

"Hmph." Trudy didn't look impressed. She marched over to the big trailer and tromped up the steps to knock on the door. "Open up, Tomcat. You can at least poke your head out and say hi to us while we're here!"

Footsteps could be heard within the dwelling and a moment later, the door unlocked and opened. Tom stood at the threshold, blinking down at Trudy. A pair of magnifying goggles rested on his forehead, making him look like some kind of Na'vi engineer. The hair at his right temple was streaked with silver. He glanced at his watch. "Oh, is that the time? I thought I had another hour or so before you arrived."

Trudy backed up as Tom stepped out of the trailer. "So you got carried away with the research. Doesn't surprise me."

He gave her a tired little smile and bent over for a brief hug, before offering his hand to Max, then to Katherine and Sebastian. "How have you all been?"

Max shook the offered hand in his smaller one and he sighed, looking off in the direction where he and Trudy had left their son with the other teens. "I wish I could say differently, but we've seen better days."

"That's an understatement," Trudy grumbled. "I thought we were going to have to ground the boy to keep him from rushing off and doing something stupid. He came to his senses after a day of coping with the news, though."

Tom grimaced. "I think we can all relate to the thirst for vengeance. This blow has to be especially hard on the kids—particularly my nephew and niece at Hometree."

"Tom, perhaps when our twins have been reborn, we should go and stay with the Omaticaya for a while," suggested Tanhi. She looked at Katherine and Sebastian. "We would bring Savanna with us, if she is still a guest by then. This might comfort you, to have her closer to home."

Katherine smiled at the slender chieftess, failing to hide her relief at the suggestion. "I would like that, _Olo'eyktan_. It's always hard to be away from our daughter, though we're aware she could leave Hell's Gate permanently, some day."

"Call me by my name," insisted the ikran leader with proud elegance. "Tanhi. One day, you and I may be family."

Sebastian made a Na'vi gesture of respect and looked up at Tanhi with quiet admiration. He had seen her in action and to think of someone as fierce and proud being related to him in any way was a bit of a thrill. "You don't mind the courtship between our daughter and your son?"

Tanhi cast a sidelong look at her mate and smirked. "I had my doubts, in the beginning. Someone taught me that there is more to people than the outer shell. Your daughter is kind, brave and devoted to those she loves. A mother could not ask for more as a mate for her son."

Sebastian flushed in pleasure and cleared his throat. "I'm sure Savanna would be honored to know you think of her that way. There _is_ one thing, though. You realize that it's quite possible my daughter can't provide children to Kato?"

"Sebastian," Katherine warned in a heartsick tone.

He took her hand in his and rubbed it. "This is a reality we all need to face, love. Look at how much trouble you and I had conceiving Savanna. She may be more compatible with Kato than you and I were with each other but we all need to accept the fact that we may never get grandchildren from them."

Katherine lowered her eyes and Tanhi exchanged a thoughtful look with Tom. "Eywa will provide," said the chieftess with stoic certainty. "Some Na'vi never have children. If they are meant to give the clan offspring, it will happen."

Katherine looked up at her, relief bleeding into her features. "I'm glad you feel that way, Tanhi."

"Come," offered Tanhi with a gesture. "I will show you around the village, so you may see where your daughter will be sleeping and eating while she is here. Is Savanna a good swimmer?"

"I...well, she does like to take a dip in the swimming pool in the rec building now and then," Sebastian answered uncertainly, "but I daresay still waters aren't the same as a choppy sea."

Tanhi nodded. "I will be sure Savanna only swims when the sea is calm, and someone will be with her always."

"Thank you, Tanhi."

Trudy ushered Max to go with them as they started down the path. "I've got a little something to say to Tomcat here," she informed him. "I'll join up with you in a few."

Max looked up at Tom through his exopack mask and there was a faintly apologetic expression on his face. "I have a feeling you're about to be lectured. Good luck, Dr. Sully."

* * *

Tom frowned after the others as they left and then he looked down at Trudy and leaned against the wall of his trailer. He crossed his arms over his chest and raised his eyebrows. "Is something the matter?"

"I'll get right to the point," she offered. "You need to pay more attention to Tanhi, bud."

He cocked his head to the side in that inquisitive way he shared with his twin. "Oh? How do you know how much attention I'm paying to her?"

She shrugged. "She mentioned something in passing when we came to your trailer. It caught my interest. It's not what she said but the way she said it. Tanhi's not the kind of chick that puts off a defeated vibe easily, you know?"

Tom frowned. "Is it really that bad? I haven't noticed."

"That's because you've put all your focus into research and getting your kids ready for their last trials, man. I'm a little surprised she hasn't said something to you about it, but I think Tanhi's kind of overwhelmed right now and she doesn't know how to ask for more attention. She's never been an open book."

Tom winced. He thought of their lovemaking that night and he realized he'd hardly touched her since then. "I guess I _have_ been neglecting her. After the night the council made its decision regarding the kids' _iknimaya_, I've just been so absorbed in trying not to have a breakdown I just assumed Tanhi could handle herself."

Trudy's dark eyes went to the new streak of silver in his hair. "Yeah, I can see your nerves are shot. Listen, Tom; you've got a lot on your plate and Tommy was your nephew, but I think you're underestimating how Tanhi felt about that kid. I think she loved him more than she lets on and she's had to make a hard choice about her kids that's going to put them in danger. You're not the only one that has it bad right now. Even us tough-as-nails broads need a strong shoulder to cry on, sometimes."

Tom lowered his gaze and smiled softly. In that way, Trudy and Tanhi were very similar. He supposed he was just naturally drawn to tough, complicated women. He always had to coax Tanhi to cry, even when she was at the breaking point. It was usually only with his gentle encouragement that she let it all out.

"Damn...I really haven't considered her feelings much," he admitted, ashamed. He thought he was protecting her but now he saw he was only making it worse.

"That isn't like you," Trudy observed shrewdly, narrowing her eyes. "What's up, Tom?"

He looked at her uncomfortably. "Why does something have to be 'up'? Maybe I'm just distracted."

"Because the last time you were outright inconsiderate to a girl was when Tanhi and I were driving you mental. Since I can't think of a reason she'd be doing that now, something else has to be driving you."

Tom sighed. Trudy still "saw him" a little too well, at times. "All right, sometimes I do consciously avoid my mate. Sometimes I get these ugly, twisted feelings inside and Tanhi will feel them through the link if they come when we're bonded. I don't want to expose her to that."

Trudy looked at him with sympathy and she reached up as far as she could to pat him on the arm. "Listen to you. 'Ugly, twisted feelings'. Look at who you're worried about sharing them with, Tomcat. I'm sure Tanhi is a woman who can appreciate and understand anger and revenge. That's what it's all about, isn't it?"

He shut his eyes and nodded, shrugging.

"I'm betting she's got some of those feelings too," Trudy assured him. "You didn't mate with her because she's some fragile little china doll you've got to protect. I think she can take it, man."

Tom swallowed and he opened his eyes to regard Trudy. He squatted down so that he could look at her face to face. "Would I be wrong in assuming Max is pulling away from you too?"

It was her turn to shrug. "Why else do you think it was so easy for me to empathize with your woman? I might not be able to talk sense into my guy but maybe I can talk sense into hers."

Tom smiled at her; the first genuine smile he'd managed since the tragic news of Tommy's death. "You looked out for me, so I can look out for you." He leaned forward and down to kiss the crown of her head before standing back up. "I'll have a word or three with Max before you leave. Maybe I can talk some sense into him, the way you just did for me."

Trudy grinned and bumped her fist against his. She thought nothing of his platonic little kiss, taking it as a simple gesture of friendly affection. "Thanks, bud. I was hoping you'd return the favor. I don't know why it's always so much easier to fix other people's issues, but it is."

* * *

Tom kept his word after the adults toured the village and started back to the Samson to return to Hell's Gate. When he had the opportunity, he leaned over and spoke to Max in a low voice.

"We both need to be less neglectful of our women."

Max looked up at his friend as Tom straightened up again and he stopped in his tracks, allowing the others to walk on ahead of them. "Pardon?"

Tom gave his mate an encouraging smile and a nod when she paused to see what the matter was. Tanhi kept moving with the others, leaving him to have a private word with the smaller scientist.

"We've both only been thinking about and coping with our own feelings," explained Tom. "Trudy's lecture gave me something to think about. I thought I was protecting Tanhi by keeping my feelings away from her and evidently, you've been doing the same thing to Trudy. It seems us men don't always know what's best for the women in our lives, Max. They'd rather share our misery than leave us wallowing alone in it, understand?"

Max opened his mouth, appearing as if he wanted to argue. He shut it again and sighed, running his fingers through his gray-streaked curls. "I concur. What's worse is I _knew_ I was avoiding her, but I still kept doing it. I guess I thought she could use some time to herself too."

Tom nodded and patted his shoulder. "I know. Ordinarily I wouldn't say anything, but since Trudy gave me an earful, I figured she was saying everything to me that she wanted to say to you. I hope I haven't overstepped myself."

"Not at all," Max assured somewhat bashfully. "It's actually refreshing to have a friend that can speak frankly to me on matters like this. I forget sometimes that some people see more than my lab coat when they look at me, Tom."

"Our work does tend to monopolize a lot of our social time," agreed Tom, "But you should know that the friends you _do_ have are loyal to you. I hope you know you can always count on me, Max."

Max smiled at him and nodded. "Likewise. Thank you for taking the time to remind me I have a girlfriend, so that I don't end up losing her." He looked a bit uncomfortable suddenly and he looked around. "Can I show you something, Tom? I haven't shared it with anyone else yet."

Tom was intrigued and a little wary. "I guess so. This isn't something that's going to be awkward, is it?"

Max chuckled. "I hope not, but considering your past relationship with Trudy, it might."

Even more curious now, Tom couldn't resist. "All right, you've got me too interested to back off. What do you want to show me?"

Max reached into his jacket pocket and felt around for a moment, before withdrawing a small, black felt covered box. He opened it to reveal a ring made of a silver-like Pandora metal. Set in the top of it was a small, native diamond. "I found the gem in one of the resource shipments," he explained bashfully as he held the piece up for Tom's inspection. "I thought it would be perfect, so I had it made into an engagement ring for Trudy."

Tom stared at the ring with raised eyebrows, having completely forgotten that Max and Trudy weren't officially "hitched" by Earth traditional standards. "Oh. Holy shit, Max...you're going to ask her?"

Max deflated, looking pained. "I know it's a stupid, meaningless ceremony but I want to do it."

Tom looked at him sympathetically. "It isn't 'stupid' or 'meaningless' if it means that much to you. I think Trudy would agree."

"She'll turn me down," Max grumbled nervously. "I know it."

Tom was caught between amusement and pity. "Max, she's been with you for all these years. You're the father of her child. I think you're getting worked up for no reason."

"But Trudy always says marriage is just an institution set up to keep people in line, and that if you really love someone you don't need a piece of paper and a ring to prove it."

Tom was hard-pressed not to agree with that. He'd always thought that people who needed government documents to give them incentive to be faithful probably weren't ready for a committed relationship anyhow. He thought it would be hypocritical of him to say so, however. He was committed to a woman through a much stronger bond than matrimony, so he had no insecurities about his relationship status. It made him wonder if Max was really as okay with his and Trudy's friendship as he let on.

"Max, I think that she'll have a different attitude about it, when she realizes how important it is to you. Maybe it's a stupid practice to some people but to others, its important." Tom looked his friend in the eye and took a deep breath, bracing himself. "Are you really all right with the friendship I share with Trudy, or have you just been pretending to be for all this time?"

The other bio-engineer considered the question for a moment before answering carefully. "It was hard, at first. You two still looked at each other like lovers, for the longest time. I couldn't hold it against either of you, though. You made the first move on her and you won her fair and square."

Tom snorted. "I lost her, just as fast."

Max smirked. "And that was a good thing for me. Seriously though, Trudy didn't let you go because she didn't want you. That was a reality I faced every time I saw her look at you."

"So you don't feel secure," Tom reasoned. He was about to tell the other man that he should know better by now, but Max beat him to the punch.

"I trust her and I trust you. It's been a long time since the two of you expressed any doubts about your situation and I've already accepted that you'll always be each other's 'first love'. Believe me when I say I don't suffer any feelings of jealousy, Tom."

Tom relaxed. "Good. I only asked because you've waited this long and I was convinced that you weren't the marrying type. So you really want to do this, huh?"

Max nodded and looked down at the ring in his hands. "I really do. After losing Tommy Sully, it occurred to me how uncertain the future is for us all. I thought about my son and how it might make his life easier if his parents were married, like other parents. True, there are a lot of single parent families and divorced families in the colony, but Trudy and I stand out as the only parents that have stayed together for this long without ever exchanging vows."

Tom shrugged. "You shouldn't worry about what other people think, Max. Like you said, you two have been together this long without a marriage certificate. If you want to do this, don't do it for appearance's sake."

"You're right," agreed Max. "And if that was the only reason, I wouldn't go through with it. I just feel like we owe Dustin more and we're still young enough to conceive again, someday. In short, I just want something like a normal family. I want the woman I love to be my wife and I want our children to be 'legitimate', even if I think it's ridiculous to require marriage documents to make him so."

Tom smiled at him. "Then you should ask her."

"I have your blessing, then?"

Tom blinked. "Uh...my blessing? I'm not her father, Max. Why would you want—"

"Because you were her first love," insisted the smaller man as if it was perfectly reasonable. "And your opinion might have some influence over her. I'm sure Trudy will come to you asking what she should do."

"And you're worried that I'll sabotage it?" Tom would have found it funny if it weren't so bloody logical. He could imagine how Max must feel and it wasn't completely ridiculous for him to assume Tom might have lingering romantic feelings for Trudy that might prompt him to do something dishonorable.

Thinking of this, Tom squatted down so that he was eye-level with his friend and he looked into Max's eyes. "Max, I have my own mate and my own family now. I accepted Trudy's choice a long time ago and whether she marries you or not isn't going to change the past. If she comes to me asking for advice, I'll tell her she couldn't pick a better husband...and I'll mean it when I say that, too."

Max visibly relaxed. "That means a lot to me, Tom. You've always been really gracious about our relationship and I know it couldn't have been easy for you."

Tom shrugged. "I could say the same about you. Let's just agree that you asking her to marry you is a good thing and we both want her to say 'yes'."

Max smiled and nodded, shutting the jewelry box and replacing it in his coat. Trudy crested the hill up ahead and she hollered after the two men, asking what was keeping them. "We've got to get going before dark, Maxi! What's the hold-up?"

"Coming," Max called, sharing an amused look with Tom.

* * *

They arrived back in Hell's Gate that evening and they gave Dustin permission to stay the night over at Andrew's house. Max foresaw a lot of nights in the future where the boys would be staying over at one another's houses. Now that Savanna was staying in the Ikran village, Dustin would be spending even more time with his other best friend. Max was just thankful that the young man had more than one person his age to turn to in a crisis. When he was Dustin's age, Max hadn't had as many friends—certainly none as close to him as Andrew and Savanna.

He pondered this as he waited for Trudy to come out of the bathroom. He held the jewelry box in his hands and he stared down at it, repeating a mantra to himself. "It's just a ring. It's just a ring. If she says 'no', it's not the end of the world. Don't pressure her, Max."

"Who you talking to, Maxi?" Trudy's voice floated through the shut bathroom door, reminding him that the walls in their apartment weren't very thick.

"I was just considering the weather forecast," he lied, hastily switching on the radio and tuning into the local news channel. "They say it's supposed to storm tonight."

"Well, 'tis the season," she excused. She came out a moment later, wearing a towel draped around her torso and another one piled on her head. "I don't know why you bother checking the weather. You know it always storms like this in the spring time." She took the towel off of her head and began rubbing it briskly over her damp hair.

Max stared at her for a moment, very aware of the little box he was hiding behind his back. "Good shower?"

Trudy shrugged. "The water pressure was pretty good this time. I still say we should get someone from maintenance to check out the plumbing in this building."

"We'll do that in the morning," he promised.

She slowed the motions of the towel in her hair and she considered him suspiciously. "What's that behind your back, Max? Do you have a present for me or did I interrupt something naughty?"

Max had no idea what kind of "naughty" thing she could be picturing and he impulsively drew his hands around from behind his back, revealing the case he held. Her eyes went to it and a puzzled frown graced her lips. He had brought her little trinkets here and there before but not often, as she wasn't much for jewelry. He saw himself through her eyes and he realized how ridiculous he must look, with the lost puppy expression of uncertainty on his face.

Remembering Tom's encouraging words, he pried open the jewelry box and revealed the engagement ring. "Trudy, I know you don't believe in marriage but lately, I've wavered on that."

She peered at the ring with a dumb expression on her cute little face. "Max...what are you doing?"

He held it out to her. "Something I should have done years ago. I know it's just a ring and a piece of paper to you, but it means something to me, Trudy. We've had a child together and we've been together for seventeen years. If we were going to break up, we would have done it before now. I want you to put this on and agree to marry me."

She licked suddenly dry lips. "Uh...Max..."

"It's only a ring, right?" he pressed. "If it doesn't mean anything to you then it shouldn't be a big deal. It means something to me, though."

"And that's why it's a big deal," she explained, finally gathering the wits to speak. "How long have you been thinking about this, Max?"

He shrugged. "About a week. I was going to have this diamond I found made into a pendant for you but I thought it would look better set in an engagement ring. Tommy Sully's death really made me think, Trudy. I don't want to have any regrets in life and if nothing else, even if you turn me down, I can't say I never tried."

Trudy suddenly burst into laughter.

It was most definitely not the reaction Max expected and it was much more insulting and hurtful than a simple "no" would have been. He felt his face burning with humiliation and he started to put the ring away, but Trudy grabbed both of his hands in hers and shook her head, trying to regain control of her mirth.

"No...don't look like that," Trudy begged him between chuckles. "I'm sorry Maxi...it was a hysterical reaction."

The sting was somewhat salved. Perhaps he chose a bad time to propose. She was dealing with a lot of emotional baggage, after all. "Trudy, if I put you on the spot, I'm sorry."

She shook her head and bit her lip. Suddenly, her eyes welled up with tears and she sniffed, looking away. "It's not like you asked me in a room full of people. It's just one of those things that was so unexpected, all I could do was laugh." She looked at him again after wiping at her eyes with her fingertips. "Ugh...what a shitty way to answer a marriage proposal, huh? It just struck me as funny when you said at least you could never say you didn't try."

He smiled ruefully. "Does that mean you'll consider it, at least?"

She sobered and looked him in the eye. "Give it a couple of weeks. I want to be sure you're serious and not just acting on emotional overload. If you still feel the same after a couple of weeks, we'll talk about it." She looked at the ring and smiled. "It's really pretty, Max. Not gaudy and not too delicate."

He shrugged and returned her smile as she leaned in for a kiss. He closed the jewelry box and put his arms around her, having expected much worse than a "maybe". He kissed her back and kneaded her shoulders. "You'll really consider it?"

Trudy nodded. "For you? Yeah. I just want to be sure you're not doing it out of panic, you know? So, are you mad at me for not saying 'yes' right away?"

He shook his head and squeezed her until she grunted in protest, lifting her off the floor. "Just hearing you say you'll think about it makes me happy."

* * *

_Meanwhile, at UNEC headquarters:_

At some point before all of this, Selfridge must have been attractive to women on a boyish level. Though his hair was peppered with gray and there were harsh stress lines around his eyes and mouth, he still had a youthful appeal that seemed to attract some members of the opposite sex. As General West watched the executive, his keen observations picked up on the way Miss Archer seemed drawn to the pasty little runt. Usually Administrator Selfridge had a sharp sense of humor, even on his bad days. Tonight it was obvious to everyone in the room that his humor was totally AWOL.

Parker stared at the reports with a look of horror on his face. He slowly raised wide brown eyes from the digital documents and West didn't particularly care for the half-mad expression on his face. "Why the hell was this kept from me?" He asked the question through clenched teeth and he looked like he might toss his cookies at any moment. "Why didn't anyone _tell_ me about this as soon as it happened?"

"It was privileged information," West explained. "I didn't have the clearance to share it with non-military personnel. I had to pull some strings to get permission to tell you and Commissioner Archer." He cast a glance at the other two MP's in the room, hoping Parker would handle this news better than he suspected. He hadn't wanted to believe the culprit was Jake Sully but after getting confirmation from several witnesses, he had no choice but to accept it. "We've got all of the known involved parties in custody and the investigation is well underway. I figured since you've had so much previous experience with Jake Sully, you might tell us what he's planning next."

Parker dropped the reports on his desk and he stood up, slamming his palms down on either side of the digital pad. "You want to know what he'll do next? Your goddamned troops killed his _son_! What the hell do you _think_ he's going to do next? He sent the whole moon after us for trying to blow up a damned _tree_! You think he's going to sit and spin on his ass when our military killed his kid?"

One of the MP's took a cautious step towards the fuming executive. "Sir, you need to calm down," she advised levelly.

Selfridge tossed the holopad report at her but the object made a poor projectile and it spun harmlessly away into the corner of the office. He jabbed an accusing finger at West, addressing him rather than the subordinate. "No, I _don't_ need to calm down! You people need to wake up! You weren't here and you don't know what Sully and his monkey friends can do!"

West tightened his jaw. He had more than a healthy respect for Corporal Jake Sully...more than most people realized. "Are you finished with your tirade, Administrator?"

"Not by a long-shot!" Parker snapped, absolutely livid. "They sent me back to Smurf-ville to make sure the same mistakes didn't happen again and you idiot army dogs are making sure it does! We might as well pack our fucking bags now, General."

Seeing the tension in the other MP's, Archer quickly tried to salvage the situation. "Mr. Selfridge, this wasn't done on official orders. This was a rogue group and the authorities can correct the matter more quickly if they have your cooperation."

"Nothing I do is going to make any difference now," Parker said to her, shaking his head. He was on the verge of hysteria and his entire stance showed it. "This place has a mind of it's own and I don't know how he does it, but that jarhead dropout knows how to communicate with it."

He circled around the desk and approached the taller form of General West, impulsively reaching out to grab the collar of the man's uniform. "Do you _hear_ me? You didn't keep a tight enough lid on your ranks and now the whole jungle is going to close in on us!"

West shoved the smaller man away abruptly, making him stumble and fall against his desk. Archer went to Parker's side and steadied him, trying to calm him down. Selfridge kept yelling about banshees and titanotheres and viper wolves coming to get them. West glanced at his two subordinates and nodded. "Get him to the infirmary. This nut is cracked."

* * *

"You're doing good, Sav!"

She smiled at her boyfriend as she came back up for air and heard the compliment. The twins took time each day to teach her how to swim in the ocean and she was steadily getting the hang of it. "Thanks. I'm getting a little tired, though."

Kato glanced at the cloudy sky, judging the time of day. "Let's take a rest break, then. It's almost time for lunch and Karyu and I have to get back to our training after we eat."

He waded to the shore with her, putting a steadying arm around her waist as she struggled for balance against the incoming waves. Savanna apologized when she nearly fell and he held her tight against him and shook his head.

"It takes some practice, that's all. You're getting it fast." He gave her an admiring look, his eyes roving over her bikini-clad, lilac-striped body. "I really like your bathing suit. The color looks good on you."

She glanced down self-consciously at the violet two-piece. "You think so?"

He smiled, flashing white teeth. "Definitely. Maybe we can steel a few moments alone together? We've hardly even kissed since you got here."

She looked at him from beneath lowered lashes, shyly. "It isn't that I haven't wanted to. I just didn't know how to ask for a kiss, after what's happened. I didn't want to upset you. Tommy was your cousin, so I know you've got it worse than I do."

Kato took her hands and shook his head. "If anything, kissing you makes it better. I don't think Tommy would want us to stop living our lives, anyhow. Mourning doesn't have to mean stopping everything else, does it?"

She reached up to trace his features with her fingertips and she shook her head. "No, it doesn't. I...I heard you muttering in your sleep last night. I really wanted to crawl over to you and hold you."

Kato blushed and looked away, letting go of one of her hands to scratch his head. "Uh...I was talking in my sleep, huh?"

"I'm sorry. I probably shouldn't have mentioned it. I couldn't understand what you were saying, if that makes it any better. You just sounded sad."

"I just do that sometimes, when I have a lot on my mind," he explained. "I hope you don't think I'm weird."

Savanna smiled and huffed a soft, subdued laugh. "If I don't think you're weird by now, I'd say you're in the clear."

He shared her smile hesitantly and he drew her closer. She shivered against him as he murmured in her ear. "So, will you come into one of the caves with me before lunch? We don't have much time. Karyu's going to come looking soon. You know how she is about schedules."

"Yes, she's quite a drill sergeant," Savanna agreed wryly. She chewed her lip before answering him. "As long as we don't get carried away, I think that would be nice."

* * *

So much for not getting carried away. As soon as they sat down against the cave wall together, Kato pulled her into his lap and started to kiss her with a voracious appetite. Savanna responded instantly, forgetting any protests she might have voiced when his hands began to wander. She tried to mumble a protest when he cupped her breasts but the feel of his hands on her made her brain freeze in stupidity.

Savanna whimpered into Kato's mouth as his fingertips fondled her nipples through the wet material. His mouth moved insistently against hers and she squirmed on his lap, bumping against the evidence of his arousal. The tingling pleasure of his touch speared through her clear to her toes and she itched to yank his damp loincloth off and touch his arousal for the first time.

"Sav," Kato purred, flexing his hips to press himself between her straddling thighs. His tongue lanced into her mouth again before she could answer his heated murmur. She ran her hands over his chest, admiring his lithe muscles and smooth skin. There were scars here and there that most of the boys his age on base didn't have, because their lives weren't as harsh. She didn't mind them. If anything, she found them sexy. It reminded her that her boyfriend was a strong Na'vi warrior and it made her libido skyrocket. Who needed stubble when your man could shoot a charging beast dead with a shaft of wood?

Savanna's hands stroked lower, over the taught abdomen and the cute button of his "outie" navel. She reached the hem of his loincloth and she gasped as he gently pinched one of her tender nipples, causing a jolt of sensation that nearly pushed her over the edge. She started to slip her fingers into his loincloth when a voice called out from the cave entrance, bouncing off the walls to rudely remind them some places weren't as private as they seemed.

"I know you're in there," Karyu warned, "and you two better be dressed and out of there in one minute. We're having fish for lunch."

Kato groaned and laid his forehead against Savanna's shoulder, putting his arms around her to hold her close. "Fish...yay."

She was embarrassed and amused at once, thankful that Karyu hadn't chosen to venture directly into the cave to seek them out. "We'll be out in a minute," she called. Reluctantly, she pulled away from her boyfriend and adjusted her top just to be safe. "It's probably a good thing that she interrupted us," she admitted softly to him.

He smirked, glancing down at his tented loincloth. "Says you. At least your situation isn't as obvious as mine."

Savanna cleared her throat and blushingly pointed out her bikini top. "You're not the only one with erect body parts."

His eyes fixated on the pebbled nubs pushing against the constraints of the top and Savanna took a cautious step back. Kato noticed and he snorted. "Come on...I've got more self control than that."

"At least one of us does," she muttered under her breath.

She honestly didn't think she would have tried to stop him if he wanted to go all the way with her. As frustrating as her hormones were making her, she was almost thankful for Karyu's intervention. In fact, the female twin always seemed to find ways to interrupt at the most inopportune moments. Savanna was beginning to wonder if it was all on purpose, but she kept her suspicions to herself, for now.

* * *

Karyu smiled easily at Savanna and she gave her a sisterly kiss on the cheek. "Go on ahead. Kato and I will catch up with you. I have to talk to him about something relating to our trials."

Savanna glanced at the male twin before shrugging. "You aren't mad at me for any reason, are you?"

Karyu shook her head immediately. "Don't be stupid. You know I'd say something if you made me mad."

Seemingly satisfied, Savanna left the twins on the beach. As soon as she was out of hearing range, Kato rounded on his sister with a frown. "Okay, I don't know what you want to talk about but I've got to say, lately you've been picking the _worst_ times to—"

"I'm your cock-blocker," Karyu interrupted, examining her short fingernails. She chewed one of them to even it out as her brother stared at her with his mouth open and one finger raised. When the expected tirade didn't come out, she elaborated, spitting a bit of fingernail out before speaking again. "Ptooh. Don't tell me you don't know what I mean. You grew up watching Earth shows with me."

"I...but why?" Kato was utterly mystified. "You're interrupting us on _purpose_? I thought you wanted Savanna and I to get together!"

She nodded and examined her fingernail again. Satisfied that it was level with the others, she dropped her hand and regarded her brother seriously. "I do. I want to see you two mated and having fat babies together someday. I just don't want to see any fat babies coming along until _after_ you've passed your tests. _Sa'nok_ asked me to keep an eye on you two and be sure Savanna doesn't distract you. Obviously, she's right to be concerned."

Kato blushed deeply. "There's such a thing as abusing the twin bond."

Karyu huffed at him. "Believe me, the last thing I want to do is picture you two going at it. I know you, though. I know how you think and I know when you're planning to get some nookie. My job is to make sure you don't get too much of it before you pass the final tests, understand?"

Kato sighed and threw up his hands. "I _really_ can't wait for the day when you start seeing boys differently."

Karyu only smirked and grabbed his arm, urging him to go with her up the beach.

* * *

While the twins were preparing to finish their right of passage, Emazu completed his. He stood before the clan proudly, with the symbolic whorls and symbols decorating his body from head to toe. Jake ordinarily would have been the one to introduce him to the tribe as a full adult and a reborn son of the Omaticaya, but Norm had to do it in his absence. Thanks to the coaching from Mo'at and Ni'nat, he didn't stumble and the clan smiled in approval as he went through the ceremony with the young hunter.

It hurt, to see someone other than Tommy inherit the title of _Olo'eyktan_. Norm admitted this to himself even as he smiled and congratulated Emazu. The solemn, quietly thoughtful look in the young warrior's eyes told Norm that he was aware of his feelings and perhaps he even shared them. He thought Emazu had come a long way—especially after Tommy's death. Perhaps he would make a great leader, after all. The one thing he noticed that really bothered him was the possessive way Emazu's eyes settled on Grace, as soon as he spotted her in the crowd.

Norm pushed his misgivings aside and he tried to concentrate on celebrating the new leader's ascension into adulthood. While Emazu was technically now the chieftain, all important decisions would have to meet Norm's approval before being acted on. This made perfect sense when introducing a new leader to the clan. The old leader guided the new one for several months, just as the old _Tsahik_ remained somewhat in charge while the new one grew into her role. Norm wasn't precisely thrilled about this little tidbit, truth be told. He was all too eager to rid himself of the leadership role and allow someone else to hold the reins, but Emazu was still untried and impulsive. He would need further guidance before he was completely ready.

Then there was Gracie. She would be the next _Tsahik_ and it seemed that Emazu was determined that she belonged with him. It was Omaticaya tradition that the _Olo'eyktan_ be mated with the _Tsahik_, and up until now there hadn't been any disputes about it. True, Neytiri went against tradition with Jake but in the end, he became leader of the clan and so tradition wasn't technically broken. If Emazu decided to use tradition as a means to demand that Grace mate with him, not many people would dispute it. Rules had already been stretched and bent...further disruption would only do harm to the clan's societal structure.

It all left Norm feeling like he was developing an ulcer. The only thing that brought him comfort was the way Tsu'tey stayed close to Gracie's side and encouraged her to eat well and get out during the day. He half expected her to find the behavior intrusive and annoying, but Tommy's death had a major impact on her. If anything, she seemed grateful f or Tsu'tey's intervention and Norm was grateful as well.

It didn't occur to him how handy the allotted "grace period" after designating a new leader was, until UN military officials showed up. The clan was barely an hour into celebrating Emazu's ascension when the warning drums started up. The noise died down and everyone listened with frowns of caution. The sound of helicopters could be heard in the distance between drumbeats, growing louder with each moment. Since there were no scheduled visits from Hell's Gate expected, Norm could only assume it wasn't a leisure trip.

"Wait here," he instructed Emazu. "I'll go up and see who's coming."

The young man grudgingly waited while Norm went into the _keltural_ and climbed up to the top. He reached the topmost branches and came up behind one of the lookouts, carrying a pair of binoculars he had snatched from his belongings rack on the way up. "Do you recognize them?"

"They are still too far for me to tell in this darkness," answered the woman, "but perhaps your vision tool will let you see better."

Norm nodded and braced himself against one up-thrust branch as he brought the binoculars to his eyes. The flash of lights made it difficult to count how many there were, until he adjusted the night vision on the device. He swore softly when he saw that there were four tiltrotors in all and none of them bore Hell's Gate markings.

"We have guests coming," he told the lookout grimly. "They aren't bringing an army but they have the power to do heavy damage if we show any aggression. Send the warning out, Sister."

* * *

Two of the aircrafts lowered passengers into the jungle when they reached the outskirts of Hometree. Norm recognized General West at the head of the group as they walked towards the base of the great tree and he approached him swiftly, his dark hair whipping about from the wind raised by the aircrafts.

"General, we weren't expecting visitors," Norm shouted over the noise of the choppers. "I'm guessing this isn't just a social call?"

"You guessed right," answered the human. He looked up at the hovering aircrafts and made a gesture before speaking into his transmitter. "Move away. I'll call it in when we're ready to leave again."

Norm was briefly thankful that the man wasn't sending all of his troops down or leaving the noisy vehicles hovering over the village. He could hear the whinny of the _pa'li_ herd in the distance and he guessed that too much further noise would have spooked them to the point of running away again. West had a half a dozen MP's with him, affording enough protection without being outright threatening.

"What's this all about?" Norm asked, though he could easily guess.

"I need to speak with whomever is currently in charge of this clan," answered West with a knowing look at Norm. "My guess is it won't be Jake Sully."

Norm suppressed a shiver. "Come with me. I'll explain everything."

* * *

Norm gave West a brief explanation of what he knew of the goings-on and he assured him that Jake wasn't anywhere near the clan's territory. He took him to Emazu, who still wore the ceremonial paints from his initiation only hours earlier.

"I am _Olo'eyktan_ of the Omaticaya," Emazu said proudly, staring down at the human General.

West wasn't particularly intimidated. Were he a Na'vi, he would have more muscle mass than this young warrior and Emazu clearly lacked some common sense. "I see. So I assume you know what your old clan leader has been up to?"

Emazu glanced around at his fellow hunters and shrugged. "Killing the vermin that killed his son. This is the fate all Sky People deserve."

Norm hastily intervened, going as pale as a Na'vi could possibly go. "Excuse him, General. He's still angry and you _did_ show up unannounced and armed."

West studied the young man in question, who looked ready to push past Norm and tear the human visitors up with his bare hands. "Mistakes have been made on both sides," he said carefully. While Emazu was basically still just a punk to him, the kid had potential and a whole clan of angry, confused Na'vi at his disposal. "You might not believe it, but I'm trying to make sure a war doesn't start over this. We're not looking to kill Jake Sully or his mate. We want to bring them in for questioning and a trial. If any of you know where they are, you'd be best off telling us."

"My daughter and her mate are outcasts," Mo'at announced stepping forward.

Recognizing her, the General nodded his head with respect. "In what sense, Ma'am?"

"They have acted outside of Omaticaya law," she responded firmly, "just as your people acted outside of your laws when they killed my grandson. The Omaticaya wish no fight with UNEC."

Emazu looked supremely frustrated—something that wasn't lost on West. The General recognized it for what it was, though. Mo'at was no liar and if she said her own daughter and son in law weren't welcome in the village, West believed her.

"We've got quite a mess," said West. "My people are trying to clear things up but we might not be able to do that without some cooperation from your son and daughter, Ma'am. If you happen to see them outside the territory for whatever reason, maybe you could give them that message for me."

Mo'at nodded her head. "I will be sure to pass the message...if I see them. Pandora skies are not friendly at night, Ghen-ral West. You should return to your home quickly."

West managed a little smirk, getting the hint. "I think our people can manage, but thanks for the concern." He nodded at Norm, then saluted Emazu. "I think it's time for us to take our leave. I'll report the current situation to my superiors and we'll see what's to be done next. Thank you for your cooperation."

Norm nodded back and he waited while West and the human troops left. He held his hand out when Emazu started to follow them and he shook his head. "No. Wait here."

Emazu scowled at him. "Why? We should kill them. They killed one of ours."

Norm stared at him with a frown, surprised. "Do you really care about that, or are you just looking for an excuse to fight?"

"Tommy was Omaticaya," answered Emazu in a low voice, his glittering eyes fixed on the retreating humans. "They should pay for his death in blood."

"They didn't kill him," Norm reminded firmly. "Don't start anything. Being a leader is about looking after your clan, not just throwing your weight around."

"I will protect my clan by keeping the Sky People away," promised Emazu.

Norm turned around to face him fully. "Then you'd better get your eyes off of my daughter."

"Your daughter is tainted, but—"

Emazu didn't get to finish the sentence. To the shock of everyone, Norm's fist collided with the young leader's jaw. Emazu backpedaled in surprise and pain, falling to the ground as people hastily scattered away. Eywa, Normspellman hit hard! He stared up at Norm with wide eyes, blinking back spots of darkness.

"You dare strike your _Olo'eyktan?_" Emazu sputtered, climbing to his feet with the help of a couple of friends.

"I dare strike anyone that talks about my daughter like she's filth," Norm growled, towering over the younger man. "If it weren't for some 'Sky People', your clan wouldn't be here now. Talk filth about the ones that do wrong by the People but do not _ever_ call my daughter 'tainted' again—especially if you have plans on a courtship with her."

Mo'at stood beside Norm and the expression on her wise old face left little doubt that she agreed with him. Emazu looked somewhat ashamed of himself and his eyes strayed to Grace, who was standing between her mother and sister in the crowd and staring at her father in shock. "I...did not mean it that way."

Norm looked around at the rest of the gathering before approaching the younger man. "Come and talk with me," he ordered, leaving no doubt that Emazu didn't have a choice. The new chieftain sighed and followed Norm Spellman away from the trunk and toward the mushroom grove.

* * *

"Look, I see something good in you," Norm told Emazu when they were far enough away from the village to speak in private. Fortunately, the Na'vi were a bit more respectful than humans and nobody tried to follow them to eavesdrop. "But this hatred you have for humans is getting in the way of your judgment."

"They killed my father's brother," Emazu confessed.

Norm paused and stared at him. "How? I never knew anything about that."

Emazu shrugged and stared off into the distance. "I was not born yet. My uncle was in the schoolhouse. The Sky People were chasing after the _Tsahik_'_s_ sister because she set fire to one of their tree-cutting machines. Waranyu died in the attack they made on the school. _Sempul_ says he can never rest, as long as our clan has anything to do with the Sky People."

Norm suddenly felt very old and very tired. "I had no idea. Neither you or your parents ever said anything."

"It is private," whispered Emazu. "I should have said nothing at all."

Norm rested his hand on Emazu's left shoulder, squeezing apologetically. He winced when he saw the rapidly darkening bruise where his fist had connected with the young man's jaw. "I'm glad you said something. It helps me understand why your family has so much hate for humans. Listen to me though, your father went about it the wrong way. You can't change what happened to your sister by killing every human you see. You can't treat someone you claim to care about like garbage because she has human in her. Can you understand that?"

Emazu looked at him and Norm saw the conflict in his golden eyes. "I only want to make my parents proud."

Norm almost groaned. How cruel, that someone with such great leadership potential was driven by prejudice spurred on by his family. "Then make them proud without harming innocent people or putting the clan at risk," he insisted after a moment. "Emazu, you don't have to be cruel to others to bring honor to your family. You respect Jake, don't you?"

The young man nodded and clenched his jaw.

"Then think about what he would do. Jake told me I could take over temporarily because I put the clan's needs first. That's what any good leader should do. If you want to be the best _Olo'eyktan_ you can, then you have to focus on keeping your people safe. Warmongering won't do that."

Emazu considered his words and nodded slowly. "I...am sorry for what I said about Gracie. I do care for her, Normspellman."

Norm sighed and accepted the apology grudgingly, feeling pity for the young man. "I'm sorry for socking you. I only do that when I really think someone's earned it." He hoped he never had to do it again but he also hoped Emazu would leave his daughter alone from now on.

* * *

After sorting things out with Emazu, Norm returned to the den and approached his daughter. She was standing alone for a change, watching the rest of the clan celebrate. Her younger sister was sitting with Sylwanin and Ni'nat on the other side of the fire pit and Tsu'tey was nowhere to be seen; possibly out relieving his bladder.

"Grace, are you feeling okay?"

She gave him a wan smile. "As well as I can be, _Sempu_. Stop asking me every hour, will you?"

Norm gave her a pained smile and stroked her hair. "I know it's annoying. I just feel like I have to do more for you. You know you can talk to me about your feelings, right? Your mother and I are both here for you."

Grace nodded and looked across the fire pit at her mother, who was crooning softly to Ralu, Sylwanin and some other children. Ni'nat had a gift for soothing children. "I know. I hope I can be half the mother she is."

Norm looked at his beautiful mate and smiled, failing to notice the little cringe his daughter made as soon as the words left her mouth. "I'm sure you'll be a great parent, when you have kids of your own. You're just like her, you know."

"I don't sing like she can," Grace protested with a shrug, "and I don't weave as good. I'm not as patient as she is, either."

Norm looked at her again and he shook his head. "But you have other talents. I didn't mean you're a carbon copy. I just meant you've inherited all the best qualities from your mother; and that's a good thing."

Gracie bit her lip as she watched her mother take a newborn from another woman. The parents watched as Ni'nat sang to the baby, coaxing him to sleep. "But will I be as good a mother as she is?"

Norm put an arm around her and hugged her close. "I'm sure you will. You shouldn't be worrying about things like that right now, though."

Grace looked up at him and her eyes began to sparkle with unshed tears. "Father...I...there's something I should tell you."

Norm felt the tension in her and he rubbed her arm, suspecting her anxiety might have something to do with Emazu. "Grace, whatever it is, I'm going to support you. You don't have to do anything you aren't willing to do, okay?"

She bit her lip and sniffled, seeming at odds with herself. Norm waited silently as she parted her lips to speak and she surprised him by hugging him tight and burying her face against his chest.

"I just wanted you to know...I appreciate everything you've done for me...even when you make me mad. I love you, _Sempu_."

Norm felt like his heart was being shredded to pieces. He blinked several times and he nuzzled the crown of her head. "I love you too, Gracie."

* * *

Later that evening when most people had gone to bed, Grace sat on one of the ikran nesting branches with Tsu'tey and confessed her mistake.

"I almost told him, but I chickened out."

Tsu'tey looked over at his companion and he reached for her hand soothingly. "It's okay, Grace. You've got plenty of time before you start showing."

"But I don't want to wait too long," she sighed. "Tsu'tey, they'll just be more upset if I wait a month or longer to tell them, won't they?"

He bit his lip and shrugged. "Maybe. But your situation isn't normal."

"I just don't want him to be disappointed in me."

Tsu'tey considered her broodingly for a few moments, rubbing her hand comfortingly. After thinking about it for a while, he smiled at her. "He practically knocked Emazu out in front of everyone when he called you 'tainted'. I think you can count on your dad supporting you, Grace."

She smiled in spite of herself. That little incident had taken everyone by surprise and she was sure the clan would be gossiping about it for weeks. "_Sempul_ isn't as passive as people think."

Remembering that, she also remembered Emazu's stares. He was more mannerly than many other boys about it but she could feel his eyes on her when he thought she didn't notice it. She didn't want to be with anyone, especially when she was expecting a child sired by Tommy. She swallowed a hopeless lump in her throat. Mo'at told her that it would soon be time for her to become the clan's _Tsahik_. She may not have a choice in the matter, if she acted to keep the clan happy.

"Tsu'tey, do you think the clan would be too disappointed if I never paired with anyone?"

He didn't say anything and she turned to see him watching her with a sad expression. "Some of us would understand. The rest can just get over it, Gracie. I hate to say it, but they're eventually going to find out you're pregnant and when they do, I don't think they'll be so quick to pressure you."

She bowed her head. "Emazu...he wants me to be his mate."

Tsu'tey's hand stroked her hair and he scooted closer to her. "That doesn't mean you have to be. He'll probably change his mind when he knows you're carrying my brother's baby."

She drew a shuddering breath. "I'm scared. What if he doesn't change his mind?"

Tsu'tey compressed his lips and looked up at the sky, where lightning danced amongst the clouds. "You're a free woman, Grace. If you really don't want to be with him, I know the clan would never force it. Just remember you have people on your side."

She raised her head and looked at him. His sculpted features were sincere and gentle on her, offering no judgment or blame. He took her hand in his and squeezed it. It was a simple gesture but so warm and inviting, it made her feel safe and secure. She reached out and brushed aside one of his braids, so that it wasn't dangling over his right eye. She never wanted to be mated with anyone again but if she had to, Tsu'tey would be her choice.

"What is it?" He tilted his head curiously, the way his brother used to do when he had a question on his mind.

Grace smiled gently at him and shook her head. "Nothing. I'm just glad you're here, Tsu'tey."

He smiled back and brought her hand to his lips for a kiss. "I'm going to be here no matter what."

The chivalrous gesture reminded her of one of the fairy tales her father used to read to her as a child and she stared at him silently, feeling safe for the first time since the tragedy.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Sa'nok_ : **Mother

**_Sempul: _** Father

**_Sempu: _**Daddy

**_Iknimaya: _ ** The "stairway" every young hunter must climb to reach the ikran nesting grounds and bond with his or her first flying mount.


	10. Chapter 10

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 10: On the run

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

**_Two weeks after Emazu's initiation:_**

"Jake!"

She caught his hand just before he went over. The gunship was circling around the mountain. The human's voice blared out from the aircraft's speakers, ordering the couple to surrender. He promised that nobody had to get hurt if they would just come peacefully. So far, they didn't seem to be aiming to kill but the last round of shots fired in their direction broke away part of the cliff Jake was on and nearly sent him falling to the ground, far below.

Jake grunted as he climbed back up beside his mate. He held her hand and cast a quick look around. "This way!"

Together, they ran around to the other side of their floating bit of land, seeking to evade the gunships line-of-sight. Another shouted warning echoed off the mountains as the pilot tried to coax them to give up. Jake snorted and shook his head. He had no way of knowing for sure whether their pursuers were following official UNEC orders or if they were members of the rogue group. They couldn't have tracked them down with the flux vortex interfering, but this particular gunship found them while visually scouting the mountains. It was alone but Jake was sure the passengers had already called in the location to whatever allies they had out there.

The soldiers must have figured out what they were doing because the gunship changed directions and circled around the other side. Jake skidded to a halt and he grabbed Neytiri to pull her tight against him as the Scorpion unloaded another round of warning shots. One of the bullets must have ricocheted off the rock and Jake felt his heart stop when he heard Neytiri cry out. The gunfire immediately stopped as if the shooter realized he'd hit one of them.

"Surrender _now_! Our orders are to bring you in alive!"

Jake ignored them and he half-dragged his companion to a spot that offered more cover. He squatted down with her and searched her anxiously. Seeing the blood pouring from her left thigh, he hastily removed his stolen firearm and took the shoulder strap off.

"Hold on, baby," Jake grunted as he began to fashion a makeshift tourniquet from the strap. "This is going to have to do until we can get away from these guys."

She made a pained sound and clutched at his shoulder with one hand as he bound her thigh as tightly as he could. Jake grimaced in sympathy and guilt. When he was satisfied that he'd staunched the blood flow enough, he looked around and made a quick decision. He wasn't about to risk handing his mate over to the UN soldiers for medical care—not until he could be positive they wouldn't hurt her. That left fleeing as the only option and looking at their surroundings, he knew he would have to time everything just right.

"Neytiri, do you think you can give me one good leap?" Jake pleaded with his eyes as he asked the question.

She bit her lip and looked down at her thigh, moaning in her throat as she experimentally moved her leg. She nodded. "I will try, my Jake. What are you going to do?"

Jake looked over his shoulder at the gunship, which was hovering back and forth in an effort to get an unobstructed view of them again. The crevice he had found offered just enough cover to hide them from clear sight. "I'm going to call Shadow and when he comes, I'll distract the soldiers to give you a chance to mount."

"Jake, no. I cannot ride your toruk and the Sky People will kill you!"

Jake kissed her swiftly and cupped her face in his hands. "You can't tell him where to go but Shadow _will_ carry you. I'll be right behind you. I promise." He let go of her face and cupped his hands over his mouth, calling out to his toruk. The beast was up higher in the mountains, close enough to hear his rider's call if he needed him while he rested. Knowing how difficult it was to frighten Shadow off, Jake was confident that he would answer his call. After a few tense moments of listening to the soldiers continue to demand their surrender, Jake saw a flash of orange to the left and he knew his mount was on his way.

He helped Neytiri to her feet and supported her, watching her in concern as she struggled for balance. He couldn't give her a boost and shoot at the Scorpion at the same time so he was just going to have to trust her to manage on her own.

"Okay, wait here until you see Shadow passing below," Jake advised, checking his Carb rifle. He only had a few rounds left but he only needed to fire enough shots to get their attention. Arrows could have done it but at this angle, they wouldn't pierce the glass and Jake wanted to be sure he did a little damage to slow them down. The passengers of the aircraft didn't seem to notice Shadow yet; being focused on trying to capture their targets. Thanks to his many battles with Jake, the toruk knew how to approach human aircrafts with some measure of stealth and he always flew beneath or above them.

Neytiri reached out for his hand just as Jake was about to charge. "My Jake."

He paused and looked back at her, his eyes softening. "Neytiri." He squeezed her hand. "Just trust me, gorgeous. Stay out of sight while I give these guys something to worry about."

She took a deep breath and nodded, bracing herself against the rocky wall as the exiled _Olo'eyktan_ charged out of their hiding spot with a wild yell. Jake opened fire on the hovering aircraft. Most of the bullets only left dents in the metal or hairline fractures in the glass, but a few punched through and compromised the atmospheric stability inside the cockpit. Jake dove aside as they returned fire on him, purposely moving away from his mate. The ruse worked; if only long enough to give Neytiri the chance to jump onto Shadow's back. The great toruk glided just below the cliff in the mountainside and Neytiri screamed in pain as she forced her injured thigh to obey her command. Jake grinned with relief when he saw his mate land safely on Shadow's back.

Neytiri held onto the toruk's queue harness and balanced herself as well as she could when Shadow altered his course. He had seen the threat to his rider and he was coming to his defense. Jake shouted at the top of his lungs as he dodged bullets and shot some of his own back at the gunship, determined to keep them from noticing the approaching peril until it was too late. He caught a glimpse of the people inside, hastily tugging emergency breathing masks over their faces. That distraction combined with Jake's unexpected charge sufficiently put the humans at a disadvantage. They failed to see the great Leonopteryx coming up from beneath them and to the right.

Shadow wasn't at an ideal angle to grasp the aircraft in his claws and fling it around as he usually preferred, but he nudged it aggressively in passing and the impact was enough to knock the gunship away and force the pilot to concentrate on regaining control of it. Jake called out again and Shadow banked toward the drifting landmass, coming in close enough for the warrior to leap onto his back.

"Take us down, boy," Jake ordered when he connected his queue and situated himself on Shadow's back.

Neytiri hung on tightly to Jake as the toruk went into a sharp, steep dive. Jake held onto the harness with one hand and he laid the other hand over Neytiri's, trying to support her hold on him and help her maintain balance. Above them, the gunship had just recovered from its brief spin and it was attempting to pursue them. They had a head start though and once they made it into the canopy of the forest below, they would easily lose the pursuing Scorpion. The human machines were clumsy compared to the natural grace of the flying creatures of Pandora. The thick vegetation would force the chopper to simply cut through or slow down, while Shadow would easily maneuver through it.

Jake winced as he felt a bullet whiz by his head. "So much for trying to bring us in alive." He pushed Shadow for speed, aware that the soldiers probably had permission to retaliate with deadly force if necessary. There was no help for it, though. Short of throwing himself at the chopper, shooting at them was the fastest way to get their attention.

"We're almost there," Jake called out over the wind, feeling his mate's hold on him slipping a little. "Hang on, Neytiri!"

Shadow shrieked in pain and Jake felt the hit through the queue. It was a glancing blow on his right side. The bullet didn't go in but it nicked the animal enough to distract it. Jake swore and he tightened his focus, silently bidding his mount to stay on course and concentrate. The toruk worked with his rider and pulled his wings in closer to his body, speeding up. They burst through the canopy and Jake hollered for Neytiri to hold on tight as he and Shadow navigated the jungle together. They weaved between trees, under mushrooms and over giant ferns. One of the soldiers again ordered them to surrender but this time, he sounded exasperated.

They approached one of Norm's favorite local trees; a giant _Ramut_, or "Puffball" tree. It was an exceptionally large specimen and it had four fully matured puffballs at the top of its stalks. Jake was about to navigate around it when Neytiri's hold on him suddenly loosened, making him panic.

"Neytiri!"

"Fly Shadow steady to that tree, my Jake," Neytiri answered in a pain-laced but confident voice. "This time, you trust me."

Jake quickly directed Shadow to level out and glide steady as his mate shifted behind him, working her bow free. She knocked an arrow and Jake twisted around to look at her as she watched the approaching tree. "What are you doing?"

"You will see," she said, narrowing her eyes at the _Ramut_ tree. "Fly lower, Jake."

He obeyed and Neytiri twisted around with a groan of pain as the toruk passed over the tree. She waited until the gunship was almost flying over the tree before she shot her arrow and pierced the topmost puffball. Jake looked back to see the sphere burst, spraying a black shower of seeds in every direction. They couldn't harm the aircraft but one of the door gun operators yelled in surprise several of the seeds hit him. The clever attack hindered the gunship's progress, temporarily obscuring the passenger's view and forcing the riders in the back cabin to duck and cover.

Jake grinned as he faced forward again and urged Shadow to bank to the east. "That's my girl." He kept the toruk's flight as smooth as he could while Neytiri replaced her bow and put her arms around him again. He frowned when he felt how loose her embrace was and he looked back at her again. "Neytiri?"

"I will be fine," she assured him through pale lips. "We must not stop until we have lost them, Jake."

There was no other choice but to go on. He couldn't see to her wound until he shook off their pursuit.

* * *

They finally lost them after a while and Jake flew Shadow deeper into the forest, until he found somewhere he thought would be safe to hide and rest for a while. The hollow in the tree could be easily concealed with smaller branches and it was high enough to be out of range of most ground predators. The climbing ones were another matter, but his years with the Omaticaya had taught him many techniques to conceal himself at night in the wilds.

The smell of Neytiri's blood could be another matter, though. Jake landed Shadow on one of the sturdiest branches of the large tree he could find. It creaked alarmingly for a moment but it held steady. He slid off the toruk's back and reached up for his mate, coaxing her to come into his arms.

"I've got you," Jake soothed when Neytiri eased off of Shadow's back and bit back a sharp cry of pain. "I'm going to have a look as soon as we get out of sight." He slipped an arm under her knees and lifted her, carrying her bride-style to the hollow he had chosen in the trunk. He eased her down onto the branch and drew his knife before checking the hollow for residents. He found some evidence of previous nesting but it was old. Whatever once lived there had abandoned the nook months ago.

Jake walked back over to Shadow and linked with him, telling him to stay out of sight, hunt only at night and remain close by in case he was needed. He patted the animal and apologized for the graze in his flank when Shadow licked at it.

"I'll look after you after I see to Neytiri," Jake promised. "She's worse off right now. Go and get rest, boy. We've got a long day ahead of us." He hadn't failed to notice the blood of his mate coating Shadow's side, where Neytiri had been sitting. He shut his eyes and reminded himself to stay calm.

Shadow spread his wings and took off to find somewhere to hole up for the day. Satisfied that the animal would lay low as instructed, Jake walked the length of the branch back to his mate and he took her into his arms again to lift her. He glanced up at the sky and tried to guess the time of day. It was overcast, making it difficult to judge. He reckoned it was nearing noon. It had been mid to late morning when the gunship discovered them in the Hallelujah Mountains.

"Easy," Jake soothed as he carefully lowered his mate to the mossy interior surface of the hollow. He kissed her pale forehead as he tried to ease her into a comfortable position. "I've got to try and dig the bullet out," he informed her, stroking he hair. "I need to do it while we've got enough light. Can you tell me what sort of plants I can use around here to keep the knife from infecting you, Neytiri?"

She shut her eyes and took a few steadying breathes before answering. "_Tawtsngal_."

"Sky cup?" Jake repeated in English, wanting to be sure he was thinking of the correct plant.

She nodded. "Yes. The juice that gathers in the cup. It can be drunk to heal sickness in the body."

"But what about sterilizing the knife?" he pressed. "If I have to cut you, I need something that kills off germs. What do you use for open wounds, Neytiri?"

"The sap...of a poison-water plant." She tried to sit up straighter and she groaned, pressing her hand against the strap binding her thigh. Blood flowed between her fingers and Jake looked at it with concern he couldn't hide. "I will help you, my Jake. Just bring what we need."

Jake took a shuddering breath and gave her a kiss on the forehead before reluctantly leaving her to search for the medicines.

* * *

Jake used hollowed out plant chutes to act as containers for the fluids he needed to collect for the job. He also collected fibers that could serve as bandages and he found a creek to refill his water skin and clean off a flat rock he found to use as a surface. He set to work immediately, talking to her as he fed her the oral medicine and made her drink some water. He sterilized both their hunting knives, realizing he might need more than one too get the bullet out. He loosened the binding around her thigh and he cleaned the wound off with water before he started.

It only took moments for Jake to realize that he wasn't going to be able to dig the object out without putting Neytiri at serious risk. Through her agony, she noticed his hesitation and the low, frustrated curse he uttered and she looked at him with glazed yellow eyes.

"What is it, Jake?"

He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand and shook his head. "I can't get it. I can _see_ it but if I try to dig it out, I could nick that big artery. I don't know what the hell it's called but it's a major one. Norm would know. Tom would know. Max would know. Me? I don't know anything." He clenched his fist around the handle of the knife and his emotions boiled to the surface. "This is all my fault."

She reached out with a trembling hand and touched his face. "Dig it out."

He shook his head. "It's too risky. You need someone with real medical know-how to do this, Neytiri. A pair of hunting knives and basic combat first aid training isn't going to do it."

She leaned back against the wall of the cubby and shut her eyes. "Then bind it. I will manage."

Jake could see that wasn't true. She was too weak from loss of blood and he was sure the plant extracts weren't going to be enough to ward off infection. He needed to get her to a real doctor or she wouldn't last more than a couple of days. He concentrated on dabbing it with medicine and binding it. When he finished, he tried to decide what to do.

He knew he could go to Hometree for help without the clan turning on them. He knew they would hide them if any humans came looking while they were there. He just didn't want to get the Omaticaya any more involved in this than they already were. Besides that, Jake wasn't sure there were many Na'vi tools delicate enough to perform this kind of operation and Norm might not have the equipment with him.

That left Hell's Gate and the Ikran village. Both options had negatives. He knew his friends at Hell's Gate could be counted on in a pinch but they had responsibilities and obligations that they couldn't just ignore—which was part of the reason Jake kept them out of the loop. Even if Max and Trudy kept it quiet, Jake and Neytiri were too easily recognized by now and other personnel would see them.

Tom could care for Neytiri, but that meant possibly getting the Ikran clan involved in this mess too. Jake couldn't imagine Tanhi taking too kindly to him endangering her clan, though she would surely help out of loyalty.

He struggled with it as the skies opened up overhead and rain came pouring down. He held his mate gently and talked to her about some of the good memories they had together. While he did that and tried to come up with an answer to their problem, he continually urged her to sip water from his container. When it was empty, he dangled it outside the hollow on a branch and let it collect rainwater.

When Neytiri fell into an exhausted, feverish sleep against his shoulder, Jake considered one other option available. He could turn himself in. He could contact the right people and make a bargain with them—his surrender for Neytiri's medical care and safe return to the village. She didn't kill anyone, after all. Every death in that skirmish had occurred by Jake's hand—deliberate or not.

He frowned, reminding himself of the way human authorities commonly saw things. She was his accomplice, whether her arrows killed anyone or not. Even if they did agree to give her medical care, they probably wouldn't let her go. He wouldn't take an option that might cost Neytiri her freedom unless it was the only way to save her life.

He glanced down at his mate's sleeping features and he lowered his mouth to hers for a kiss. "One way or another, I'm going to get you taken care of."

* * *

**_The next evening:_**

"I don't care how close your birthday is," Tom informed his daughter, "I don't want to catch you out flying that ikran again until _after_ you've been through your initiation. Do you know what your mother would do if she found out about this?"

Karyu stroked Thunder's neck and fed him the piece of meat she had brought in her pouch. "I only rode for about five minutes, _Sempu_." She pouted at her father, annoyed that he'd caught her on his way in before she could land and send her banshee away.

Tom took a deep breath and patted his own ikran before sending her away. She nudged him affectionately before taking off to return to the local nesting area with the other bonded ikrans. Tom turned back to his daughter as he began unfastening his weapon harness. "Don't you '_Sempu'_ me. Send your ikran away and go back to the village right now, before your mother comes and sees you."

"There's nothing to see," argued Karyu. "I'm just standing here petting my mount. Am I not even allowed to do _that_ until initiation?"

"She'll see the visor band around your head and she'll know you took a ride. Now, do as I _say_, Karyu."

The young huntress sighed and fed her ikran the other piece of meat. "Fine. Go on, boy. I'll see you tomorrow." She slapped the animal lightly on the flank and he took off. She smiled at Tom knowingly. "You cover for us an awful lot, Dad. I'll bet mother would be really angry if she found out."

Tom's stern expression complimented his tribal wear. Despite the physical differences between avatar and Na'vi bodies, he really looked the part of an Ikran hunter. Looking at him and the fresh kill bound at his feet, Karyu was reminded that her father really _was_ a warrior of the People, even though he only dressed the part for hunts and ceremonies.

"Are you trying to blackmail me, young woman?" His eyes flashed warningly but his expression remained the very picture of calm.

"I was...just making an observation," Karyu answered, re-thinking her idea. Maybe hinting that she'd tell on him if he didn't let her fly her ikran wasn't such a good idea after all.

"I know what you were doing," Tom said coolly, "and you can put the idea out of your head right now. Tanhi already knows I stick up for you kids more than I should and it won't be _my_ butt that gets tanned if she finds out you're disrespecting clan tradition again."

"I'm too old to be spanked," snorted the girl.

"I dare you to say that to your mother's face." He smirked at her.

Karyu faltered, picturing the expression on the fierce chieftess' face if she took Tom up on the offer. She huffed and put her hands on her slender hips. "Well, Kato and I only have seventeen days to go. I can't _wait_ to be free!"

"You think passing your rite to adulthood is going to give you the right to disobey your _Olo'eyktan_ and disrespect both of us?"

She was getting frustrated with his unshakable calm. "How is it disrespectful to ride my own ikran?"

"I just explained that to you," answered Tom levelly. "Which I shouldn't have needed to do in the first place, by the way."

She threw her hands up. "Unnnhhh! You don't know what it's like to be in our situation!"

"Come help me clean this," Tom suggested, gesturing at the tetrapteron carcass waiting at his feet. "You can have first choice of cuts."

Karyu's growing tirade faded at the offer and her stomach growled. Tetrapteron meat was her favorite, especially roasted with fresh native peppers and greens on the side. She didn't get it often because the local flocks migrated back and forth, though temperature changes between seasons were quite mild.

"What are you up to, _Sempul_?"

"Nothing." Tom shrugged. "I just know how much you love thigh meat from a tetrapteron. If you don't want it, it can go in the stew with the rest—"

"I want it," interrupted Karyu hungrily.

"Then you'll drop this business about the ikran riding and help me clean it?" prompted Tom.

She sighed. "Okay."

Tom nodded in satisfaction, picked up the kill and slung it over his shoulder, gesturing for his daughter to come with him. "Where's your partner in crime, by the way?"

"Probably making out with Savanna somewhere," grumbled Karyu.

Tom glanced at her. "I thought he was supposed to be helping with preparations for the songs and stories tonight."

"They both are," Karyu confirmed with a nod, "but Kato finds ways of sneaking off and dragging her with him for kissing sessions."

Tom sighed, though his mouth curved into another subtle grin.

* * *

"Here, wait," Kato muttered, stopping Savanna before she could make it out of the family lodge. "Your shirt is lopsided."

She held still and allowed him to straighten the garment. "There, that should do it."

"You'd better not have left a hickey," she warned, rubbing her neck self-consciously. "It was bad enough when my own mother found one. I don't want yours finding one too."

He lifted her hair up and checked, circling her slowly. He shook his head and came to a stop before her. "You're in the clear. Just don't swim without a t-shirt on for a few days, okay?"

She sighed, remembering the mark he had put on her left shoulder. "I _still_ think you did that one on purpose."

He shrugged innocently. "I didn't mean to. I just got a little carried away."

Savanna studied him shrewdly and suspiciously. He held the innocent expression for a few seconds longer before looking away and she poked him in the stomach with her finger. "Admit it! You left that last one on purpose!"

"Ouch," he protested, chuckling. He reached out and put his hands on her shoulders, rubbing them slowly. "Okay, maybe some part of me was doing it on purpose. It's a natural male urge, Sav. Human guys do it, Avatar guys do it and Na'vi guys do it. I just like you so much, it's hard to resist."

She blushed. "Well, try harder. You don't need to mark your territory and it's really embarrassing when it's somewhere obvious and I can't hide it."

"I promise, I'll be more careful." Kato's ears flicked when he heard his mother's voice calling his name outside and he gave his girlfriend one last peck on the mouth. "We'd better get out there. Try not to look guilty."

Savanna found it nearly impossible to do as he suggested. The look on Tanhi's face when she caught sight of them exiting the lodge left little doubt that she knew what they had been up to in there. Kato thought quickly as his mother approached from the cooking shack with a stern look on her face and Savanna had to wonder how he came up with excuses so fast.

"Savanna has a headache. We found her aspirin but she might need to take more later."

Tanhi's suspicious expression changed when she looked from her son to Savanna. There was faint concern in her eyes. "If you are not well, you should lie down. Someone will bring supper to you when it is ready, Savanna."

Suddenly, Kato suffered a major conscious crisis. He didn't mind stretching the truth a little to even the odds for himself, but he had never outright lied to his parents before. Tanhi was trying so hard to be a good host to Savanna, treating their guest almost like a visiting _Olo'eyktan_. A confession poured from him before he knew it. "I lied, _Sa'nok._ She doesn't really have a headache and we weren't in there looking for aspirin. We were...kissing."

Tanhi gave him a measuring look and then shrugged. "I thought as much. You will clean up after the clan when supper is finished tonight, and you will sleep alone in the small hut."

Kato grimaced and nodded, accepting the punishment. It could have been a lot worse than being exiled to the little hut where he and his sister sometimes slept to give their parents privacy. "I'm sorry for lying."

A bare hint of a smirk curved Tanhi's lips. "You are a hot-blooded young male. A mother expects these things." She turned to Savanna, who was blushing brightly. "Come and help with the cooking, Savanna."

"Yes ma'am," responded the girl contritely.

She gave Kato one last accusing look before following the Ikran chieftess to the cooking hut. He shrugged helplessly and gave her a weak smile. He wished he could promise to behave himself but his eyes immediately settled admiringly on the pleasing mounds of her rump when she turned away from him and his hands itched to squeeze them.

Kato sighed when his girlfriend moved out of sight. "I guess Gracie was right; all we boys ever think of is sex."

* * *

Tom was just going back to his trailer to lock up for the night when he spotted something in the distance that made him frown fiercely. Thinking his eyes might be playing tricks on him, he jogged the rest of the way to his trailer and went inside to retrieve his binoculars. When he had them in hand, he climbed onto the roof of the structure and brought the binoculars to his eyes.

After peering through the lenses for a few seconds, Tom lowered the binoculars and muttered to himself. "I'm sure of it...that's a toruk flying this way."

There weren't any toruks close to the Ikran territory, which meant one of two things: either a wild one had left its own territory to die somewhere or his brother was coming for an un-announced visit. Tom looked through the binoculars again as the huge animal descended into the forest, not far from his trailer. He thought he saw a rider on its back but the trees concealed it too quickly for him to be certain. Tom debated the issue with himself, half-tempted to go and investigate but fully aware of the danger he could be putting himself into if it wasn't Jake's mount.

In the end, he decided it was better to be safe than sorry. He climbed down from the roof and went inside the trailer to get changed into his "civilian" clothes. Tanhi would be disappointed and she would probably complain about him hiding his body under layers of clothing, but after all this time, he was still most comfortable fully dressed. At least the Na'vi lifestyle kept his body toned and fit, but Tom felt awkward in a loincloth all the same.

Feeling much better once he had on a proper pair of pants, tennis shoes and a t-shirt, Tom stepped outside again and took a seat on the steps leading up to the door of his trailer. He was so absorbed in watching where the toruk had landed that he failed to notice his daughter coming up the path. He jumped when she called his name and he sighed a moment later.

"How many times do I need to ask you kids not to sneak up on me?"

Karyu rolled her eyes. "I wasn't sneaking. I was out in plain sight. Maybe your hearing is starting to go, _Sempul_."

He gave her an offended look but he put an arm around her shoulders when she sat down next to him. "I'm your father. Show some respect."

Karyu chuckled. "So, what are you doing, sitting here by yourself? I thought you were going to spend more time with _Sa'nok_ so she won't feel neglected?"

"I was going to head back in a minute," he explained, "I just need to confirm something first. Karyu listen...I saw a toruk land in the forest a little while ago and unless it's just a freak coincidence, it's very possible that your uncle Jake is here."

"Uncle Jake?" Karyu peered into the forest with widened eyes. "What is he doing _here_? I thought he and Aunt Neytiri would try to at least stay close to the Omaticaya Hometree."

"I'm sure they would prefer to," agreed Tom in a hushed voice, "but we don't know what's been going on with them since the incident with the mining group. If they've come to see us, they probably need something from us. I don't think Jake would want to get the clan involved in his troubles and he would never deliberately put us at risk, so if they've come there must be a good reason for it."

"Don't say that," Karyu said through stiff lips. "They're fine. They _have_ to be."

Tom's expression fell. "Sweetheart, they're on the run from the UN. I don't know how serious the manhunt is right now but we've got to face the fact that one or both of them will eventually get hurt. Let's not jump to conclusions, though. I don't even know if it was Jake's toruk I saw—"

"It was," interrupted Karyu, pointing.

The dreading expression on her face alarmed her father and he followed her gaze to see Jake Sully emerging from the jungle, carrying his unconscious mate in his arms. He had shaved the sides of his head and fashioned his hair into a multi-braded mohawk. There were dark circles under his eyes and his jaw was set and tense as he approached the trailer. Tom got up and Karyu was already on her feet and heading over to Jake.

"Sorry to show up out of the blue," Jake said flatly when Tom stopped before him and looked down at Neytiri's pale face with worry. "It's an emergency, bro. I would have gone to Norm but he uses mostly native stuff now and I'm pretty sure this is going to be a job for modern surgical tools."

Tom didn't hesitate. "Bring her into the trailer and set her on the bunk. I'll get started right away. Karyu, go and fetch me a bowl of clean water."

She nodded, for once following instructions without comment. Casting one last worried look at her aunt, the young huntress ran to do the task given to her. Tom held the door open for Jake as the exiled chieftain carried his mate inside. He laid Neytiri gently down on the bunk Tom pointed out to him and he hovered over her, smoothing a few errant braids away from her forehead.

"She's hardly complained at all," Jake murmured. "You'd think she only had a splinter in there instead of a bullet, as quiet as she's been about it."

Tom almost pointed out that she wasn't conscious but he realized Jake wasn't necessarily talking about the current moment. He patted the older twin on the shoulder and walked away to get the instruments he would need. It was probably for the best that Neytiri was unconscious, though Tom fully intended to administer a local anesthetic to numb the wound before he began working.

As much to keep Jake distracted as to get the details, Tom began to speak with Jake while he got things ready. He washed his hands thoroughly and pulled on a pair of bio-degradable sterile gloves before setting up the instrument tray. "So tell me how this happened."

"It was a fluke," sighed Jake. "We were hiding out in the mountains, thinking we'd be harder to track with the flux vortex all around us. UNEC obviously guessed the same thing and they sent a scouting chopper up there to look around. I got spotted and instead of thinking to lead them away, I pulled a bone-headed move and went straight back to Neytiri. If I'd have just used my head, this wouldn't have happened."

Tom measured out a dose of anesthetic and he glanced sidelong at Jake with a frown. "You can't blame yourself, Jake. My first move would have been to check on my mate, too. You couldn't know they hadn't found her."

Neytiri moaned in her sleep and Jake leaned over to kiss her, murmuring softly to comfort her. "Shh, we're getting you fixed up, Neytiri. It's going to be okay."

"So they opened fire on you," Tom guessed, setting the prepared syringe down on the sterile cloth he'd set on the instrument tray.

"Yeah, but they weren't aiming to hit us. They were warning shots. One of the bullets ricocheted and got her." Jake looked up from his mate and his amber gaze was dark with guilt. "Tom, if I had just surrendered—"

"If you had surrendered, you could be on your way to a lethal injection right now and Neytiri might have been left for dead," interrupted Tom sternly. "Face it Jake; we all want to believe the UN is going to handle this honorably but past experience with Earth methods has taught us a sour lesson. Sometimes I can't even believe I came from that place myself."

The door opened and Karyu came in with the bowl of water Tom had requested. His greeting died on his lips when Kato came in behind his daughter and he sighed. "I asked you not to tell anyone."

The twins looked at each other and Karyu raised an eyebrow. "You're a twin. You should know how hard it is to keep things from each other, Dad."

Tom glanced at Jake, who managed a faint grin at the girl and her brother. "We aren't as synchronized as you two are, I'm afraid. Who else did you tell?"

"Nobody," promised Karyu, "though Mother might get suspicious and come looking for us, soon. I told her you needed help with a project—which is true enough—but you know how she is."

"Yes, she sees right though you," sighed Tom in agreement. "What about Savanna, have you told her?"

"I wanted to," Kato confessed with a grimace, "but I didn't. She's finishing up a drawing she started yesterday."

Tom nodded in satisfaction and selected a couple of surgical blades. "Good. The fewer people who know about this, the better."

"Why are we hiding it anyhow?" Karyu demanded, planting her hands on her hips. "Our people would never turn them in!"

"And that's why I trust them," Jake assured her, beating his brother to the explanation, "but sometimes ignorance is bliss. Sooner or later, they're going to send someone to ask Tom whether he's had any contact with me and they'll probably question a lot of other villagers, too."

"Which means you two need to practice your poker faces and keep your mouths shut," Tom reminded them sternly.

Kato put on his best "oh, please" expression. "I don't mind lying to humans. Well, most of them, anyway. Some of them are cool."

Karyu nodded. "Dustin and his folks and Savanna's Mom. Auntie Ramona and her boyfriend are good. I guess that Andrew guy is all right, too. You two were human once too, so they can't all be bad."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Tom said dryly. "Since you're both here, you can help me with your Aunt Neytiri."

The twins agreed enthusiastically, happy to help. They weren't squeamish at the sight of blood and Tom had given them a fairly solid medical education, often letting them assist whenever the _Tsahik_ sent someone to him for more advanced medical care. They washed their hands in the sink and got started right away. While Kato helped prepare the instruments, Karyu rolled the spotlight over to the bunk and positioned it to shine on Neytiri's thigh.

"I still can't believe Mo'at declared you both outcasts," Karyu muttered to her uncle, shaking her head. "Why didn't she stick up for you?"

"Because I told her to cast us out," Jake answered sternly. "Mo'at knows what she's doing, kiddo. It's just a formality, to protect the clan. I know everyone thinks all we have to do is give Eywa a shout to drive the big bad humans away but the truth is, UNEC is a lot more powerful than we are. It would take all the clans and Hell's Gate united against them to make a dent and the casualties would be way too high. Just because Mo'at announced our defection doesn't mean she doesn't love us and it doesn't mean she won't stick up for us if she needs to, either. She's doing what needs to be done and Norm and Ni'nat are helping her, trying to teach Emazu some good leadership qualities while I'm away."

Karyu and Kato shared a distasteful glance, frowning in unison. "Emazu," groused Kato, "is _never_ going to have what it takes to be a good leader."

Jake raised his brows. "Look, I know he can be a real jackass but he's got a lot of qualities the council looks for in a leader. That's why he was chosen to be next in line after Tommy. It's just going to take a little time and effort. Maybe one day, I can go back to the village and teach him myself. Until then I think Norm can handle it."

"He's a racist bigot," Karyu accused, siding with her brother.

"This from the young lady who just said she doesn't mind lying to humans," Tom muttered dryly.

"That's different," Karyu defended. "I don't hate _all_ humans just because they're human, for one thing. Emazu would probably gas every human and avatar and hybrid on Pandora, if he could. He's a Na'vi Hitler in the making."

Tom shook his head. "I think that's a slightly radical way of looking at it."

"Don't be such a little drama queen," Jake added with a smirk at his niece. "Yeah, the kid has his issues but he's not a psychopath. He's brave, loyal to his clan and strong. Those are some of the most important qualities in an _Olo'eyktan_, as I'm sure your mother must have told you before. The rest of the kinks can be worked out but Emazu has the most important things down pact."

"Why do you think you've been chosen to lead the clan when your mother can't do it anymore?" Tom pressed. "It isn't simply because your mother is the current chieftain and it's definitely not because of your sunny disposition." He gestured at the patient. "Go ahead and take her bandages off so we can get started."

Karyu grumbled and complied with his order. "I may not be flowers and sunshine but at least I'm not a pig that talks trash about hybrids while making plans to fuck one of them."

"_Karyu_!" Tom sputtered, wide-eyed with shock. He cast an embarrassed look at Jake and Neytiri when the woman stirred in her sleep and groaned. "That isn't appropriate."

Jake stared at the female twin. "Which hybrid are you talking about?"

"It's kind of obvious," Kato answered for her. "Half of the reason Emazu always hated Tommy was because of Grace. You had to have known that, Uncle Jake."

Jake stroked his mate's hair and sighed. "Yeah, I knew. I guess I was just hoping he'd give up. Now that Tommy's gone, I guess he's got no reason to." He pulled his hand away from Neytiri's hair and clenched it into a fist, his eyes darkening with anger.

The twins glanced at each other, both of them thinking it might not be a good idea to upset the man any further. Jake had been through more than enough and talking about Emazu's designs on the girl that was supposed to have been Tommy's mate surely didn't help matters. Karyu fell silent and concentrated on removing Neytiri's bandages without causing undue pain to her. She winced when she saw the bullet hole. It was leaking blood sluggishly and the flesh around it was enflamed and pink with infection.

"_Sempul_, we need to hurry," Karyu informed her father. "She needs antibiotics, too."

Tom leaned over Jake's shoulder to look and he frowned. "Kato, get 100 cc's of amoxicillin ready. Jake, I need you to move so I can work. You can stand at the head of the cot if you want but you need to be out of the way."

Jake didn't question him, far too worried about his mate to second-guess his brainy twin. He moved around to the head of the cot and squatted down, stroking Neytiri's hair steadily while Tom and his kids worked over her. The twins worked well together, hardly needing to ask their father what to do next. Tom gave Neytiri the antibiotic injection first and he told Jake he might switch to something stronger if he needed to. Jake grimaced when his brother made several injections around the wound, numbing the flesh. Neytiri flinched each time the needle went in and Jake took her hands and held them, softly assuring her that everything would be okay.

Tom gave it a few moments to kick in before he started cleaning the injury for surgery. "Okay, let's get started," he said as he dropped the bloody gauze into the disposal container Karyu slid over to him.

He pulled up the stool and leaned over Neytiri to make his first incision. Karyu kept the spotlight steady for him and Kato handed him tools as he went. Jake stayed relatively silent through the whole thing, except to soothe his mate when she made sounds of distress. Twenty minutes into the process, someone knocked on the trailer door and everyone paused to look at each other. Tanhi's voice floated through, asking Tom what he and the twins were doing in there. Tom swore under his breath and nodded to Kato.

"Go and let your mother in," he advised. "We can't keep this from her and if we try, it's only going to make things worse."

Kato nodded and looked to Jake. "Don't worry, Uncle Jake. _Sa'nok_ will understand."

"Let's hope so," he said grimly. "Something tells me she isn't going to appreciate us gate-crashing like this."

"You came for help, not to interrupt a party," Tom chastised. "Tanhi is more reasonable than you think."

Kato went to the door and let his mother in, softly explaining what was going on to her as she entered the trailer. Tanhi walked over to where her mate and daughter were working on Neytiri and she assessed the situation silently, her gaze sliding from the stricken _Tsahik_ to her chieftain mate. She nodded and went to one of the cabinets by the sink. Jake watched her warily as she produced a cup from the cabinet and filled it with water from the bladder attached to her weapon harness. She removed her bow and set it against the wall before coming back and to Jake's surprise, she offered the cup of water to him.

"Your lips are cracked," Tanhi observed softly. "You have neglected your body's needs while caring for your mate. She would not want you to sicken, _Toruk Makto_."

"Thank you." Jake took the cup from her and he remembered that Tanhi always had a strong sense of hospitality, whether she was a host or a guest herself. She always used to make food wraps to share with the Omaticaya, when her clan was staying with them. He sipped the water and he realized how thirsty he truly was when the cool liquid cleansed his pallet. He drank the entire thing down in a few swallows and Tanhi solicitously refilled his cup for him.

"There is stew left from supper," Tanhi said. "I will bring a bowl for you to eat." She looked at her family. "None of you are to speak of this with anyone. They can stay until the _Tsahik_ is strong enough to move, but our people are not to know of it unless there is no choice. Understand?"

"Of course," Tom agreed, having expected her to say something of the sort. "Thank you for being so calm about this, Tanhi."

She shrugged. "What else is there to do? I will not turn my back on a sister of the People—especially when her mate is a blood brother to mine."

Jake gave her a tired smile. "And here I thought you might kick us out."

Tanhi looked annoyed. "You should know better. I owe you sanctuary, _Toruk Makto_. You and your clan gave it to us when we needed it. Now it is time for us to grant you the same." She didn't wait to hear another grateful response from him. Instead, she turned and walked out, leaving Jake staring after her thankfully.

"That's some woman you've got there, Tom."

Tom smiled a little, keeping his attention focused on his task. "I agree and ditto to you. It's a good thing you came to me for help with this, Jake. This bullet is lodged in right next to her femoral artery. You don't want to risk nicking that."

Jake nodded. "So that's what it's called. I noticed that right away and I was too scared to take the risk. Think you can get it out of there without damaging anything, Tommy?"

Tom flinched a little in response to Jake's use of his old nickname, his thoughts immediately going to his deceased nephew. "I'm pretty sure she'll regain full use of her leg. I can get this bullet without having to cut away any muscle tissue; it's just going to take patience and a steady hand. The biggest concern for me right now is the loss of blood. Do you know what type she is?"

"She's D negative," answered Jake. "You wouldn't happen to have any pints on hand, would you?"

"Luckily for us, I do," Tom said, relieved. He would have asked villagers for donations if he didn't have any of her type stored in the chiller, but it would have possibly raised some questions. The last donation drive was only a week ago and none of the villagers had suffered injuries to warrant a transfusion since then. "Karyu, go and get a pint of D negative from the storage compartment. We'll get Neytiri started on a drip right away."

Jake looked down at his mate with concern he couldn't hide. "How bad is she, Tom?"

"She's a little anemic," answered the biologist, "but she could be in a much more dangerous state right now, if you hadn't wrapped her injury so tightly. You probably saved her life, Jake."

Jake shut his eyes and nodded. "I don't think...if anything happens to her because of me..."

"Stop it," ordered Tom. He began to ease the bullet out even as he lectured his older brother. "That kind of talk isn't helping Neytiri and I highly doubt you dragged her kicking and screaming out of the village. She's a big girl and she made her own choice."

Jake fell silent for a moment, watching his mate's troubled features as he caressed them with his fingertips. "I just can't lose her, Tom."

Tom frowned and spared the other man a glance before returning his attention to his task. Tom narrowed his focus again, refusing to let the ominous hint distract him from his patient. When he had Neytiri closed up and recovering, he would speak with Jake about his concerns for his mental health. The man had endured so much and though one might argue that his recent activities weren't that of a sane man, Tom knew his brother. Jake hadn't really cracked yet but he was reaching the end of his rope. One more tragedy might be his undoing.

* * *

A couple of hours later, Neytiri was medicated with painkillers and resting comfortably in her mate's arms. The bunk was quite narrow, but sized for avatar and Na'vi bodies so they were both able to stretch out full-length. Jake was pressed against the wall and Neytiri lay on her side with one hand on his waist and the other resting on his chest. Tom reminded Jake that there was a small lavatory in the trailer if he needed to relieve his bladder or bowels and he promised to bring breakfast in the morning.

"Whatever you do, stay inside," Tom warned. "You know you can stay as long as you need to but you need to be out of sight. If even one villager sees you it's going to start rumors and everyone will know you're here. They'd never betray you to your pursuers but you know as well as I do that Na'vi aren't generally good liars."

Jake nodded and smirked up at his brother, obviously feeling more like himself again, now that his mate was out of immediate danger. "Don't worry, bro. None of your people are going to have to lie for my sake. As soon as she's got her strength back, Neytiri and I will be out of your hair."

Tom swallowed against rising emotions. "There's no hurry. I just want you to be careful. You know you can always count on me, right?"

Jake's gaze was steady on him. "Why do you think I came to you?"

Tom managed a smile and he took a set of folded sheets out of the small storage closet. He covered Jake and Neytiri up and then he gave her forehead a feel to check her temperature. "She's cooled off a bit and she's starting to sweat—which means her fever is broken. I'll have a transmitter in the lodge with me so if there's an emergency, you can patch in on my frequency."

Jake shook his head. "I'm on communication silence until this whole thing blows over or gets resolved. There's no telling what kind of gadgets they're using to track us down with and I don't want to take the chance that they're monitoring any channels, even if it would be damned near impossible. The last thing I want them to hear is me chatting with you from your trailer."

Tom took a deep breath and nodded. He hadn't considered the possibility of anyone listening in on his communication transmissions. "I guess we'll all have to be more careful of what we say from now on."

"Probably," agreed Jake. "If I need you for anything before morning, I'll find a way to get your attention without being seen. It looks like Neytiri's going to sleep through the night though and you did a great job stitching her up. I'm sure we'll be all right."

Hopefully, he was right. "Well, try to get some rest. I'll see you first thing in the morning and I'll bring something light on the stomach for Neytiri to eat."

"Thanks, Tom. I owe you one, big-time."

Tom shook his head. "You two are family. You don't owe me a thing."

* * *

Several hundred miles away, Tsu'tey was preparing for bed himself. He convinced his little sister to get into the family hammock and he promised her he would be back to sleep with her in a bit. "I just want to check on Gracie before bed. You'll be okay until then, won't you?"

Sylwanin nodded gamely. "You're spending an awful lot of time with Gracie. Are you going to take Tommy's place as her mate?"

Tsu'tey's heart clenched and he cupped his little sister's face and stared earnestly into her saddened eyes. "_Nobody_ can take Tommy's place, Sylwanin. Not as Grace's mate, not as clan leader and not as our brother."

"But you take care of her," she reminded him with innocent simplicity. "That's what mated people do for each other."

"That's also what friends do for each other," he insisted. "I'm going to be there for her no matter what. She needs someone she can count on—now more than ever. Gracie doesn't even want a mate now, but that doesn't mean I can't try to make her life a little easier." It was on the tip of his tongue to confess that Grace was carrying Tommy's baby, but he didn't know how to explain such a thing to a young girl and he knew Sylwanin wouldn't keep it to herself.

"Why does she need so much help?" Sylwanin asked suspiciously, inadvertently picking up on his discomfort. "Tommy was our brother and now our parents are missing. We've got as much reason to need help as she does."

Tsu'tey hugged the girl to him and he frowned into her blossom-scented hair. He wished he could tell her everything. He wished he had answers to all of her questions. All he could do was be there for her and try to stay strong for her, Grace and his parents. He caught himself thinking that Tommy would never have this much trouble and he smiled wistfully. No, Tommy would have turned it all into a game to make it less scary and depressing.

"Get some sleep," he advised after a moment of shared comfort. "I'll be right back, okay? Maybe tomorrow night you can sleep with Ralu and her parents."

"Yeah!" Sylwanin agreed, perking up. She always enjoyed their version of "slumber parties". It made her feel like part of a family again to sleep with the Spellman family in their hammock.

Tsu'tey gave her a forced little smile and he hopped up on the branch, leaving her to settle in for sleep. He moved around the trunk, almost to the other side. Grace was sitting on the branch over her personal hammock and she had one hand resting protectively over her lower abdomen. Her shiny hair concealed her face as she lowered her head and Tsu'tey thought he could see her lips moving. She must be talking to the baby. He sighed and approached her quietly, lowering himself down beside her without saying anything. After a moment, she looked at him and her eyes were rimmed with tears.

"I can't sleep with my parents," she explained. "I wake up crying and I'm afraid I'll say something about the baby in my sleep."

He nodded. He guessed as much when he noticed she avoided sharing the family hammock. Most villagers would have welcomed the comfort of sleeping with their family after losing someone they loved, but Grace remained in the hammock her mother wove for her when she came of age.

"Are you getting enough sleep?" He noted the swelling around her eyes, but her crying was just as likely the cause for that as a lack of rest. She napped frequently during the day and he was worried it was because she couldn't rest at night.

"As much as I can," she agreed. "Sometimes I think I sleep too much. That's a sign of depression, isn't it?"

Tsu'tey gently put an arm around her. "It is from what I understand, but you've got enough reason to be depressed. Nobody could blame you."

"I'm also trying to avoid Emazu," she informed him as she laid her head on his shoulder. "He doesn't say anything but I know he wants to ask me to be his mate. It's just easier not to be available, you know?"

"Even Emazu isn't stupid enough to ask you to pair up with him so soon after you lost Tommy," Tsu'tey said, trying to keep the anger from leaking into his tone. "And remember, you aren't obligated to do it...not even if the clan wants you to. If you ever decide you want a mate, it's _your_ decision who you pick."

"You sound like my _Sempul_." She sniffed and pulled away to smile at him. "Except I think Father would rather I never take a mate at all. You're just trying to make me feel less pressured."

"I'm sure Uncle Norm wants you to have a mate someday," Tsu'tey excused, looking away bashfully, "and I just want you to be happy."

She threaded her fingers through his and squeezed his hand. "I know you do, Tsu'tey. If it weren't for you, I don't know what I would do. You've kept me sane. Tommy would be so proud of his little brother."

Tsu'tey swallowed a lump and cleared his throat. "Well, I love you. I mean...you know...I've known you all my life and you were with my brother and all that. You're having his baby, so...I um...I don't mean you and I should...you know...I just wanted you to know..."

She smiled at him, some of the tragedy in her eyes fading in the face of amusement. "I know what you mean."

"Good, because I sure don't." His face burned and his voice squeaked subtly on the last two words of his response.

"You don't have to be embarrassed." She combed her fingers through his braids and gave him a soft look. "I love you too, Tsu'tey. You and your sister are dear to me and you don't know how much it means to me that you're spending so much of your time watching over me. I feel kind of guilty, in fact. You've got so much to deal with and I'm just adding to all of that."

He shook his head and brought her hand to his lips for a kiss. "It's no trouble, I promise. I'd be upset if you wouldn't let me watch over you, Gracie. It means so much to me that part of my brother is growing inside of you, I'd go crazy if I couldn't be involved in that."

She gave a husky little laugh. "This baby is going to know how much Uncle Tsu'tey loves it. Just don't wear yourself out trying to take care of us, Tsu'tey."

He smiled, but as he started to open his mouth, his eyes focused on something behind her and the color drained from his face. "Um...Aunt Ni'nat, hi."

* * *

Ni'nat stared at her daughter as Grace jumped to her feet and turned to face her. Tsu'tey—Eywa bless him—stepped in front of Grace as if trying to shield her body with his. Ni'nat wondered what the boy thought she was going to do to her daughter. She had never even spanked Grace before and Norm had only done it once. She supposed it was purely instinctive and some part of her was grateful for the young man's protectiveness of her daughter.

"Is it true?" Ni'nat asked Grace gently, stepping closer to her. "You are with child?"

Grace looked around desperately, as if seeking a route of escape. Ni'nat wisely kept her expression encouraging and loving on her daughter, fearing that she might do something to hurt herself in a moment of panic.

"_S-Sa'nu_, I...I..." Grace stammered and held Tsu'tey's hand tightly.

Ni'nat placed her hands on the young woman's shoulders. "Don't be afraid to talk to me, daughter. Please, just tell me."

Grace visibly swallowed. "It's true. The night before Tommy died, he and I bonded together and we mated. We only did it once, but it was enough." She rested her free hand over her abdomen and looked at the older woman warily.

Ni'nat's eyes followed the motion of Grace's hand and she smiled in spite of herself. She lowered a hand and rested it over her daughter's. "Sometimes once is all it takes. You and Tommy were nearly of age, Gracie. When the body is ready, it is ready. I could not expect you to have waited and I understand the burning need a woman feels when it is her time."

"You aren't angry?" Grace asked the question in a small voice and beside her, Tsu'tey looked as though he was ready to leap to her defense.

Ni'nat tilted her head a bit, honestly puzzled. "You are Na'vi, not human. We do not shame young women for answering the demands of their bodies. Why would I be angry for your choice to do what is natural with the man you loved, Grace?"

"B-because I know you and Father would have wanted me to wait until we finished our trials," answered the young woman tearfully. "I wanted to, but my body didn't agree with me."

Ni'nat spared a smile at Tsu'tey, who was scratching his head awkwardly and blushing at the topic of conversation. "What we intend to do is not always what comes to pass." She kissed her daughter on the cheek. "You did not act to defy your parents. You have no reason to feel shame. Do you know how much joy you will being to our people with this news, Grace? Especially to Jake and Neytiri. I only wish you could have told them about this."

Grace began to weep softly, unable to hold back any longer. "I wanted to, but I was afraid," she admitted. "And they were gone when I was sure about it. _Sa'nu_, what will _Sempu_ say about this?"

Ni'nat embraced her daughter, slightly concerned about that matter herself. Norm had come a long way in his time with the People, but he still harbored some rather foolish human standards that made Ni'nat want to smack him at times. She decided it was best to speak the truth.

"Your _Sempul_ loves you, Grace. He may not react as he should in the beginning, but if he behaves as a _skxawng_ I will pinch him on the ear and talk sense into him."

Grace blurted a shaken laugh and Tsu'tey smiled.

* * *

Norm sat unmoving, staring at his mate and his daughter. He couldn't even find the voice to accuse them of playing a trick on him. They stared at him with wary yellow eyes and Ni'nat's expression told him that if he handled this the wrong way, he would be the one to pay for it.

"Pregnant?"

_~Wow...good response, Norm. Exactly the kind of thing anybody would expect a guy with a degree in anthropology to say. Maybe next I can ask how it happened.~_

"I'm sorry, _Sempu._ I wanted to tell you the night Emazu got initiated, but I was too scared." Grace looked horribly worried and he knew that it would only take a scowl or a harsh word to turn her into a sobbing wreck.

As much as he would have preferred for his daughter to wait until she was officially an adult to pair up with anyone, Norm had to give both her and Tommy props for doing it the "right way", instead of just mating without the commitment of _tsahaylu_. At least Tommy had done the equivalent of marrying his daughter before sleeping with her and getting her pregnant. What floored him was that they were only together for one night. He and Ni'nat had to try several times to conceive both of their daughters. Jake and Neytiri had similar issues. He took genetics into consideration and decided that Tommy and Grace must have been more reproductively compatible with each other. They didn't have as much human DNA to interfere with things.

Norm asked the only thing his frozen mind could come up with. It was only slightly better than his initial response. "Have you been eating right?"

"Well, Tsu'tey kind of sees to that," Grace informed him shyly. "I've been getting sick more often in the mornings, though."

"Good for Tsu'tey," Norm approved, finally starting to snap out of his shock. "How much morning sickness are we talking about, Grace? Do you throw up more than once?"

"Sometimes," she answered. "Yesterday I almost got sick three times before lunch. I managed to fight off the third spell."

Norm frowned. Some women experienced severe morning sickness, to the point where they vomit themselves into dehydration and weakness. He didn't want to see the same thing happen to his daughter. "Okay, here's what we're going to do. Tomorrow I'm going to go to Hell's Gate and get a blood testing kit. I want you to stay off your feet and drink plenty of water."

"Norm," Ni'nat murmured, "I think you may be worrying too much."

Norm gave her a stern look. "She's our _daughter_. Maybe I can't understand what it's like to be pregnant but I don't think it's unreasonable to want to do some blood tests and make sure she's okay. Are you going to tell me I can't do that?"

Ni'nat faltered and glanced at Grace. "No. I understand how difficult this must be for you. It must be Gracie's choice though. You cannot take her blood without her permission, even though she is your daughter."

"I wasn't going to." He looked at Grace and softened his voice. "Will you let me draw some blood samples? It's just to be sure you and the baby are healthy. If anything is wrong I'd rather find out sooner and deal with it before it gets bad."

"What could be wrong?" Grace's lips trembled and she covered her abdomen nervously. "Are you saying my child could be diseased or something?"

"No, no," Norm hastily amended, putting his arms around her. "I'm sure everything is okay, but I want to be positive, understand? If you or the baby need special care it's better to know right away, don't you think?"

She calmed down a little and nodded. "I wouldn't want to put the baby at risk. I just don't know what I'll do if something _is_ wrong with it."

Norm felt like kicking himself. "Like I said, the chances of anything being wrong are slim. Try not to worry, okay? It's just something your anal retentive father wants to rule out. When we do that we can talk about a diet plan for you and figure out what kind of nutrients you need the most."

Grace looked more worried than anything. "You make pregnancy sound so dangerous."

Norm looked at his mate helplessly. Ni'nat raised an eyebrow at him, silently telling him this was his mess and he needed to deal with it. He sighed and looked his daughter in the eye. "Pregnancy is a natural part of most women's lives. You don't need to be afraid, Grace. I'm just overly protective of you and I want to do my part to keep you and my grandchild in the best possible condition. Don't let me scare you, okay?"

She bit her lip and nodded, hugging him. "I'm so relieved you aren't mad at me."

Norm shook his head and kissed her on the cheek. He was still in a mild state of shock but it was impossible for him to be mad at her. He'd expected she and Tommy to get together, after all. "I've just got to figure out how to tell Emazu to drop any ambitions about you becoming his mate. I'm afraid I'll punch him again if he gives me any trouble about it."

"Let me handle it," Grace insisted, going pale at the mere mention of her father telling the young leader about her condition.

Norm pulled back to look at her searchingly. "Are you sure? Part of a father's job is protecting his daughters, Grace. I know he's been trying to court you and I know you don't like confrontations."

"I have to," she said. "I might not do it right away but I _will_ eventually tell him. I just need time."

Norm heaved a sigh. "The longer you leave him believing he has a chance, the harder he's going to take it when you reject him. You're condition is going to be obvious eventually, too."

"I know," she sighed. "I know you're right, but I still don't want you taking care of this for me. He'll resent you for it and you're his mentor. Things are tense enough between you two as it is."

Norm had to agree with that. "Maybe, but I'm still willing to have a word with him about it if you think you're going to have trouble with it."

"Just give me a little time," Grace begged. "I'm still coping with this myself. Once Emazu knows the whole village is going to know too. I need to adjust first, _Sempu_."

Norm's heart pained him and he reached out to stroke her hair. "Okay. I'll leave it to you to decide when to say something. You need to be as stress-free as possible, so just don't worry about it until you're ready to talk to him."

Grace nodded and sighed against his chest, obviously relieved to have this part over with. Norm held her gently, silently promising her that he would be supportive and take care of her and the baby.

* * *

Early the next morning, Tsu'tey brought Grace breakfast like he always did and he politely held her hair back when she retched, despite her clumsy efforts to ward him off. "I don't mind," he assured her, twining the silken mass of hair around and around to be sure none of it got soiled. She had nothing in her stomach yet so she ended up dry-heaving over her designated "vomit bowl" for a few minutes. When she was finished, she groaned and wiped at her mouth before rinsing the bowl out with the water she kept hanging nearby.

"I'm not hungry," Grace said when Tsu'tey offered a breakfast wrap to her.

"You should at least have a nibble," he coaxed. "Just try. If you can't keep it down I won't bother you again until lunch time."

She gave him an exasperated look as she took the wrapped mixture of berries and fruit. At least Tsu'tey put together a decent food wrap. She couldn't say he was great at cooking hot foods but when it came to putting together the best ingredients for a tasty _nikt'chey_, Tsu'tey had it down to an art. His food wraps were almost as yummy as her mother's.

"You really don't have to do this for me every day," she told him as she took his advice and nibbled carefully at the wrap. She swallowed a small bit and licked her lips in appreciation, though her stomach protested warningly.

Tsu'tey shrugged. "But I want to. You need to keep your strength up and you're eating for my niece or nephew, too."

She smiled softly at him, endeared. He really was the sweetest guy in the village. She felt guilty again, hogging him all to herself when he could be courting a future mate of his own. The thought gave her pause and she considered the situation with Emazu again. She had a horrible feeling he wouldn't accept it if she simply told him she didn't want a mate at all.

"What's wrong?" Tsu'tey cocked his head and regarded her with curious concern. "Is it too spicy?"

"No," she assured him, forcing a smile. "The food is just right. I was just thinking about Emazu. Father wanted to tell him about my situation but I asked him to let me do it. The thing is, I don't know how to begin. I'd like to just tell him I don't want a mate but he isn't likely to accept that, is he?"

"Not when he's got his heart set on you," agreed Tsu'tey with a sigh. "I don't want to scare you but the way he looks at you, he's already got his mind made up that you're going to be his mate. I think he's just giving you space for now because you're grieving and even he isn't crass enough to demand an answer from you this soon."

She lowered her eyes and plucked absently at the hem of he loincloth. "What would you do if you were me?"

He considered the question and shook his head with a sigh. "Since I can't stand the guy, I'd probably mate with someone else just to get away from him."

Grace looked at him to see him grinning at his own joke. She stared. Maybe he was onto something. Tsu'tey's smile faded and he flushed a little, mistaking her look.

"Sorry, I know it's not a joking matter."

"I'm not mad. Tsu'tey, how would you feel if I took a mate?"

He looked very uncomfortable. "You're asking like it matters."

She took his hand and gazed into his eyes. "It does. It matters to me and I want to know how you'd feel. Maybe taking a mate is the best solution to my problem. I'm not showing yet and if I'm already taken, Emazu won't have a reason to pursue me."

"B-but what about Tommy?" He sounded more confused than accusing.

"You know there's nobody on Pandora that will ever take Tommy's place," she whispered as her vision blurred with tears. She sniffed and wiped hastily at her eyes. "I'll never love anyone the way I loved him and any man I pair up with is going to sense that every time we link. I guess it's a foolish idea, huh? I can't be a good mate to anyone and who would bond with a woman that's pregnant with another male's child, anyway?"

Tsu'tey stared at her. "I would."

Grace's mouth went slack. "You...you would?"

He nodded. "For you? Yes. If you're going to pair up with someone for appearance's sake, then you should do it with me."

The gentle insistence on his face physically hurt her and she swallowed hard. "Tsu'tey, do you understand what you're offering?"

"Protection," he said calmly. "For you and the baby. You're considering mating with someone so that Emazu will leave you alone and you won't be raising the baby on your own. Choose me. I'll never pressure you to do anything you don't want to do and I'll help you raise this baby. I'll love it like my own...you _know_ I will, Gracie. I care about you and I know you care about me. Wouldn't I make a better mate for you than some guy you don't even like?"

She could hardly believe what he was saying. "Tsu'tey...this is..."

He took her hands and squeezed them. "You don't have to answer right now. Take a couple of days to think about it if you need to. I just think two people should at least like each other if they're going to be a mated pair and I want you to consider me before looking anywhere else, okay?"

Oh, she really did love him. Not the same way she loved Tommy, of course, but with a wholesome affection that made her want to hug him until he popped. "I can't ask you to do this. You deserve a woman that can be a real mate to you, Tsu'tey."

He grew more confident as she wavered. "What's a 'real mate'? Sex is just part of it and believe it or not, some guys don't need it to survive. You're my friend and you're having my brother's baby. I want to be involved as much as possible, if you'll let me. I'll be waiting for your answer and you don't have to feel rushed to give me one."

He kissed her briefly on the cheek, smiled and got up. Grace watched him go and the food wrap he had brought her tumbled from her numb hands to fall to the ground far below.

"Tommy, what should I do?" Grace buried her face in her palms, struggling inwardly. She'd told herself that if she ever had to take a mate, she would rather it be Tsu'tey than anyone else. She hadn't expected him to propose to her like that, though. What was worse, she was seriously considering it. She felt like she was betraying the father of her child by contemplating mating with his brother. She felt horrible because the bond would basically be in name only. _Tsahaylu_ would be required at least once and Eywa would have to look into their hearts and approve the union, but after that there queue's needn't ever touch again and their bodies would never join together in lovemaking.

"It isn't fair to him," she whispered. "And my Tommy...what would he think? It's so soon!"

She froze and stared blankly at nothing when she felt the brush of lips against her temple. There was nobody nearby and she swore she recognized the feel of that mouth. "T-Tommy?"

"Do it," the wind whispered to her. "Tsu'tey will help you, Gracie."

She covered her mouth and sobbed into her hand, recognizing her dead mate's voice. Either she was going insane or Tommy's spirit sensed her distress and found a way to reach out to her. "Tommy...I miss you so much!"

"I'm always here," answered the ghostly murmur. "No matter what. Live, Grace."

* * *

"Tsu'tey?"

He was just about to head into the horse pasture when the soft voice gave him pause. He turned around to face the speaker and his heart started pounding fiercely as the huntress approached him. The morning light shone on her hair and reflected in her eyes as she padded over to him with a look of quiet resolve on her face. He braced himself, sure that she was about to tell him how much she appreciated his offer but could not accept it.

"Like I said, you don't have to answer right away," he reminded her, hoping she'd arrive at the decision he preferred if she thought about it for a while. "There's no need to feel rushed."

She nodded. "I know." She stopped before him and put her arms around his neck. She pressed her forehead against his and closed her eyes. "I've decided to accept your offer, Tsu'tey. If you're sure about it, we can become a mated pair."

"You mean it?" He felt a rush of giddy relief and he hugged her. "Really, Grace?"

She smiled. "Really. I didn't have to think about it for very long and I had a little help."

He frowned in confusion. "You told someone about this?"

She took a deep breath and looked at him guardedly. "Not exactly. Tommy heard everything and he thinks we should do it."

Tsu'tey felt his eyebrows migrating to his hairline, but not for the reason she probably thought. "You...uh...heard him? This morning?" A chill raced up his spine and back down again.

"You've heard him before too, haven't you?"

He was about to deny it out of sheer instinct, used to people looking at him funny when he talked about hearing voices on the wind or seeing visions without the aid of hallucinogens. This was Grace, though. She was going to be the next _Tsahik_ and she shared his gifts. "Yes, I've heard him. The day he died he asked me to take care of you. It startled me pretty bad but I was already in so much shock, I just accepted it."

She shut her eyes. "That sounds just like him. Getting himself killed and then scaring his little brother half to death. Tsu'tey, you know if we do this, it won't be a normal partnership. I don't know if I'll ever feel like touching another man again, understand? I...I'm lonely, though. I don't want to do this by myself."

He drew her close again. "It's okay, Gracie. Like I said before, mating isn't everything in life and I don't care if we never do it. I just want to be close to you and I don't want you to be alone, either."

She started to cry softly and she hugged him tight. "You'll make a good father to this baby."

He shook his head. "Tommy's the father. This kid is going to grow up knowing that. I'm happy to be Uncle Tsu'tey and help you raise him or her. I don't need the baby to call me '_Sempu_' to care about it."

She nodded and kissed him thankfully on the cheek. Both of them were too emotional to act on their agreement just yet, but Tsu'tey thought the bonding part was going to be easy compared to informing Emazu that they were mated. He unwittingly recalled the time the other boy had shoved Gracie to the ground while playing too rough and he felt sick to his stomach. They were kids back then, but Emazu had a man's passions now and if jealousy blinded him when he got the news, there was no telling what he might do. Tsu'tey made a silent vow then and there that if the other man tried to lay so much as a finger on Grace, he'd cut it off.

* * *

Jake frowned in his sleep as the rhythmic beating noise came closer and closer. It was almost soothing in its familiarity, taking his mind back to his military days and the many rides he had taken in Trudy's Samson on Pandora. He blinked groggily and it occurred to him that he wasn't dreaming the sound up. Just as he started to sit up, the lock on the trailer door clicked and the door swung open. The twins piled into the trailer and shut the door behind them, each of them wearing alarmed expressions on their faces.

"Uncle Jake, you've got to hide," Karyu said urgently, pausing to tug the blinds up and peer outside for a moment. "We have UNEC people coming in...probably looking for you and Aunt Neytiri."

Jake sat up and Neytiri stirred groggily. "M-my Jake?" she murmured, opening dilated eyes to peer at him.

"She's in no condition to run," Jake muttered as he petted his mate's hair and considered whether he should lift her and make a run for the forest. Shadow would be staying somewhere nearby but by the sounds of it, the aircrafts were very close now and they would probably spot them before they made it to the cover of the trees. "Why didn't someone come sooner?"

"Father stopped in as soon as the sun rose," Kato excused, "but you were sleeping so deeply he just left your breakfast in the refrigerator for later. He and mother are out hunting but—"

The door banged open again and Tom came in, wearing full hunter's gear. "Jake, Neytiri! We've got to get you someplace hidden!"

"I know," Jake said dryly. For the first time, he noticed the streak of silver at his brother's temple. "Hey, when did your hair start going gray?"

The door opened again and Tanhi came through. "Are they here, my Tom?"

"They're here," he told her. "Jake, never mind my hair. We've got to find someplace to hide you two until those people from UNEC leave. They could be coming to search the village."

"We will not let them," Tanhi said coldly. "They have no authority here."

"If they think we're hiding something, they might come back with tactical explosives," Tom reminded her. "It's best to cooperate with them for now. If another war is going to start, let's not have it be here, please."

"You have no time to hide them," Tanhi informed with a narrow-eyed look out the window. "They are landing outside now."

"What about under the floor where you keep some of your research notes, Dad?" Kato suggested. "There should be enough room in that storage compartment for Uncle Jake and Aunt Neytiri, shouldn't there?"

"It'll be a tight fit," Tom surmised, studying his brother and Neytiri thoughtfully. "But we'll have to try. If they want to have a look in this trailer I can't say 'no' without raising their suspicions."

Jake watched with interest as his brother and nephew went to the opposite bunk and hunkered down. Tom pressed an area on the floor beneath the bunk and it popped up, revealing a cleverly camouflaged trap door. Jake helped Neytiri to sit up, guessing the two of them were going to be stuffed in there. Tom and Kato dragged the cover away from the concealed area, revealing a compartment that just might fit two Na'vi bodies...maybe.

"Huh. How long has that been there?" Jake asked when Tom lifted the bunk to allow room to get in.

Tom shrugged. "I put it in back when we first had this trailer transported here. I wanted somewhere to hide my research results if the RDA ever tried to come and take it by force. "

"Neytiri, are you awake?" Jake gently shook his mate for a response. "We've got to hide, okay? We need to be really quiet. Think you can do that for me?"

She smiled at him, goofy from the dose of meds Tom gave her earlier when he dropped their breakfast off. "I am much quieter than you will ever be, my Jake."

He forced a smile, trying to ignore the voices of the humans outside. "Let's keep it that way." He got up and carefully lifted her, muttering an apology when she gasped in pain. "We don't have time to be gentle, Neytiri. I'm sorry."

"Here, I'll help," Tom offered as Jake began to lower his mate back to the floor by the trap door. He helped the older twin ease her down and roll her into the storage space. She cried out in distress and Jake immediately crammed himself in with her and tried to soothe her.

"It's really tight in here," grunted Jake as he struggled to make his body more compact without jostling his mate.

"Your head is sticking up," Tanhi informed him helpfully. "Put it down."

"I'd love to," Jake agreed with a groan, "but my neck won't bend that way."

"Here, you're doing it wrong." Karyu decided to help and she ignored her uncle's protests as she started shoving his head into the hole. "Quit complaining. I've seen you squeeze into tighter spaces then this on hunts before, Uncle Jake."

"I'm not as limber as I used to be," he growled. "Tom, tell your daughter to quit mauling me."

Tom looked at the window, failing to find humor in the moment. "Maul him as much as you need to if it will get him into that compartment, Karyu. We've got no time." He got to his feet and whispered something in his mate's ear before glancing down at Jake. "We've got to go outside to greet them. I don't care what it takes, make yourself fit."

Jake groaned again, in serious pain from the manhandling being given to him by both of the twins now. Kato was trying to bend his arm backwards and Karyu popped his neck in her efforts to push his head down further. He heard his brother and Tanhi go out the door just as the twins compressed his body parts enough to drag the cover back over the top of the hidey-hole.

"Stop groaning, Uncle Jake," Kato advised in a hushed voice.

Jake did his best to comply, chagrined. He had warned Neytiri to be quiet but he was the one making all the noise. She seemed to have fallen asleep again.

* * *

A woman led the investigative team. There were thirteen troops in all; some of which remained with the choppers while the others approached Tom and Tanhi with their superior. The woman was youngish—possibly in her early thirties. She had honey-colored hair that she wore in a bun beneath her army hat. Tom whispered a reminder to his mate to be polite as they met up with the humans.

"Dr. Sully, I'm Colonel Daniels."

Tom shook the woman's offered hand. "What can we do for you? We weren't notified of any incoming visitors and the next medicine pickup is a week away."

"I understand that, Sir. I'm here on behalf of General West." She gazed up at he and Tanhi respectively with her green eyes narrowed against the morning sunlight. "I'm sure you're aware that there's an ongoing investigation happening and your brother is a prime suspect."

Tom nodded grimly. "I know someone killed my nephew and it put my brother and his mate in a bad state of mind. What does this have to do with my clan?"

"We have reason to believe he may have tried to contact you recently," she explained. "I assume you're aware that three of the culprits involved in illegal mining activities were killed before they could be brought in for questioning and punishment. Eye-witnesses say Jake Sully and his mate Neytiri were responsible."

"Do they, now?" Tom crossed his arms over his chest and looked at the troops. "Are they saying that because they actually saw him or because it's convenient? After all, they _did_ kill his son. If there was some in-fighting it would be easy to cover it up with a story about a pair of vengeance-minded Na'vi going after the group."

"Dr. Sully, we have no reason whatsoever to believe that is the case here. We have Na'vi arrows taken from the scene as evidence as well."

"That still isn't proof that it was Jake and Neytiri," he insisted. He put an arm around his mate and shrugged. "But either way, I don't know what makes you think Jake would contact me. He didn't even tell us right away when Tommy died. Jake's been very reclusive."

"Some of our people spotted him and his mate in the Hallelujah Mountains a couple of days ago," she confessed. "Reports say the female might have been injured in the attempt to bring them in. Since you're his brother and a highly respected doctor, we think it's reasonable to assume he would have come to you for help."

Luckily, Tom wasn't an easily flustered man. "If Neytiri is hurt, I wish Jake _would_ come to me for help. He should know he can trust me to take the best of care of her. Unfortunately, I haven't heard a thing from him since my nephew's death. I'm sorry I can't be more help."

She sighed and looked down the path leading into the village before glancing at her companions. "I know this is a difficult time for your family Dr. Sully, but I have orders." She gave Tanhi a respectful nod. "_Olo'eyktan_, we need to have a look around your village before we leave. Will you permit it?"

Tanhi stared down at the human and her fellow soldiers. Her expression was hard and uncompromising at first, but Tom whispered a soft plea in her ear and she sighed. "Be quick. My people don't like Sky People warriors moving around amongst them. It upsets the children."

"We won't bother you for long," promised the Colonel. She glanced at the trailer and frowned, pointing. "Who is that in there? I saw someone looking out the window at us just now."

Tom turned, thinking he could cheerfully throttle his offspring right now. There was no sign of whomever the woman saw now but he was sure it was either Kato or Karyu. "That would be one of my kids. They're sick with a flu and I've confined them to the trailer to keep it from spreading."

"Mind if we take a look inside?"

He nodded curtly and prayed to Eywa that the twins overheard his explanation and played along with it. Tom tried not to let his annoyance show on his face as he walked to the trailer and opened it for the troops. "Kids, we've got visitors coming in. Try not to cough or sneeze on them, all right?"

He poked his head in and saw both of the twins lying on the bunkers. Karyu gave him a thumbs-up and Kato was fluffing his pillow. Relieved that they caught on so fast, Tom stepped aside to allow a couple of the humans to come in and look around. He had cleaned up thoroughly after taking care of Neytiri the night before, so there was no evidence of his treating her injury.

Kato looked at the humans and coughed into his fist. "You might not want to get too close. Those breathing filters might keep you from catching it but I wouldn't wish this flu on my worst enemy."

A moment later, Karyu faked a violent sneeze.

* * *

Jake lay crammed into a ball under the floor, listening to the footsteps over his head and the conversations between the troops and his family. He moved his fingers, trying to work some feeling back into them. He regretted it as soon as he did it and the pins and needles struck. Compressing his lips to avoid complaining aloud, he bore the discomfort silently and waited. Neytiri murmured and half a second later, Karyu sneezed loudly overhead to cover it up. Jake covered his mate's mouth with one hand and dared to whisper a cautious warning in her ear. She settled down and relaxed against him, falling back into a hazy sleep.

Tom and Tanhi spoke with Colonel Daniels at length while the other troops had a look around the village. Jake listened in and focused on their voices to distract from the discomfort of his smushed position. The Colonel was talking about the investigation and she mentioned the boy Jake had spoken to—the one that tried to convince his companions to treat Tommy's injuries instead of killing him.

"He said that Sully was insistent that he tell people the Omaticaya had nothing to do with this."

"And they don't," agreed Tom. "If Jake did this, he wouldn't have wanted it to be associated with the clan. I'm not saying he did or didn't do it but I know my brother and he wouldn't have wanted to jeopardize the peace treaty. His son was killed. If he took vengeance on the people responsible, he did it on his own."

"With his mate," reminded Daniels. "He didn't exactly do this alone."

"Do you have any proof that Neytiri killed anyone?" Tom demanded.

"No. Two of the deaths were by gunshot wounds and one was by explosive."

"Neytiri would not touch a Sky Person weapon," Tanhi said firmly. "Especially not the kind that took her son from her."

"She's right," Tom agreed. "If Neytiri was going to kill someone, she'd do it with Na'vi weapons or her bare hands. She might have been involved in the skirmish but I can promise you none of the shots she fired were fatal."

Jake silently thanked his brother for that. He didn't know whether Tom picked up on his desire to get Neytiri out of this tangled mess or if he was just going by his own logic, but his opinion might come in helpful eventually.

"Be that as it may," answered the Colonel, "she participated and she needs to be brought in with her mate. I know the Omaticaya have their own ways of doing things but we've all got rules we have to live under to keep this treaty in place."

The door opened and a man's voice spoke up. "Colonel, it's all clear. There's no evidence that Sully came here at all. The villagers we spoke to seemed sincere when they said they hadn't seen or heard from him."

"All right, then. Get the vehicles started up and we'll get out of here." There was a pause and then the woman spoke to Tom and Tanhi again. "Thank you for your cooperation. If you _do_ happen to see or hear from your brother, please tell him that nobody wants him or his mate dead. General West is doing everything he can to secure a peaceful outcome for everyone."

Jake mouthed the General's name with a frown, again puzzling over the man. He still felt like he knew him from somewhere but he couldn't figure out where or when he might have met him before.

The troops left after several minutes and when the sound of the choppers faded into the distance, Jake pushed open the trap door and painstakingly lifted his head. He found himself staring at Karyu's upside-down face. She was leaning over the side of the bunk looking at him.

"I'm going to need some help," Jake informed her as he tried to move his cramped muscles. "You and your brother really stuffed me in here good."

"We'll get you back out," she promised. "How is Aunt Neytiri?"

Jake glanced down at his mate. "She's out like a light."

"Maybe I gave her too much," Tom said from across the room, sounding a little worried.

"I think it's just a combination of weakness and the medicine," Jake said. "I'll try to get her to eat something when we get her situated again."

Karyu grunted as she pulled on Jake's arm. "You aren't even trying, Uncle Jake. Come on."

"You've got to give me a chance to get my feet under me," Jake snapped. "I've got no leverage and I need to move Neytiri a little."

Neytiri cried out when Jake started to move her. "Shh, it's okay," Jake soothed, easing up. "I'm sorry, Neytiri. We'll be more careful."

Kato squeezed in to help and Tanhi straightened up the bedding and pulled the covers down. With care and patience, they lifted Neytiri out of the hole and Jake eased her back onto the cot. He caressed her face and kissed her before looking at his brother and mate with sincere gratitude.

"I can't thank you guys enough for covering like that. If you get into trouble because of me, I'll never forgive myself."

The small family looked at one another. Tanhi spoke up after a moment. "We owe nothing to the Sky People and you are family."

Tom and the twins nodded in agreement. Jake relaxed a little. At least Neytiri had somewhere safe to recover from her injury and he knew he could count on his brother's family to keep her safe, should anything happen to him.

* * *

West walked into the padded room and he stared down at the man seated on the edge of the hospital bed. "Are you finished with your tirade, Selfridge?"

"Probably not," answered the Administrator sullenly. He looked up at the general with red-rimmed eyes. "They've got me doped up pretty good, but I'm telling you, pushing Jake Sully isn't a good idea. I don't care how crazy I sound. Look up the files. Other people saw it too."

West crossed the room and looked out the reinforced window. "I read the reports. I don't doubt what happened, but none of the other witnesses are here flying off the deep end and causing trouble. I need people that won't fall apart on me."

"So what are you going to do?" Parker demanded. "You know he's not going to go down easily."

"I have no intention of putting him down at all," answered West. "I want him and his mate brought in alive and hopefully unharmed. We can move from there to help them."

Selfridge frowned and got up, walking over to the taller man with a curious look on his face. "Did you go through basic with him or something? What's Jake Sully to you?"

West smirked and shook his head. "I'm Army. Sully was a Marine and even if we weren't in different branches, I'm too old to have gone through basic with him. I did meet him briefly while he served, though."

Parker waited for a moment and spread his hands when West didn't elaborate. "Yeah, so? What did he do to make such a huge impression on you?"

West glanced at him pensively before deciding to answer. "He saved my life in the Venezuela conflict."

"Oh." Selfridge's eyebrows went up. "So you figure you owe him."

West nodded. "I at least owe him the effort of keeping his ass alive. I took a hit in the leg and I fell behind. Jake Sully's team passed by and he saw me lying there. He dragged me off into the bush and took a bullet in the back for his troubles. The last I heard of Sully until we were preparing to come here was that he was a paraplegic living on vet benefits. I was mighty surprised to hear he was living permanently in an avatar body as the leader of one of the largest clans on this continent."

"Hmph...I'll bet." Parker frowned. "He's never acted like he recognized you, though."

"I'm betting he'd know who I was if I told him how we met. The man lost use of his legs because of me."

"So you feel guilty," reasoned Selfridge.

"No. We were both soldiers. Looking out for each other in a firefight is part of the routine, regardless of which branch we're in. But, I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for Corporal Sully, so I'm going to do my part to return the favor."

Parker nodded. "Guess I can't fault you for that. I've got things I need to fix too."

West gave him another stern, sidelong look. "You're not going to be doing a lot of anything until you've got yourself back under control."

Parker grimaced.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Skxawng _**= Moron

**_Tsahaylu_** = The neural bond formed when a Na'vi connects his or her queue to another Na'vi or an animal. It allows the sharing of thoughts and feelings, making it an essential part of Na'vi life.


	11. Chapter 11

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 11: Awakening

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Warning: Graphic sex scenes. Apologies for the chapter mix-up. I failed to "save" after uploading the chapter and I accidentally added chapter ten again as a result. _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. "Lord of the Rings" and all associated characters and quotes belong to J.R.R. Tolkien.**

* * *

At first, the warmth of her mate's body against hers was the only comfort she could find in the darkness. She lived in a haze, with no real concept of time. Food and water was brought to her lips on multiple occasions, followed by Jake's voice pleading with her to eat and drink. She obeyed out of instinct and after a while, Neytiri had some company in her mind. She felt her son's presence, as well as the presence of another male she hadn't heard from or sensed in years.

_"Ma'Sempul_?"

"_Oe kame Nga, ma'ite. Nga zongtseng."_

"We're here, _Sa'nok_. We're keeping an eye on you while you rest."

Neytiri smiled and a tear escaped from beneath one of her lids to roll down her face. "I miss you."

She reached out and she felt them both take one of her hands. Eytucan's hand was longer and rougher than Tommy's and she could feel the strength and wisdom flowing from it. From Tommy, she received warmth and a feeling of security. A female presence joined the other two and Neytiri felt her sister's presence at her back.

"Remember, not all Sky People are demons," Sylwanin's voice murmured.

"They took you all from me," Neytiri insisted.

"Eywa feels your pain, daughter," Eytucan said in his low, calm voice. "Open up to her again and let her guide you. You are _Tsahik_. You know the People never go away forever. We live within the All Mother."

She _did_ know it was true, but it didn't change the fact that she couldn't see and touch any of them physically. She was tired of being separated from the people she cared about the most and it always seemed to be the fault of the Sky People. She told Jake she didn't want to be a cold-blooded killer and that much was true, but she didn't know if she could ever forgive the humans, either—at least, not the ones at UNEC.

Her phantom visitors seemed to read her heart. They didn't hesitate to give their opinions.

"You are wise to be wary of the Sky People," Eytucan said, "but don't close your mind completely. My grandchildren have Sky blood in them."

"The soldiers killed me," Sylwanin said, "but not all soldiers are like that and not all Sky People are soldiers."

"Our friends at Hell's Gate had nothing to do with my death," Tommy said. "Don't punish them for what happened to me, Mom. They're on your side."

Her deceased family members embraced Neytiri on all sides and she welcomed their warmth, considering their words. They faded away and the darkness faded as she opened her eyes. She blinked, trying to clear her vision. Jake's beloved face came into focus, hovering over her with an expression of concern.

"Good morning, Sunshine. Hungry?"

* * *

Jake and Neytiri laid low while she was healing. When she was strong enough, he took her on short walks at night to exercise her leg, careful to stay away from forest areas the clan was known to frequent. Tom, Tanhi and the twins came to the trailer regularly to check in on them and bring them meals. They talked about the most recent news concerning their friends at Hell's Gate and when Tom tried to convince Jake to speak with Norm over the transmitter, he refused. Jake reminded him that any broadcasts could possibly be monitored and he didn't want anyone getting accused of being involved.

After a little over a week of rest and recovery, Neytiri was strong enough to leave the Ikran territory. Jake sat down after breakfast and discussed their options with Tom's family. Tom sipped his coffee and frowned at the small holomap as Jake pointed out different territories closer to home where he and his mate could hide out.

"Why don't you just stay at the Tree of Souls for a while?"

Jake looked up from the map and it was his turn to frown. "Are you nuts?"

"No, I'm not 'nuts'. It's the last place they'd expect you to stay, Jake."

"Of course they won't expect it," Jake grumbled, "because I'm not a lunatic. Why would I ever give them any excuse to endanger that place?"

"I'm going to quote one of the hobbits from Lord of the Rings," Tom said patiently, eyeing his brother. "The closer you are to danger, the further you are from harm."

Jake stared at him slack-jawed for a moment. "That doesn't make any damned sense."

"That's what Treebeard said." Kato shared a grin with his father and sister.

Jake looked between his brother and the twins—who seemed to be sharing a private joke of some sort. "You're all a bunch of geeks and I don't know what you're talking about."

Neytiri considered it quietly before adding her opinion. "It is not so strange. We go where they think we would never go. They may not search for us there."

"But what if they do?" Jake pressed. "That's a big risk."

"Not if you are careful," Tanhi pointed out. "There are many small caves you could hide in nearby. The guardians will keep your presence a secret and the mountains and trees will hide you from unfriendly eyes during the day."

"Satellite images would be your biggest worry," Karyu said, agreeing with her family. "As long as you don't go out into the open during daylight, you should be good. Shadow could be a dead giveaway, though. I hate to say it Uncle Jake, but you might have to switch back to riding your ikrans if you two want to keep a low profile."

Jake looked at his mate. "What do you think about this? You aren't worried that we'd be biting off more than we can chew?"

"I don't intend to bite anything," she said, "but I do believe this is a good plan. We can watch our son and daughter grow up, Jake. They could come and visit us."

He sighed. He really didn't like the idea of putting the Tree of Souls or its guardians at risk, anymore than he liked the idea of putting his clan or family members at risk. He almost said that they might as well return to the Omaticaya village if they were going to go by Tom's "Hobbit Logic", but keeping out of sight at Hometree would be harder than doing it in the mountains. They all presented very good arguments.

Jake looked at them each in turn. "You realize what could happen if the UN finds out they're harboring us there, right? We're talking about the People's most sacred ground and it affects every clan...not just ours. Hell, there are clans out there I haven't even met in person yet that come for festivals every few years."

Tom added more incentive. "Jake, I know this could sound like wishful thinking but I'm really not under the impression that the people in charge of this investigation are interested in open war. I'm not sure how much you heard when they came looking for you but I really think they want a peaceful end to this."

"I'd like to believe that too Tom, but look at how much effort we've all made to keep that place safe. I'd hate to make a mistake in judgment and be the cause of any damage to it."

"Where else can you live?" Kato asked. "Hell's Gate?"

Jake smirked. "Well, they sure as shit wouldn't be expecting _that_. It's even crazier than hiding out at the Tree of Souls. I might as well hand myself over to them."

"Hey, Trudy and Max wouldn't turn you in," Tom insisted. "Quit lumping them in with the UN."

"I'm not," Jake defended, spreading his hands, "but there are lots of other people living on that base too and not all of them are going to keep it under their hats if they find out we're there, you know?"

Tom sighed. "True. I'd just feel a lot better if you two weren't wandering aimlessly through the wilderness. I know there's a certain danger in settling in your position but there's also a protective advantage to being near people that are loyal to you."

"It's not an advantage if it puts them at risk needlessly," Jake stubbornly insisted. He glanced at Neytiri and noticed her crestfallen expression. Leaning in close to her, he took her hand and rubbed it between his palms. "We can give it a try for a while, if you really want to."

She shook her head. "No. You are right, my Jake. I would not want to endanger hallowed ground. I just thought we might have a choice to be closer to Tsu'tey and Sylwanin again..._Sa'nok_ also. She will not live forever."

Jake thought about the losses Neytiri had already suffered and he glanced at his brother and his mate again. Tom had a sympathetic expression on his face and even Tanhi allowed her mask to crack and show a bit of empathy. She of all people knew what it was like to lose a child.

Jake decided then that Neytiri shouldn't have to be separated from her remaining two offspring for any longer than necessary. He made up his mind and he stood up. It was meant to be a decisive, dramatic action but he smacked his head on the lamp hanging from the ceiling. Grimacing, he reached up to rub the spot. The light wobbled and Karyu covered her mouth with her hand and chuckled. Jake cleared his throat and looked down at his mate, still seated on the bunk. Her faint little smile made the embarrassing moment worth it and he smiled back at her.

"I think we should pay a quick visit to Hometree. After that, we can travel to the _Kxanìa Taw_ territory and scout out a little cave for ourselves to nest in for a while—close enough to the Tree of Souls to visit without putting it at risk."

Neytiri perked up at the suggestion but Tom voiced his concerns over the plan to visit the Omaticaya Hometree. "Uh...Jake...didn't you tell your clan to shoot you on sight if they saw you in the territory again?"

Jake waved it away. "They won't. We'll go in quietly when everyone's settling in to sleep, so we don't cause a ruckus. We'll say hello to Norm's family and the kids, tell Mo'at where we're heading and get our ikrans."

"I wouldn't be so sure with Emazu leading the clan," Karyu said sourly. "You'd be giving him the perfect excuse to shoot a 'tainted one'."

"Emazu respects Jake," Neytiri assured, standing up with a bit of effort. She held onto Jake's arm for support. "No matter what he thinks of those with Sky People blood, he will never raise a hand against _Toruk Makto_. I know this."

Neytiri's confidence had the desired effect and the twins relaxed a bit, though Karyu clearly still had her doubts. "Okay, maybe he wouldn't fire the arrow himself but are you sure he can be trusted not to turn you in?"

Jake furrowed his brows at her. "You really think Emazu's going to call up a bunch of humans and invite them to come to the village? Even if he hated me, he wouldn't do that."

The girl grumbled, looking faintly embarrassed. The only thing Emazu hated more than avatars and their hybrid offspring was humans. If nothing else, Emazu could be counted on to avoid all contact with Sky People and tell them to kiss a thanator if they came around looking for Jake and Neytiri. They had all heard about how Norm had to hold Emazu back from picking a fight with General West and his troops when they came to ask questions.

"Uncle Jake, do you think you can stay until we've finished our initiation?" Kato looked hopefully at his aunt and uncle. "We've only got a few more days to go until _Uniltaron_ and then we'll go on our big hunt and be ready for the ceremony."

Jake smiled at the young man, amused by the way Kato hardly took a breath between words. He was still young enough to be boyish when excited about something and Jake imagined his pretty little girlfriend would be quite impressed with the entire affair. He looked at Neytiri and she nodded in agreement when he raised his brows questioningly.

"All right Kato. We'll stick around. We can't show up at the ceremony but we'll be here to congratulate you both when it's over with."

"That's all right," Karyu assured. "We just want you to be here to see us turn into adults."

The adults exchanged subtle smiles, each of them remembering what it was like to be "reborn" into their clan as a daughter or son of the People. No, there would be no magical transformation with the painted symbols, the chanting and the community recognition. Karyu and Kato weren't going to change physically with the completion of their trials but there was no denying that the experience was going to change their lives forever.

Jake's smile faded a little as he thought of Tommy. By now, his oldest son would have also undergone his final task. He would have been painted by his mother or Gracie and he would have stood before the tribe with Emazu to be welcomed as an adult. Tsu'tey could be ready to complete his initiation next year as well and somehow, some way, Jake intended to be there to see it.

* * *

Norm thought he was handling his daughter's unexpected pregnancy fairly well, considering such a thing had always been one of his greatest fears as a father. When Ni'nat spoke to him about having a "family meeting" at his favorite nearby fishing ponds, he expected a leisurely day of fishing with his girls, to give them all a much-needed break from the harrowing events in their lives. Instead, Norm arrived with his mate to find Grace and Tsu'tey there alone. His confusion must have shown on his face when he dismounted his direhorse and looked at his mate, because she apologized and explained she was afraid he might not come if he knew the real reason for the gathering.

Gracie then proceeded to inform him that she and Tsu'tey wanted to become a mated pair.

Norm stood there with the slack-jawed look on his face that he despised so much, his brain refusing to process what his daughter was saying to him. He looked at Ni'nat, who nodded encouragingly and whispered a reminder to him that Tsu'tey was Tommy's brother and a good man. Having suffered more than his share of stress, Norm pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes, shook his head and announced that he was going to go wave a red cape in front of a titanothere in the hopes that it would just finish him off.

He walked out of the clearing in a daze, while his companions stared after him helplessly, each of them at a loss for something to say.

* * *

"Norm, wait. Please, stop walking away and speak with me."

He turned around to face his mate and he bit back a thousand needlessly cruel and unfair things that wanted to tumble past his lips. Taking a deep breath, he spread his hands. "I don't know what to say, Ni'nat. I've tried to be stoic about everything but I think I've reached my limit. I'm trying to help Emazu lead this clan, Jake and Neytiri are on the lamb and meanwhile, I'm trying to be a father-figure to their kids. My little girl is having a baby and now she comes to me and drops the bomb that she wants to mate with the brother of the baby's father—who isn't officially a man yet under Omaticaya tradition."

"Norm, I—"

"And I know I'm just feeling sorry for myself right now," he interrupted, pacing in a little circle over the moss. His toes caught on the stems of a small fern and he swore as he nearly tripped. Disentangling his foot from the plant, he looked at his mate helplessly. "I'm sorry if I'm taking it out on you, Ni'nat. It's just too much. I'm only human...or...I _was_ human. You know what I mean."

She approached him and laid her hands on his shoulders, gazing up into his eyes. "I know you are under terrible stress now, my Norm. I was hoping that you would consider the good that can come of this, before you broke. Tsu'tey is a kind, thoughtful male and his brother is the sire of Grace's child. She will have a mate at her side when she gives birth, helping her through it. I cannot explain to you how much that means to a woman. It would have been much harder and much scarier for me if you were not there to help with our daughters."

Norm calmed down a bit and tried to put his thoughts into words that made sense. "I understand all of that and it's not that I object to Tsu'tey. He's a great kid and I really would rather our daughter have a mate by her side through this whole thing. It's just...on Earth, there's this saying: '_The straw that broke the camel's back'_. This was the last straw for me, Ni'nat. It hasn't been the worst surprise by far—in fact, I'd even classify it as a good one. It's just one more shock than I can take right now."

"You are not a camel," she said.

"No but...listen, that isn't the point," he tried to explain. He saw her mouth twitch and he realized she was playing dumb to distract him. Norm chuckled under his breath and sighed, spanning her slim waist with his hands to draw her closer to him. "Do you promise this is the last surprise I'm going to get from you all today?"

She rested her cheek against his chest and nodded. "I promise. But you must talk to our daughter about this. She needs her _Sempul_ now."

He swallowed a lump of emotion and hugged her close, nodding. "Okay. Just give me a minute to pull myself together."

* * *

"I appreciate what you're trying to do for Grace," Norm said to Tsu'tey after returning to the pond and assuring his daughter he wasn't angry. "I've got a few concerns, though. Gracie's situation gives her the right to pair up with a mate before she completes her trials, but we've still got some explaining to do."

He looked to his daughter. "You know we were talking with Jake and Neytiri about getting you and Tommy through those trials earlier because we all knew this was coming. I wish you would have waited, but we can't change any of that now."

Grace looked miserable but she straightened her shoulders and sniffed back the tears that threatened. "If I hadn't done it, I wouldn't have part of Tommy growing inside of me right now. I don't regret this baby."

Norm's expression softened on her. "I know. I just want you and Tsu'tey both to understand that it isn't as simple as joining your queue's together and announcing your mated status to the clan. Your mother and I are going to help but the council needs to know what happened."

Both young people paled a bit and looked at each other uncertainly. Ni'nat spoke up to ease their fears. "The council will not judge you, daughter. Early pairings have happened before and you were far from home when womanhood came to you in full. It would have been good for you to come to us as soon as possible, but you lost your mate soon after pairing with him. No one will blame you for being too distracted by your grief and fear to speak up."

"Emazu might," Tsu'tey murmured, almost too softly to be heard.

"Not even the _Olo'eyktan_ has the right to make a woman choose a mate against her will," Ni'nat said firmly, "and Emazu has not yet earned full leadership of our people. Do not fear his opinion. He will accept this or he will waste his time dwelling on it, but he cannot stop you from choosing each other as mates."

Norm studied Tsu'tey closely, still frowning in thought. "You know, I understand why you two want to do this. Before I support it though, I want to be sure you understand what it means. You'll be mated for life, not just a couple of friends on a pinky swear to look out for each other. You _do_ understand that, don't you Tsu'tey?"

The young man nodded and looked at Grace with sincere devotion. "I understand, Uncle Norm. I wouldn't have offered if I didn't mean it."

Norm looked at Grace. "What about you? You're in a bad emotional state, Gracie. You aren't settling for Tsu'tey because he's Tommy's brother, are you?"

She flushed and shook her head. "No, _Sempul_. I know Tsu'tey isn't Tommy and I'm not using him as a rebound guy."

Norm didn't miss the guilt in her eyes and he glanced at his mate dubiously. "Look, I think you two need to take at least a couple more weeks to take this in before you make up your minds. I know you care about each other but Grace is in a situation that makes most girls feel desperate and Tsu'tey, you're juggling too much on your own. Let things calm down before you make any rash, permanent choices, okay? You're both too young to rush into this—especially if you're doing it because you don't feel like you have a choice."

"But Dad—"

"No." Norm shook his head and he took a slow breath. "I'm not going to let my daughter make such an important decision out of panic and I'd be a crappy friend if I let Jake's son do the same thing. This isn't something you can just undo if it's a mistake, Gracie. Emazu hasn't tried to club you over the head and drag you off into a cave and you've got at _least_ a couple of months before you start showing outward signs of your condition."

"But...what do we do in the meantime?" Tsu'tey asked in a lost voice.

Norm was a little surprised by the disappointment in the young man's expression, but he imagined Tsu'tey must have really dug in and psyched himself up for the role he volunteered to take. Norm patted him on the shoulder fondly, thinking his parents were going to be proud of him when they found out how willingly he stepped up to the plate to help, though he had no obligation to do so.

"Keep living. Hunt, sing, train and spend time with your friends. Let the adults handle the serious stuff for a while and enjoy what's left of your youth, okay?"

Tsu'tey's eyes watered and he looked away hastily and wiped them. "Yes Sir. I'll try."

"Good. Gracie, the same basically goes for you, except for the training and hunting part—"

Ni'nat cleared her throat and Norm grimaced. "Okay...you don't _have_ to stop hunting or training for _Iknimaya_, but I think you should be careful not to strain your body too much. I especially hope you'll keep that in mind when you start getting heavier."

Grace looked at her mother, who smiled softly and nodded with encouragement. "I'm sure _Sa'nok_ can help me decide when to stop doing all those things, _Sempul_. You don't have to worry though; I don't want anything to happen to this baby. I'll be careful."

"I'll help her," Tsu'tey insisted softly.

Norm had little doubt that he would. "Well, I brought my fishing arrows, so let's make good use of them. I think we could all use a little relaxation."

* * *

The day finally arrived for the twins to complete their _Uniltaron_ and Karyu found herself struggling not to pick on her brother and Savanna as the two of them finished getting ready in the family lodge. Savanna was looking him over anxiously, as if concerned that a single speck of dirt or a loose thread in his garments might bring disaster to him. The adults waited quietly outside while the twins prepared and the hybrid fussed.

"Don't get cocky," Savanna warned Kato with a kiss. "These Dream Hunts are dangerous."

"We know," he sighed, but he was grinning with enjoyment at all the attention he was getting. "Aren't you going to fuss over Karyu, too?"

"Just don't kiss me," Karyu warned when the smaller young woman let go of Kato to hug her. She smiled in spite of herself and returned her friend's embrace. "I'll say it again, Sav: this is going to be easy compared to getting our banshees. I suppose it seems scarier to people that aren't used to seeing these ceremonies all the time, though."

"I understand everything that's involved and what it's about." Savanna released Karyu and looked them both over, checking one last time for flaws in their ceremonial garments and the colorful beads, feathers and plant fibers woven into their hair. "You both look perfect—a real pair of Ikran warriors. I want to paint a portrait of you dressed up like this."

"I don't think we're going to look very flattering when we're finished," Kato warned dryly. "A lot of hunters throw up before the end of it."

"I won't," Karyu insisted boldly.

"Sure sis. Whatever you say."

* * *

Savanna waited outside the medicine hut while the twins underwent their Dream Hunt, along with three other young hunters. Their parents were inside supervising with the clan's _Tsahik_ and the hybrid teen felt acutely uncomfortable, as well as anxious. Some of the clan members her age were friendly enough to her but they were all busy discussing what was going on in the hut. Savanna wasn't about to try and join in their conversations. People began to chant, both inside and outside the tent.

After a while, she thought she heard Karyu's voice raise in a ululating song and her brother's lower octave joined her. She remembered reading about how the hunters often unconsciously sang or chanted during their visions and she assumed that was what her friends were doing. Someone inside the medicine hut moaned and a female voice screamed. Savanna and several other young people outside jumped like startled cats and looked at the structure warily. They could see the warm light from inside and the occasional shadow of a body blocking it out in passing, but only the elders and guardians were allowed to witness the ceremony.

Savanna licked suddenly dry lips and took some small comfort in the knowledge that the sounds of distress from inside didn't sound like the twins' voices. She thought she heard someone retching and an older voice murmured something in Na'vi about a purging drink. She could honestly say she hadn't been this nervous since the UNEC people came and she was forced to hide in the little cave she and Kato often snuck away to for privacy.

"Please let them be okay," she whispered to herself, looking to the darkened heavens. If anything happened to either of them, she would just die.

* * *

An hour later, the hide covering the entrance to the medicine lodge was pulled aside and someone came out. The drums in the village died down and the people stopped what they were doing to watch the participants of the _Uniltaron _come out. Savanna climbed to her feet anxiously, but the first person to emerge was one of the other young hunters undergoing the trial. The girl walked on wobbly legs, her luminescent spots dim and her lips pale. Her mother came out behind her and helped her keep her balance as she moved aside to wait for the others. Karyu came out next and Tom joined her. He offered his arm to her but she shook her head and stood straight and proud. Kato stumbled out when the two of them moved out of the way and Savanna could see that his skin was a greenish tint in the starlight, like the first girl. Kato didn't refuse his mother's aid when she came out behind him and steadied him.

Though they were both sweaty, sickly looking and temporarily stuck with hugely dilated pupils, the twins seemed quite pleased with themselves and they both smiled when Savanna impulsively applauded them. She settled down seconds later and ducked her head with embarrassment when several people stared at her. Apparently hooting and patting was acceptable but clapping was inappropriate.

Tanhi waited until the last of the trial takers emerged and she stepped forward with the _Tsahik_, leaving Tom to support the twins if they needed it. "This night, five more of our young ones have felt the sting of the _kali'weya_ and completed _Uniltaron_. Soon, they will join our hunters in the final step to earn their place among the clan!"

The hooting and cheering grew louder. Many of the clan stomped their feet rhythmically and some began to play the drums again. Flutes soon joined the tempo, along with singing and chanting voices. Those sponsoring the budding hunters helped them to the fire in the center of the village and the night carried on with celebration and praise to Eywa.

Savanna stood uncertainly as she watched Tom and Tanhi leave the twins to rest by the outdoor fire pit. A few people their age congratulated them and some asked them questions, but not many stuck around them for long—as usual. Kato motioned to Savanna with a disoriented little grin and the girl adjusted her tank top and looked at Tanhi uncertainly. The _Olo'eyktan _was heading to the family lodge and she stopped before Savanna when she saw her standing there, looking lost.

"_Uniltaron_ is finished, Savanna. You may go to them now."

Savanna smiled shyly and thanked her before skipping over to the fire. Karyu scooted over so the hybrid could squeeze in between she and her brother. Tanhi watched the three of them for a moment as her children tried to explain as much of their experience as they were permitted to tell. Satisfied that they were coping with the ordeal, she resumed walking to the lodge, where Tom was already waiting for her.

* * *

"So you can't tell anyone what you saw in your vision?" Savanna pressed, disappointed.

"It isn't that," Kato assured her. "It's just...I don't remember seeing much of anything, unless you count the colors and the laughing heads."

Savanna giggled. "Laughing heads?"

"That was probably the two other boys in the medicine lodge with us," Karyu guessed. "They were acting like complete idiots until the toxins made them too sick to laugh it up anymore."

"So neither of you saw an animal guide?"

Kato shrugged. "Well, yeah. I saw a prolemuris hanging from the support poles over my head, just watching me."

"So your spirit animal is a native primate," surmised Savanna, smiling at him. "It makes sense, actually. You're so quick and limber in the trees."

He smiled at the compliment. "I guess so."

"What about you, Karyu?" Savanna looked at the female twin. "Did you get to see your spirit animal?"

The huntress nodded and gazed into the fire. Savanna and Kato looked at each other before the male twin pushed for more information. "Well? What was it, sis?"

Karyu grumbled before answering. "I got a bug, all right? My spirit animal is a silly little bug."

Kato's mouth opened and shut a couple of times before he formulated a response. "Er...well, what kind of bug?"

"A hellfire wasp," answered Karyu.

Savanna choked on the cup of water she had just taken a sip from. It was such an appropriate creature for Karyu, with her aggressive mannerisms. The huntress narrowed her dilated eyes at her and Savanna tried very hard to regain control of herself. Beside her, Kato was grinning like the Cheshire Cat at his sister.

"See? I _knew_ you'd laugh," Karyu groused.

"I'm sorry," apologized Savanna. "It just took me off-guard. A hellfire wasp couldn't be more perfect for you, Karyu."

"Why?" She didn't sound convinced.

"Think about it," explained Savanna. "They're fast, they sting hard and if you make them mad they'll swarm you. You're a lot like that and one day you're going to be the leader of your clan. You'll have your own 'swarm', see?"

Kato nodded in agreement. "Wasps may be small, but they aren't afraid of much and they can do a lot of damage to things several times their size. It suites you, Karyu."

The comments pacified Karyu and she smiled a little. "I suppose I could have done worse."

"Did you get any visions of your future?" Savanna asked. "Or did you both just see colors and flashes of your spirit animals?"

Kato frowned in thought. "It's all really blurry. I remember seeing a bunch of scattered pencils. That's it."

"Scattered pencils?" repeated Karyu. "That doesn't sound like much of an omen to me, unless you're going to end up being a school teacher at Hell's Gate."

"No way," he denied with a scowl. "My life's going to be more interesting than _that_."

"Hey, I could end up being a teacher," protested Savanna. "What's so bad about that?"

"Nothing...for you," answered Karyu with a smirk.

"It's just not our style," finished Kato with an apologetic squeeze to her hand.

Savanna shrugged, not truly offended. The twins were too adventurous for such a career and she doubted they would adjust well to life in the colony—which painfully reminded her that she and Kato might always be distant lovers. She sighed, trying not to let it get to her. "Did you see anything significant, Karyu?"

Karyu stared into the fire again. It seemed to help her focus through the lingering influence of the toxins. "I remember seeing eyes...and fire."

"Eyes in fire?" Kato's face screwed up.

She clicked her tongue at him. "Check your hearing aid, Mr. Magoo. I said eyes _and_ fire...not eyes _in_ fire."

Kato grunted and shifted into a more comfortable position. He put an arm around Savanna to draw her closer as he shrugged. "It still doesn't make any sense. Were the eyes floating over the fire? Shooting fire? Reflecting firelight?"

Karyu pressed her fingertips to her forehead and rubbed in little circles, making the pattern of spots alternately brighten and go dim. Her braided bangs fell over her eyes as she bowed her head. "They weren't together. I saw the eyes and _then_ I saw the fire...I think."

"I almost hoped you were going to say the eyes were shooting fire," Kato sighed. "That would have been cool."

"And impossible," muttered Karyu. "You really do play too many video games. I should tell _Sempu_ to cut you off."

"I'm just making conversation," he protested. "I'm still queasy and if I stop to think about it, I might get sick."

"Here, sip some water." Savanna offered her cup to him and Kato gingerly took her advice. "Maybe you two should lie down in your lodge for a while."

Karyu shook her head. "Not before the others. I have a reputation to look after."

Savanna rolled her eyes at the other girl, but she didn't bother arguing with her. Karyu _was _under more pressure than most people her age, considering her impending leadership role. "At least try to get plenty of rest and eat right before you go on your hunt. Sturmbeests might be dumb but they're a lot bigger than you are and I don't want to get the news that one of you got smushed."

Kato rubbed her back soothingly, even as he swallowed to keep his gorge from rising. "Don't worry. We've got a couple of days to recuperate before the hunting party moves out."

Karyu nodded. "And when we come back, we can finish our initiation rites and become adults. We'll finally have control over our own lives."

"You shouldn't be in such a hurry to grow up," Savanna warned. "You can't go backwards, you know."

"I wouldn't want to," Karyu said seriously. "I've already got more responsibilities than anyone else our age in this village and it's past time for me to have the rights that should come with it."

Savanna nodded in understanding, though inwardly she still thought her friend was in too big of a rush.

* * *

Three nights later, the twins returned after a successful hunt and together with two of the other young people that underwent their Dream Hunts, they prepared to be reborn as official hunters of the Ikran clan.

"Tonight everything's going to change for those kids," Jake sighed, peeking through the blinds of the trailer window. "I can hear the drums and chanting. They'll probably come stumbling in here to show off soon, drunk on moonshine."

"I believe Karyu will have more restraint than her brother," Neytiri murmured, reclining on the bunk while her dinner settled. "She would not wish to look foolish."

Jake turned away from the window and smirked at his mate. "Someone ought to tell her to curb that temper of hers, then. She and Emazu have that in common—but don't tell her I said that."

Neytiri smiled up at him and scooted back, patting the narrow bunk invitingly. "She is learning not to let her quick temper get the better of her. Like her _sa'nok_, she will find a good balance in time and become a good leader."

Jake sat down on the edge of the bunk and leaned over her, kissing her leisurely before looking down at her with admiration. "You've got your confidence back, beautiful. How are you feeling?"

She considered the question while she traced the stripe patterns and faint scars on his chest. "Sorrowful, but I no longer despair as I did before. Our son would not want that and our two living children need us. I just hope that we have not ruined our chance to help them grow to adults, my Jake."

He shut his eyes and grimaced with emotional pain. "I'm sorry, Neytiri. I'm sorry I got us into this and made our lives harder."

"Don't." She spoke sternly, even as she watched him with a tender expression. "You must stop this. I will not tell you again; I chose to come and I could have tried to put an end to it before it began. I wanted revenge as much as you."

He lapsed into silence and kissed the crown of her head as she laid her cheek against his chest. Relishing the moment of closeness, he shifted into a more comfortable position and stretched out beside her on the bunk. He rubbed her back and continued nuzzling her hair as she caressed his waist and rubbed her cheek against his chest. She tilted her head back and started kissing his clavicle and neck with soft, tickling brushes of her lips. A shiver of pleasure raced down his spine and Jake cursed himself inwardly when her gentle affections began to arouse him.

"Where are you going?" Neytiri demanded when Jake started to scoot away.

"I'm just going to check our gear," he excused. "We're going to be leaving in a day or two and I want everything in top shape in case we run into trouble."

"It will still be there later," she insisted, grabbing hold of his queue before he could get out of the cot. She tugged just enough to stop him from getting up and she looked at him with quietly demanding eyes.

Jake found himself smiling as he took the hint and relaxed beside her again. They hadn't been intimate since this whole thing began. The brief periods of _tsahaylu_ they had formed while she was mute only served to help him communicate with her. The usual pleasure of the bond wasn't there, simply because they were both suffering so much turmoil and heartache. She held her hand up flat, spreading her fingers.

He laid his palm against hers and like neural tendrils entwining together, their fingers interlaced and they held hands. Neytiri stared into his eyes and smiled softly. There was gratitude in her gaze to go with the sadness and even without a proper queue link established; Jake knew she was thankful they were both alive.

That was a very good thing, in Jake's mind. The one thing that loomed larger in his mind than avenging Tommy's death was his fear for her. Deliberate suicide was almost unheard of amongst the Na'vi clans but the grief stricken and depressed did occasionally give up on living. When that happened, they either withered away or got themselves killed because they simply didn't care what happened to them any longer. He propped himself up on one elbow and coaxed her to come closer. She did so and she laid her head against his shoulder while he nuzzled her hair.

"I've missed this," Jake confessed softly, shutting his eyes as he inhaled her scent. Holding her like this again just for the sake of doing it made the pain ease. He almost felt like himself again. With the return of a sense of normalcy came a sense of clarity. He kissed his mate's forehead again and held her a little closer. "It's going to be good to see the kids. It feels like we've been away longer than we really have."

"We suffered a sickness of the heart and spirit," murmured Neytiri softly. She released his hand and toyed with the small, bead-woven braids hanging over his shoulder and down the right side of his chest. "I think we owe our children an apology, my Jake."

He had to agree with her. "Norm, too. I really dumped a lot on his shoulders. All I can do now is try to make it up to him and the kids."

"We will," Neytiri promised between light kisses along his jaw. "For now, I want to enjoy you."

Jake grinned and waggled his eyebrows at her. "You make me sound like a snack."

Her lips smiled against his throat as her kisses progressed lower. "You are more of a feast, my Jake." She released his hand and cupped the side of his head, urging him to tilt his neck.

He shivered in delight as her fingertips skimmed the sensitive outer rim of his ear. "Nothing beats hearing that from a beautiful woman." He cupped her chin and kissed her on the lips, growing visibly excited. Neytiri skimmed her fingers down his throat, over his shoulder, down his chest and stomach until she reached his navel. She teasingly traced his belly button, making his stomach tense. The sound of the drums and singing coming from the village quickened their blood and soon, they were wrestling with their tongues. Jake's breath caught when Neytiri's hand settled on the increasingly obvious bulge in his loincloth. He thrust his tongue into her mouth demandingly as she began to rub the source of his tension.

"My Jake," Neytiri sighed as his lips sought out her throat.

She tilted her head back and continued to gently stroke him through the loincloth. He lifted her protective necklace off and dropped it on the bunk. He fondled her exposed breasts with calloused, skilled hands and he pressed a leg between her thighs. She purred low in her throat as he rubbed against her with his thigh, causing a delightful friction against her loins. He smiled at her reactions, pleased with himself for knowing her body enough to evoke such pleasure so easily. Likewise, Neytiri knew every inch of him by now and she was taking full advantage of that knowledge, touching him in ways she knew made him weak in the knees.

Jake deepened the kiss and made a soft sound of pleasure in his throat, instinctively pushing into her stroking hand. He rolled onto his back and brought her with him. As she straddled him, she reached for her queue with her free hand and offered the tip to him. Jake stopped fondling one of her breasts to make a grab for his braid, eager to establish the bond with Neytiri before mating. Just as their reaching tendrils were about to entwine, someone came banging on the trailer door. It startled Jake so bad he almost threw Neytiri off of him. She grimaced in pain and he gasped a quick apology to her, mortified with himself for handling her so roughly.

"Don't come in here," Jake called when he heard Kato's inquiring voice from outside. He looked around for Neytiri's chest piece and he snatched it up as soon as he spotted it. Grumbling sourly, he sat up and helped her put the necklace on. "Just a minute, kids."

Neytiri's eyes settled on Jake's crotch when he sighed and shook his head. She was clearly trying not to laugh at him but her lips twitched anyhow. "It is not so bad."

Jake raised his eyebrows and looked down at the prominent erection tenting his loincloth. "That's easy for _you_ to say. You aren't the one that looks like a pervert, here."

She chuckled behind her hand. "The twins are old enough to understand what mated pairs do together, Jake. No need for shame."

Jake slipped under the covers, all the same. "All right, come on in," he called out.

The door opened and the twins came into the room, smiling broadly under the symbolic paints decorating their faces and bodies. "Uncle Jake, Aunt Neytiri, you're looking at the clan's newest protectors."

Jake chuckled at the enthusiasm and pride in Kato's announcement. "And I'll bet having your girl smiling at you the whole time made the ceremony that much better."

Kato grinned, not denying it. "I think Savanna was impressed. In fact, I probably shouldn't stay too long. She's going to wonder where we ran off too and since I can't tell her you guys are here, I don't want her to come looking. She's already a little suspicious that we aren't spending more time helping Dad in the trailer with his research."

"Well, we're leaving in the morning," Jake said. "So you won't have to worry about it much longer."

Karyu sighed and crossed the room to plop down on the edge of the bunk. "It's too bad you can't stay longer, but I know you want to get home to Tsu'tey and Sylwanin. Are you sure it's safe, though?"

Neytiri spoke up. "Our people will not turn us away, and we are not going to be staying at Hometree. We will remain hidden from the humans, but close enough to spend time with our children and watch over the clan."

Karyu leaned toward her aunt to give her a rare hug. "Just please be careful. If you get tired, tell Uncle Jake to land and let you rest."

Jake smiled at the young woman. "You know I'll take good care of her, little chieftess. She's my everything." He flushed as soon as the second sentence left his mouth, embarrassed.

Karyu released Neytiri and grinned at him, her golden eyes sparkling with sly mirth. Her gaze swept over him and he shifted uncomfortably, trying to hide the evidence of his condition that hadn't yet gone away. "And what were _you_ two up to when we came?"

"Something I don't want to talk about with my niece," Jake said with a mock scowl.

"Why, was it something bad?" Kato cocked his head in a gesture very similar to Jake and Tom's inquisitive reactions. He hiccuped a second later and hastily covered his mouth with his hand.

"Kato, you can be really naive," Karyu accused her brother with an exasperated look at him.

"He's just a little drunk," Jake defended, taking pity on the more sensitive twin.

"But he's always dingy," snorted Karyu. "He's a dumb genius."

"Hey, I'm not dumb," Kato protested.

"No...you're one of the smartest people on Pandora," agreed his sister with a wry smirk. "But you spend most of your time with your head in the clouds. That's why Dusty calls you a 'dingbat' half the time."

"There is nothing wrong with being a dreamer," Neytiri offered with a smile for her nephew. "Many such Na'vi do great things."

Kato gave his sister a superior look. "See? A _Tsahik_ is on my side."

"Whatever." Karyu waved a hand at him dismissively. She turned her attention back to her aunt and uncle. "Don't leave before _Sa'nok_ and I have a chance to bring you some food rations for the trip. We're going to make some fresh leaf wraps as soon as the sun comes up, so you won't have to stop to hunt or gather on your way home."

Jake nodded and he reached out to pat her on the head. "You're all right, kid."

Karyu jerked her head away and gave him an offended look. "I'm a girl, not a banshee. You don't have to pet me when I do something nice."

Neytiri laughed softly. "You are growing to be a good leader, Karyu. You will make a fine _Olo'eyktan_, some day."

Karyu shrugged, blushing a little at the compliment. "Hopefully that day won't come for a long time."

* * *

The next morning, Tom and his family went into the forest with Jake and Neytiri to see them off. As promised, Karyu presented them with a leather satchel filled with enough food wraps to feed them for two days. Tom looked up at Shadow as the formidable beast answered Jake's call and flew in from somewhere in the nearby hills.

"I told Norm you'll be coming," Tom admitted as he helped Neytiri mount up behind Jake. "Don't worry though...I used the code speak we used to make use of in Avatar training. If anyone did happen to be listening in, they'd hear a conversation about books. He was planning on sending Grace and the other kids here to visit us but now that you're heading in, he's going to put that on hold."

Jake nodded. "How did he sound?"

"Stressed," answered Tom, "but you know Norm. He can juggle a lot before he can't take anymore. He sounded relieved that you two are coming home. He said he's got something to tell you when you get there, too."

Jake sighed. "I hope he doesn't think things can go back to the way they were."

"It's Norm," reminded Tom. "If anybody understands how complicated things are going to be, it's him. Between him and Trudy we've always stayed a step ahead of the RDA's conspiracies."

Jake chuckled at that. While Trudy didn't worry as much as Norm, she shared his talent for obscure thinking and theorizing conspiracy theories. "What's that saying? 'It's not paranoia if someone's out to get you'?"

Tom nodded and gave a soft laugh as well. "That's right. In Norm's case, it's literal."

Jake looked at the morning light slanting through the jungle canopy and he sighed again. "I've got a lot to make up for."

Tom stepped back to give Shadow room for a takeoff. "After what you've been through, I think everyone will forgive you. Go on, Jake. The sooner you leave, the sooner you can start earning that forgiveness."

"Don't be too hard on yourself, Uncle Jake," Kato advised, stepping back with his father. "You did what most people only wish they could do and those men didn't get away with what they did to Tommy."

Jake grimaced. "_Most_ of them," he agreed. "It doesn't matter now, though. I've got a hot-headed clan leader to talk some sense into and a couple of kids to look after."

Tom patted him on the arm. "If it's any consolation, Norm told me that Tsu'tey's been a saint through all of this. He takes good care of his sister and Norm's girls and he never complains."

Jake turned to glance over his shoulder at his mate. "He gets that kind of patience from you, gorgeous."

Neytiri smiled with quiet pride. "Our Tsu'tey is almost a man. He will make a good mate and father, someday."

"I want to visit the Omaticaya when Tsu'tey goes through his final trials," Karyu announced. "I can give him some pointers."

Jake smiled at the spirited young huntress. "I'll bet he'd appreciate that. Take care of your brother and your parents, Karyu."

She nodded, ignoring the grimace Kato gave her. "Of course. Say 'hi' to everyone for us, Uncle Jake."

"Will do." Jake gave his toruk a mental command and Shadow spread his wings for takeoff. The powerful flaps stirred up dirt and moss and Tom's family backed away a little more, shielding their eyes. Within moments, Jake and Neytiri were in the air and flying over the forest, away from the Ikran village.

Tom watched his brother and sister-in-law vanish in the distance, frowning in thought. When they were out of sight, he put an arm around Tanhi's slender waist and nodded at the kids. "Let's go have our breakfast, now."

Kato lingered a bit, looking over his shoulder in the direction his aunt and uncle disappeared to. "I really hope they're going to be okay."

Karyu linked her arm in his and tugged, urging him to walk with her. "They will be. Uncle Jake knows all the tricks and Aunt Neytiri has perfect aim with her bow. Don't worry so much."

* * *

Later that afternoon, Kato sought out some privacy with Savanna in the forest. To his surprise, she unpacked a gun from her belongings and took it with her before they left. He eyed the weapon curiously as they left the village and he wondered if part of the reason she had brought it was to serve as a silent reminder to keep his hands to himself.

"So, do you know how to shoot that thing?" Kato gestured at the firearm holstered at his girlfriend's denim-clad hip.

Savanna smirked up at him. "What do you think?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "You're always surprising me. Just when I think I know everything about you, something new comes up."

She took the gun out of its holster and presented it to him. "It's an SN-9 Wasp revolver. It's okay...the safety is on. Go ahead and take it."

He gingerly did as she advised and he weighed the unfamiliar weapon in his hands. It seemed smaller, now that he held it. Of course, it was manufactured for human use. "It's really light," he said in surprise. He held it as he had seen humans holding such weapons on television and he shut one eye as he aimed at the trunk of a tree. "Is it hard to use?"

"Not really, once you get the hang of it," she answered. "There's a kickback that can take you by surprise but once you understand the mechanics, it's a pretty easy gun to use. Papa made sure I learned how to shoot as soon as I reached puberty."

Kato didn't find that very surprising at all, given the way people picked on Savanna for her unique inheritance. He handed the gun back to her and silently admired her. He loved her eyes. They reminded him of the autumn season he saw on old Earth tv programs, with the mixture of green and gold. Her soft, mahogany-colored hair feathered over her brow and fell in waves to her mid-back. The queue was as long as any Na'vi braid, hanging down past her hips. He smiled at the pink ribbon tied around the end of the queue. It was a signature "Savanna" touch, delicately feminine. Looking at the queue drew his attention to her bottom and Kato found himself unable to look away. Damn, those denim shorts hugged her ass just right. Her tail swished absently as she walked, acting like a beacon to him. He was sure he'd cream himself if she ever dressed like a native in front of him again. The layers of human clothes made it a little easier for him to be around her without sporting a constant "woody".

Speaking of "woodies", his crotch was starting to stiffen warningly. Kato groaned softly and forced his eyes away from Savanna's pert little butt. "There's a waterfall near the hills to the west," he said absently. "It could work like a shower, if you want to bathe there."

"Are you saying I'm dirty?"

Kato looked at her and blinked. "No! I just meant...you're used to having showers and you've been bathing in one of the mineral pools here. I thought it might make you feel more at home, that's all. I promise I won't peek."

She chuckled and after she holstered her gun, she put her hands on his shoulders and gazed up at him fondly. "Look at you, all flustered and embarrassed! You're so cute."

Kato grinned and put his hands on her waist. Eywa, he loved her curves. Most Na'vi girls were like sticks to him, lacking the graceful contours that made his mouth water. Like Grace Spellman, Savanna was blessed with a distinctly feminine figure and Kato knew that even the boys that picked on her liked to watch her. He lowered his mouth to hers for a kiss, claiming her plush, shapely lips with enthusiasm. Other boys might look but he was the only one that got to touch. He knew it without a doubt, suffering no jealous delusions concerning his girlfriend's trust. He knew that even if someone tried to put the moves on her, she would decline—politely at first and then with greater aggression if they persisted.

"How many boys have you had to throw in the trash, lately?" He asked the question between kisses and he slowly began to move his hands in a southward direction.

She giggled softly and she toyed with the beaded necklace around his throat. "That's a strange thing to ask me."

He nibbled her ear and smiled when she shivered against him. "I don't think it's strange. You're a beautiful woman, Sav. Am I supposed to believe no other men notice you?" He splayed one hand over the small of her back and pushed her closer, until her breasts were pressing against his chest through the cotton material of her tied half-shirt. He purred, taking delight in the feel of her delectable curves pushing so intimately against him.

"Is that a gun in your loincloth, or are you just happy to see me?" She pushed ineffectively against his chest, fighting laughter.

Kato traced her lips with the tip of his tongue before speaking. "I'm _always_ happy to see you." He claimed her mouth again for a deep kiss and he held back a groan when she whimpered. He was fast losing control of the situation and he no longer cared that his condition was obvious to her. Her clever little hands were sliding down his chest and his heartbeat quickened in anticipation when they reached his lower belly. Savanna had only touched him down there once, so far—over the loincloth. The thought of those talented hands squeezing and caressing his erection nearly undid him. His kisses became more insistent and he cupped her bottom to pull her more tightly against him.

The best part of becoming an adult was that now, he didn't have to worry about his sister constantly foiling his attempts to get into Savanna's panties. Not that it was the _only_ thing he cared about but like many boys his age, sex was usually forefront on Kato's mind. He wanted to ease his aching sex into Savanna's body and feel what it was like to be gripped tight by a woman's silky flesh. Before it came to that, however, he had to work on his foreplay skills. The last thing he wanted to do was cause his girlfriend any pain. He wasn't a rutting beast that cared only about getting inside of her, after all. He was just about to ask her if he could try something when he became...distracted.

Her fingers slipped underneath the leather of his loincloth and Kato instinctively tensed, his breath halting. Somehow, he remembered to keep kissing her. When her hand curled around the girth of his erection he shuddered and murmured something to her that sounded an awful lot like begging. She tugged on the length of his shaft, sliding her hand along to the tip before stroking forward again.

"Is that okay?" Savanna asked in a whisper, searching his eyes with her own.

"More than okay," he gasped. "Feels great."

She smiled, seeming pleased with herself. She began to fondle him steadily, finding a rhythm of motion she was comfortable with. Kato held her close and tried to calm his breathing, afraid to move and risk disturbing her. He caressed her bottom and moaned her name, struggling to stay still as he confidence grew and her stroking increased in speed and friction. Somehow, his loincloth ended up on the forest floor and he couldn't be sure whether he pulled it off or she did. Now naked except for his weapon harness and tribal necklace, Kato panted softly and kissed his girlfriend eagerly. He dragged his hands up from her backside to her shoulders and moved them around to the front. Savanna rewarded him with a faint moan of pleasure when he cupped her breasts through her shirt and brushed his thumbs over her tightened nipples.

Kato sank to his knees and Savanna went with him. He eased her onto her back, softly pleading with her to keep touching him. She obligingly continued stroking him off as he eased onto her and started unbuttoning her shirt. Savanna murmured his name and he paused, wondering if he was going too fast. She didn't make any formal complaints so he resumed what he was doing. His fingers trembled as they moved and when he pulled her shirt open to stare at her lacy bra and cleavage, Kato was forced to take a deep breath and struggle for self-control.

"I...I'm going to come soon," Kato warned her, flexing his hips instinctively.

"It's okay," she assured him. She kissed his throat and her breath was slightly uneven, hinting at anxiety she tried to conceal from him.

Kato paused just before he would have unfastened her bra—which thankfully clasped at the front instead of the back. "I'll stop if you want me to."

She shook her head. "I don't want to stop. But just so you know, we aren't going all the way, yet."

He gave her a strained smile. "I know. I've got work to do before you're ready for that."

"Work?" She raised an eyebrow and the stroking of her hand stilled.

"I just meant I have things to learn," Kato tried to explain. "I want you to want it as much as I do, you know?"

"I _do_ want it as much as you do," she corrected. Her hand resumed its motions and she smiled when he shut his eyes and sighed in pleasure. "I just don't want to rush."

"No rushing," he agreed huskily. "Got it. Oh, that feels so good." He lowered his head to her chest and nuzzled her cleavage, gently humping her hand.

"It's neat," she said softly.

Kato lifted his head and gave her a confused look. "What...my dick?"

She flushed. "Don't look so surprised. It's the first one I've ever touched, after all."

Kato grinned, amused and happy at once. "So you like it, huh?"

"Silly. I wouldn't be petting it if I didn't like it."

He laughed, but the sound was soon cut off by a moan when her thumb stroked against the sensitive slit in the tip of his arousal. Seeing the reaction she was getting, she did it again and she kept rubbing the spot until he was squirming and panting. In his lust and enthusiasm, Kato forgot his own strength and his effort to unclasp her bra resulted in him breaking the clasp and snapping the garment open. He was going to apologize but the sight of her perfect, round breasts and up-thrust nipples stole his breath away. The areolas were lilac colored, like her stripes. He lowered his mouth to the left one and traced the dark circle with his tongue before taking the nipple between his lips. Savanna gasped and arched her back invitingly, pushing her flesh deeper into his mouth. He teased the other nipple with his fingers, squeezing and rubbing it until it was as hard as a pebble.

"Kato," Savanna moaned, squirming as much as he was.

He kept suckling and fondling her, even as his breath shuddered in his lungs and his body tensed. He mumbled an incoherent alert to her when her rapidly pumping hand brought him to the brink. He released her nipple and buried his face between her breasts, trembling all over as his orgasm struck.

"Unh...Sav..." He bucked in her hand and got his seed all over her thigh. He would have been embarrassed about that, if he weren't in so much pleasure. All he could do was feel as his girlfriend's firm strokes milked every drop from him. He collapsed on top of her when it finished, panting heavily. Savanna stroked his hair and offered no complaints as he laid his head on her breasts.

"Are you okay?" she asked him after a moment.

A bit mortified, he nodded and lifted his head to look down at her. "I'm _more_ than okay. You're amazing." He kissed her almost shyly, hoping she didn't resent him for the mess he'd made on her. "I'm definitely taking you to that little waterfall, now. I'm sorry I slimed you like that."

She laughed, blushing prettily. "A Ghostbusters reference? It's okay, Kato...really. I knew that was going to happen and you didn't get any on my clothes." She looked down at her naked breasts and blushed deeper. "I'm more worried about my bra. You broke it."

He winced. "Yeah, sorry about that, too." His eyes went to her breasts and he sighed, cupping the right one gently. "Can't I just spend the rest of the day pushing my face between your boobs?"

"Kato!"

"What?" He tried to sound casual, but the idea had too much appeal to him. "Is it wrong for me to admire my girlfriend's tits?"

"You don't have to be so...crude," she complained.

Seeing that she was really embarrassed, he kissed her softly and apologized. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to talk so dirty to you."

She sighed. "Well, your status as my boyfriend allows for certain privileges. I guess I can overlook this one. Try to tone down on the potty mouth, though. This is real life, not porn."

He grinned sheepishly. "Okay. I'll use more dignified terms for these beauties." He kissed said "beauties" one at a time, enjoying the silken skin against his lips. "Your ripe, feminine fruit. Your voluptuous globes of goddess-hood. Your—"

"Cut it out," she giggled. Her laughter turned into a gasp when he licked one of her nipples and made it stand at attention again.

"Should I really stop?" he teased, and then he traced the pebbled nub with the tip of his tongue.

"Oh...I...K-Kato," she said uncertainly. She stroked his hair and arched her back again when he sucked on the bud.

Seeing that she was enjoying the attention, Kato stimulated both breasts with mouth and hands, switching back and forth between them to give her the most sensation. He kept doing it until her body went taught and she panted his name. Guessing he'd just returned the favor and given her an orgasm, Kato smiled and propped himself up on his elbows to look down at her. Savanna's skin was sparkling with a sheen of perspiration and her eyes were sleepy and dazed. He kissed her on the lips before asking the question on his mind.

"Did you?"

She nodded. "I...didn't think that could happen without touching down there."

"Next time I'll do that," he promised, kissing her again. "It's too bad I don't have four hands."

"You'd never get anything done." She was smiling in satisfaction even as she made the snarky comment.

Kato eased his body off of her and he took a moment to admire her naked breasts before seeking out his discarded loincloth and pulling it on. "I'll keep guard while you have your 'shower'."

He offered his hand to her and she took it, allowing him to help her up. Kato deliberately turned away while Savanna wiped her leg off with a leaf and fussed with her bra, not trusting himself to keep his hands off of her. He heard her curse and he risked a look to see her pull her bra free of her shirt and toss it on the ground.

"Sorry," Kato said again when she shot an accusing glance at him and buttoned up her shirt. "You have more than one here with you, right?"

"Yes," she sighed, "but it's going to be kind of obvious I'm going 'commando style' under my shirt." She picked up the bra and folded it before stuffing it into the front pocket of her shorts.

Kato shrugged. "My people aren't going to know the difference. A Na'vi woman wouldn't know what she was looking at if you showed her a bra and the men would probably think it's some kind of slingshot or bola."

Savanna giggled sharply. "Now I'm going to have this image of an Ikran warrior taking someone out with a rock shot from a bra."

Kato laughed with her, easily imagining the situation. "An army of bra-wielding hunters...now _that's_ a sight the UN wouldn't forget easily." He reached for her hand and squeezed it as they walked deeper into the forest.

"I think a Na'vi warrior could make a decent weapon out of almost anything," Savanna remarked, looking up at him with unrestrained admiration.

He shrugged and smiled at her. He was about to answer her when his senses picked up on danger. He heard a rustle in the bushes to the left and without pausing to think about it, he tackled Savanna and covered her body with his own protectively. Something whizzed through the air over his head, almost clipping him in passing. Savanna was petrified beneath him, evidently understanding his actions and aware that they were in danger. Kato heard something heavy hit the ground in the direction where the unknown projectile went and he looked to see the source of the sound.

His first thought was that someone had thrown a boomerang of some kind at them. A red, fork-shaped object lay in the moss and Kato got to his feet cautiously and approached it. He gestured at Savanna to stay there and he looked down at the object. When it blinked up at him with small, beady eyes and emitted a high-pitched, squealing sound, he realized what it was. He jumped away and went to Savanna's side, drawing his bow. She asked him what was happening just as a large, six-legged body came staggering out of the bushes. It was a slinger—a sloth-like creature that existed in an odd symbiosis with its "head". The head was actually a separate animal from the body. The sightless, orange-red body followed the sounds of its dart-like head and it lowered its muscular neck to retrieve it.

"Run, Savanna," Kato advised when the fibers in the creature's neck began to secure the head back onto the body. As soon as the two parts were united, Kato knew the slinger would try to have another go at them.

"Kato?" She sounded uncertain and she reached for her revolver.

"Go," he urged, keeping one eye on the dangerous beast. "These things have tough skin and they aren't easy to kill. I'll distract it while you run back to the village."

"I'm not leaving you," she argued stubbornly.

Kato was about to offer a counter argument when the slinger completed its re-attachment and focused on its prey again. He barely dodged aside in time as the animal charged at him, resorting to a more aggressive method since its stealth attack failed. The needle-sharp beak narrowly missed his thigh and he swore, again urging Savanna to get out of there. If either of them got so much as a scratch from the creature's dart, they would get very, very sick. Humans rarely survived the venom of a slinger and Na'vi didn't fare much better.

The stinger tried to get past him to the female he was protecting, logically going for the smaller, weaker target. Kato didn't have time to fit an arrow into his bow, so he used it as a staff and swung it at the animal, cracking the sturdy wooden shaft against the back of the thick neck. The stinger took another stab at him and he nimbly hopped away, just in the nick of time.

"Savanna I mean it, get out of here," Kato said, sparing a glance at his girlfriend. "It's going to go for you and I can't fight it if I'm too distracted trying to protect you!" He grunted and dove away as one of the creature's mantis-like forelegs snapped out and caught him in the forearm, tearing a bloody gash.

Seeing him get injured had an unexpected effect on Savanna. She snarled and the next thing Kato knew, she unloaded a round of bullets into the slinger. Her shots hit with admirable precision, striking the creature in the neck and chest. Most of the slugs were deflected by the slinger's tough hide but three of them penetrated. The unhappy screech emitting from the head left little doubt the creature was as surprised by Savanna's success as Kato was. It turned to face the surprisingly threatening girl and Kato knew this time, he wasn't going to distract it easily.

"Savanna, _run_!" Kato fitted an arrow into his bow and fired it quickly, desperate to keep the animal off of his girlfriend.

This time, she took his advice and she bounded into the ferns with the angry slinger chasing after her. It cocked its neck to fling its head at the escaping female but Kato's shot struck it in the back, interrupting it. The arrowhead pierced the hide shallowly and provided enough of a stinging distraction to make the creature lose its focus. Up ahead, Savanna sensed the lag in pursuit and she slowed down to look over her shoulder. Seeing her attacker turning its attention to Kato again, she drew her revolver and yelled at Kato to climb up the tree behind him.

His first thought was that it was a futile suggestion, seeing as slingers were excellent climbers themselves. Realizing that her purpose was to get him out of the line of fire, he jumped for the branches overhead and scrambled up the tree quickly. He heard the gunfire ring out, followed by the angry shriek of the slinger. He found a branch to balance on and he readied his bow, peering down at the animal that was staggering back toward Savanna. He began to fire arrows at it in rapid succession, adding to the damage that his companion was causing with her gun.

One of Savanna's shots hit the slinger in the leg and crippled it. Slowly but surely, it was going down and Kato sighed in relief. His relief was short-lived, however. In a last, defiant action the simple-minded "pair" of creatures that made up the slinger decided to launch an attack at Savanna. He yelled a warning when he saw the way the body was cocking the neck for a last throw. Savanna saw it too but she didn't have his training or instincts. She failed to move quickly enough when the head separated from the body and whistled through the air at her. The dart pierced her side and she fell with a scream.

Utterly terrified for her, Kato jumped clean out of the tree, not bothering to climb down. The slinger's body fell on its side and lay dying, so it wasn't a threat any longer. Savanna was on her back, clutching at the squealing head of the creature in an attempt to pull the barbed stinger out of her body. Kato made it to her side in seconds and he could see by her pallor that the venom was already doing its work. He grabbed hold of the slinger's head and muttered an apology to his girlfriend as he gave it a quick, firm jerk. Savanna gagged in pain as he pulled the thing out of her and tossed it away. Her hands covered the puncture wound and she gazed up at him with frightened eyes.

"Don't worry," Kato said to her as he lifted her into his arms. "I'm going to get you to _Sempul_. He knows how to treat this and he'll take good care of you. Just hold onto me, Sav."

She nodded and put her arms around his neck. Kato adjusted her weight and he began to head back to the village, moving as quickly as he could without jarring his passenger. They hadn't moved that far into the forest before the attack happened, so luckily he didn't have very far to run with her. When he made it onto the foot-worn path leading past Tom's research trailer into the village down the hill, he started shouting for help.

The trailer door opened and his father's head poked out, followed by his mother's. Evidently, the two of them had been conducing a bit of intimacy because Tom was shirtless and Tanhi hastily adjusted her necklace. When they saw what was going on, they came out and ran over to Kato. He explained what happened in a rush and he begged his father to take care of Savanna.

"Bring her inside," Tom said. "Be quick about it, son."

Savanna's skin was practically white by now. The lilac stripes seemed faded and her pupils were dilated. She murmured incoherently as Kato took her into the trailer, followed closely behind by his mother. He brought her to the bunk while Tom opened up his supply cabinet and started gathering medicine and instruments. With no small relief, Kato recognized the bottle of anti-venom his father procured from the cabinet. He'd feared Tom wouldn't have any for slinger venom. Tom measured out a dose in a syringe after eyeing Savanna thoughtfully and guessing her approximate weight.

"How long has the venom been in her system?" asked Tom as he administered the shot.

"Um...about ten minutes, I guess." Kato looked down at his girlfriend's pale face and he swallowed. "She's going to be okay, isn't she?"

"To be honest, I'm not sure," Tom said grimly. He used some sterile wipes on his hands and put some surgical gloves on. "Her chances are better than a human but slinger venom works fast." He prepared his instruments and began to clean the wound, while Tanhi watched silently in the background.

"But, I got her here in time," protested Kato. The thought of Savanna dying tore him up inside.

"Shine that spotlight on it," Tom ordered. When Kato didn't move, he frowned at him. "Kato! You've helped me treat slinger injuries before. Snap out of it and keep your head, if you want your girl to live through this. I need light to see if any part of the dart is still in there."

The young man shook himself out of it and obeyed his father. He watched anxiously as Tom cleaned and examined the wound with professional care. When Savanna whimpered, Tom spoke gently to her in his "soothing voice", easing her anxiety and pain. He flushed the injury thoroughly to clean out the toxins and when he was satisfied, he straightened up and reached for the gauze.

"The anti-venom is doing its work now. The poison should be out of her system by tomorrow morning." Tom kept his voice calm and clinical but Kato could read the concern in his eyes. What his father wasn't saying out loud was that whether the anti-venom worked or not depended on how long Savanna could last against the poison.

"What can I do?" Kato asked. Savanna shivered and he stroked her hair.

"Just keep her warm and help her if she starts vomiting," Tom answered. He patted Kato on the shoulder. "There's not much else you or I can do, now. You did good, bringing her here right away."

"Should we contact her parents?" Kato asked.

Tom sighed. "I...don't know."

"Tom, her parents _must_ be told," Tanhi said in a disapproving voice. "She is their only daughter. They should know that she is injured."

He nodded reluctantly. "I know. I just...they _trusted_ us to keep her safe. I don't know how I'm going to tell them about this."

Tanhi glanced at Savanna and her eyes softened. She leaned closer to Tom and spoke in a whisper. "Your pride is not as important as a parent's love, my Tom. Tell them what happened, so that they may be with her if Eywa chooses to take her."

Kato wished he hadn't heard his mother's words. His vision blurred and his eyes stung with tears as he looked down at Savanna. The girl had lost consciousness and she shivered as her body fought with the anti-venom against the toxins raging through it. He climbed onto the bunk and put his arms around her, pressing a kiss against her clammy forehead.

Tom watched with aching eyes and he heaved another sigh. "I'll contact the Thomas family."

Chances were that even if they got on air transport as soon as they got word, Katherine and Sebastian wouldn't make it in time to speak with their daughter again, if the poison was going to kill her.

* * *

"I can't believe you let her get stung!" It was an illogical accusation and Karyu knew it, but she needed someone to blame and her brother was there when it happened.

"I didn't _let_ her get stung," Kato snapped. "She wouldn't leave and the thing struck out at her before I could do anything. She's my girlfriend and I love her...why would I ever 'let' anything happen to her?"

Karyu combed her fingers through her braids and gazed down at the still, sleeping face of her friend. "You shouldn't have taken her that far from the village. You _know_ how dangerous the forest can be."

"She had a gun and I had my bow," he defended. "I didn't think we'd run into anything we couldn't handle, between here and the waterfall. Slingers don't usually hang out that close to the territory."

Karyu glanced at the piece of fruit she'd been munching on and she put it on the counter in disgust, having lost her appetite. "I'll never forgive myself if she dies. Or _you_, for that matter."

"I know," he sighed. He sniffed and looked away. "I'll never forgive me either."

Karyu's heart went out to him when she recognized the signs that he was trying not to cry. She crossed the distance and turned him to face her. His eyes were bright with unshed tears and he stared at the wall, blinking.

Karyu hugged him, patting him on the back to try and calm him. "Here, I didn't mean it. I know you did your best to protect her, Kato. Sav's tougher than she looks, so I'm sure she'll pull through. Don't cry."

He put his arms around her and sniffed again. If anything, telling him not to cry seemed to have the opposite effect. He began to blubber against her shoulder and Karyu felt more awful than ever. She glanced at her stricken friend as she tried to comfort her brother, silently willing Savanna to triumph over the venom. Wasn't losing Tommy enough? Did they have to lose their best friend, too?

* * *

As soon as he heard the news, Sebastian pulled Katherine out of her lab and made arrangements for a flight to the Ikran village. He prayed to every deity he'd ever heard of as they traveled, hoping that he wouldn't arrive to get the news that his little princess was dead.

"We never should have let her go there," Katherine said in a tight voice as the Samson flew over trees, hills and rivers. "I _knew_ it was going to bring nothing but trouble!"

"Katherine, she would have faced the same dangers visiting the Omaticaya," reasoned Sebastian gently. "Pandora is a dangerous place. We take it for granted that being surrounded by Na'vi warriors is going to be enough to keep our daughter safe and sound, but like you told me yourself, Savanna is going to get hurt in life no matter where she goes. At least with Dr. Sully watching over her, she has a chance."

Katherine looked like she wanted to argue with that, but her emotions were winning out and she wiped at her eyes. "He'd better be the best damned doctor on Pandora. I can't lose my daughter, Bastian."

He put an arm around her, drawing her as close as the safety belts would allow. "We must have faith in Savanna's strength, Kath. She's a very special girl, and I'm not just saying that because I'm her father. She _has_ to live."

Katherine sniffed again and nodded, laying her head on his shoulder. Trudy asked them if they were doing all right and Sebastian assured her they were okay. Dustin was riding in the co-pilot seat up front with his mother, having insisted on coming when he found out Savanna was hurt. His friend Andrew was in the cabin with Sebastian and Katherine. Sebastian glanced back at the blond teen and he wondered why he hadn't chosen to come in his avatar body. It certainly would have been easier than worrying about an exopack. Andrew noticed him looking at him and he gave Sebastian an uncomfortable glance.

"Are you okay, Mr. Thomas?"

"As well as can be expected," Sebastian sighed. "I was just wondering why you aren't using your avatar body for this endeavor."

"I didn't have time," answered the young man. "Dusty was freaking out and I was too worried about Savanna to hop into the link machine."

Warmed by Andrew's apparent devotion to his friends, Sebastian managed a smile for him. "Well, at least you have your priorities straight."

"ETA is about four hours," Trudy announced through the speaker. "Wilson, Harris, keep a sharp eye out. We're a tastier target at night and I don't want our passengers to end up as a snack."

"Got it, 'Mama Trudy'," answered the human soldier on the right doorgun.

"All clear on this side," the avatar soldier announced.

Trudy sighed. "How many times do I have to tell you guys not to call me 'Mama Trudy'? You either just call me Trudy or you call me Lt. Chacón!"

"But you're not a lieutenant anymore," protested Harris. "You're—"

"I don't care what I am," she interrupted, "just don't call me 'Mama Trudy'. It makes me feel like a grandma!"

The male soldiers glanced across the distance at each other and lapsed into silence. Sebastian would have found the banter highly amusing, if he weren't on his way to discover whether his daughter survived the attack against her.

* * *

They arrived in Ikran territory before sunrise and Tom greeted them when they touched down outside the village.

"I can't apologize enough," Tom said when the humans disembarked from the Samson. "Slingers aren't usually very active this time of the year and I've never seen one so close to the village, before."

"Is our daughter alive?" Katherine asked, cutting right to the chase.

"Yes," answered Tom immediately. "She made it through the night and the twins haven't left her side. She's still unconscious, but her condition is improving. She _will_ recover."

Katherine tried to cover her mouth to muffle a sudden sob, but the exopack mask was in the way. Embarrassed, she turned around and waved her husband away when he tried to comfort her. While she regained control of her emotions, Sebastian considered the man who had probably saved his daughter's life. He looked up at the taller avatar, who was the spitting image of his twin brother Jake. Unlike Jake, Tom didn't have a light-heart or humorous demeanor. He was a kind man, but he took life much more seriously than his twin. The streak of silver at his temple emphasized that and Sebastian blinked in surprise, having never noticed it before. Seeing the stress in the doctor's expression, he found it impossible to be angry with him.

He reached out and shook Tom's hand. "The truth is our children are in danger every moment of their lives, Dr. Sully. Katherine and I knew the risks when we brought Savanna here and we trusted your family to keep her safe."

Tom grimaced. "I wish—"

"Which is exactly what you did," interrupted Sebastian firmly, smiling at the other man. "Had she been attacked like that near Hell's Gate, I doubt the medical staff would have acted as quickly as you did to save her. I should be thanking you, really. Sav might not be alive, if it weren't for your expertise and haste."

Tom seemed surprised. "That's very generous of you, but she wouldn't have been in this situation to begin with if she hadn't been outside the village."

"What could you do?" demanded Sebastian. "Shackle her to a tree? Dr. Sully, I understand the minds of teenagers as much as any adult is able to. Savanna has always been determined to do things her way and she's quite capable of sneaking when she needs to. I can't blame you for this."

Tom shut his eyes and nodded, clearly relieved by the forgiving attitude. Trudy walked over from the chopper and guessed what was going on after having one look at his face. "He's beating himself up, isn't he?"

"Hopefully not for much longer," Sebastian said with a smile. "Now if you'll excuse us, my wife and I would like to see our daughter."

Tom nodded and walked over to the trailer to open the door for them. "Go right inside."

Sebastian put his arm around Katherine and directed her steps. She was trying so hard to hold onto her composure but he could feel how fragile the wall holding back her emotions was. The others waited behind and chatted softly as they went into the trailer. He let her go in first and he went in behind her, eager to see his daughter. Kato and Karyu were sitting on the bunk across from Savanna's and they looked up when the married couple walked in. Kato looked horribly guilty and Karyu looked uncomfortable. Sebastian gave the Na'vi teens a reassuring smile that said all was forgiven as he approached his daughter behind his wife.

"Savanna? Can you hear me?" Katherine spoke softly to the girl and stroked her hair. She pulled the covers down and lifted Savanna's shirt enough to look at the bandaged area on her torso. Satisfied with the job, she dropped the shirt down and kissed her daughter on the forehead. "It's Mama. Your Papa's here with me, sweetheart. We're staying right here until you wake up and then we'll all go home."

"I'm not sure we should be so hasty," Sebastian murmured. "Katherine, there _is_ still a danger of the wrong people becoming too curious about her. The traffic between Hell's Gate and UNEC is still quite active."

"I'll take my chances," she said firmly. "She was nearly killed here. She can stay indoors during the daytime, until the UNEC people stop coming around so often."

Sebastian saw the devastated expression on Kato's face and he imagined his daughter would look much the same, if she were awake to hear Katherine's plan. "I don't think that's fair to Savanna, Kath. We can't lock her up like a criminal to keep her safe. She should be free to go outside and do normal teenaged activities."

Katherine took her attention off their daughter and looked at him dubiously. "But, what if this happens again?"

"It won't."

Katherine looked at Kato with a frown and Sebastian almost reached for her, concerned that she might take her frustration out on the boy and deck him. "Don't make promises you can't keep, kid. My daughter is only lying here right now because you took her into the woods."

"No, Katherine—"

"It's okay," Kato assured Sebastian with a sigh. He looked unwaveringly at Katherine. "Okay, I can't _promise_ nothing like this will ever happen again, anymore than you can. But I mean it when I say I would die for her." His gaze went to Savanna and he tilted his head. "Seeing her get hurt was the most awful thing I've ever seen in my life. I can't promise she'll never get hurt again but what I _can_ promise you is that I'll do everything possible to keep it from happening. I'll swear it in blood, if you want me to."

Katherine gave the boy an exasperated look. "Are you finished being dramatic?"

Kato flushed. "Um...I guess so, Ma'am."

The botanist managed a faint, tired little smirk. "God save me from teenaged boys in love. All right, Kato...I'm willing to trust you mean all that drivel. I'm still not sure about leaving her here, though. This may be too harsh an environment for her to make a full recovery in."

"We'll take good care of her," Karyu insisted. "The trailer is safe and she'll have round the clock care from Father. You know he's a great doctor...he saved a whole village from a plague once."

Sebastian gave his wife a silently pleading look, having enough sense not to openly argue with her when she was in such an emotional state. Katherine looked into Karyu's eyes, then at Kato, then at her daughter. She pursed her lips and stroked Savanna's hair again. "Sebastian, need I ask what your position is on this?"

"You needn't, but I'll tell you anyway," he answered, putting an arm around her. "I think we should let her stay here. This was just an unfortunate accident and I'm certain that Kato would never intentionally put Savanna in harm's way."

"Never," agreed Kato. "I'll do everything I can to keep her safe. She's a good shot with her gun, too."

Sebastian blinked in surprise and looked at his wife suspiciously. "Gun?"

"You didn't think I'd let her stay in an unfamiliar village in the wilds without a weapon, did you?" Katherine crossed her arms over her chest. "You're the one that taught her how to shoot in the first place."

He parted his lips and then shrugged. "Fair enough. So she at least got a few rounds off against the creature before it did this to her, did she?"

Kato nodded. "More than a few. It was just about to go down when it got her. I...I tried to get there in time to stop it but—"

"Don't," Katherine warned, stemming the teen's rising anxiety. She shook her head and looked down at her daughter. "Sebastian is right; she might not be alive right now if it weren't for you and your father. I know how fast slinger venom works and Savanna is very lucky you were there."

Kato lowered his eyes and Sebastian guessed what was on his mind. "Son, she might have wandered out on her own and run into this creature. It's hardly your fault the two of you were attacked in an area you thought safe. Let's just focus on taking care of Savanna now, and leave unpleasant thoughts of blame behind us."

Kato sighed and nodded thankfully. "I'm going to go and pick some flowers for her," he decided.

He got up and left, leaving his twin sitting there alone with Savanna's parents. Karyu stared after her brother as the door shut behind him and she looked at Katherine and Sebastian. "He's...distracted," she excused.

Sebastian chuckled helplessly. "Impulsive" was the word he would most use to describe Kato and by his sister's expression, she was embarrassed by his abrupt exit. He couldn't remember her ever being polite before but it seemed her impending leadership role was having an influence on her behavior. "We aren't offended."

Karyu nodded. "Well, help yourselves to the refrigerator while you're here. Dad keeps some human food in there and the microwave works. I think I'll go and help Kato pick some flowers."

"Thank you," Sebastian said gracefully, though the thought of eating anything right now made his stomach twist. The slender huntress made her exit and Sebastian turned his attention back to his wife and daughter. He came up behind Katherine and he rubbed her arms as he kissed her on the temple. "Thank you for not punishing that boy, love."

Katherine sighed and turned her head to look up at him. "I wanted to, believe me. The kid's too cute for his own good, though. It was too hard to stay mad at him when he went into his theatrics."

Sebastian chuckled. "Perhaps Kato Sully would make a good thespian. I should bring him a book of Shakespear's greatest works, the next time we come."

Katherine groaned. "I think he's dramatic enough, don't you?"

Grinning, he hugged her against him. "We could do worse as far as potential son-in-laws go."

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Ma'Sempul_ **= My father

**_Oe kame Nga, ma'ite. Nga zongtseng _**= "I see you, my daughter. You are safe."

**_Kali'weya_** = Arachnoid. A scorpion-like animal with a toxic sting. Na'vi undergoing their Dream Hunt must endure the sting as part of the ritual. The venom induces a dreamlike state of mind and hallucinations.


	12. Chapter 12

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 12: I see you

* * *

Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Thank you all kindly for the feedback!

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

Savanna's eyelids felt like they were gummed together when she finally regained consciousness. She blinked and peered around blearily, uncertain of where she was or what had happened to her. She recognized her surroundings as Dr. Sully's research trailer. Her body ached all over—particularly her right side. She looked down and lifted her shirt to find the spot neatly bandaged. There was a glucose bag hanging from a stand by the bed, feeding into her through an IV attached to her left hand. She frowned as the memory of what happened came back to her.

"I could have died." The announcement sent a chill down her spine. "Well, I _didn't_ die, so I shouldn't dwell on it."

Indeed, she seemed to be perfectly safe, now. She heard voices outside and she gingerly rolled onto her uninjured side and hooked a finger into the blinds covering the small window. She peeked through, squinting against the muted daylight. The sky was heavily overcast but even so, the light hurt her eyes. She saw Dr. Sully seated outside on the moss with her parents, Tanhi, Kato and Karyu. They were sitting in a circle, quietly discussing something. Savanna heard her name come up but she couldn't make out precisely what they were saying about her. After a few seconds, she spotted a group of familiar humans heading down the path leading into the forest.

"They _all_ came?"

Well, everyone except Dr. Patel, it seemed. Dustin, Andrew and Trudy were there, along with Trudy's two most trusted MP's. Savanna stared as the humans sat down in the little circle outside the trailer and joined in the conversation. Deciding there was no need to eavesdrop when she could simply join them instead, she let go of the blind and eased her legs over the side of the bunk. She then realized that her t-shirt and a pair of panties were the only clothing articles she had on. Guessing her mother must have dressed her while she was recovering, she chewed her lower lip and looked around.

She sighed in relief when she spotted her shorts lying folded up neatly on the counter in the middle of the trailer. With a bit of effort, she got out of the bunk and carefully made her way over, using the IV stand for support as she rolled it along with her. Walking was hard because of torso movement, but not impossible. The tie-up shirt she'd been wearing when she was attacked was also there, but it was soaking in the sink. The water was tinted pink from Savanna's blood and she grimaced, unsure that she even wanted the shirt back again.

For now, she contented herself with the shorts. She picked them up and went back to the bunk to put them on, having the sense to realize she wouldn't be able to do it standing up without risking a loss of balance and further injury. She lay down and tugged the denim shorts up, groaning softly in pain as her side throbbed in protest. When she was finished putting them on, she got up again and walked to the door. She didn't know where her parents put her sandals but she went barefoot almost as much as she wore shoes, so she wasn't too concerned about that. She took the glucose bag off of the stand and carried it out with her.

When she opened the door, the conversation outside abruptly halted and everyone twisted around to look up at her. Sebastian climbed to his feet immediately and went to her, putting his arms around her gently to support her. "Darling, you should have hollered out for someone to help you! If I'd known you were awake I would have been in there in a jiffy."

"I'm okay, Papa," she assured him, fibbing just a little. "I'm just a little woozy and sore. When did you and Mama get here?" She pulled out of her father's arms to give her mother a hug as Katherine came up to her.

"More than a day ago," answered Katherine. "You don't know what a _relief_ it is to have you wake up, Savanna."

Tom got up and went to her, immediately placing his palm against her forehead and feeling around her jaw and throat for swelling. "I'm going to give you an oral suspension to help flush out the last of the toxins, but first you need to try to eat something. I'm not happy that you got out of bed on your own, by the way. You could have fallen and opened up your injury again."

Savanna gave the doctor a properly contrite expression. "I'm sorry, Dr. Sully. I just saw everyone sitting out here and I wanted to join you. I guess I'm just glad to be alive."

Tom sighed. "I understand that, but you're my patient and your parents have already been forgiving enough. You are going to rest and recover, understand?"

Savanna couldn't hide an amused grin when she saw Kato making "bunny ears" over Tom's head. "Yes Sir. I wouldn't want you to get in trouble with Mama."

"What about me?" demanded Sebastian with an offended air. "Aren't you worried about what I might do if angered?"

Savanna smiled weakly at her father and kissed him on the cheek. "Not so much. You're a pussycat."

He heaved a long-suffering sigh as his wife smirked and nodded in agreement. "You're lucky you added 'cat' at the end of that, Savanna."

The kids burst into laughter at that and the adults tried to be more conservative in their mirth—except for poor Tanhi, who didn't get the joke. She regarded them all with polite ignorance before shrugging, used to not understanding Sky People humor. Savanna staggered and Tanhi frowned at her mate and the other adults as she went to the girl's side and supported her.

"You should be resting, as your parents and my mate should know."

Tom and Savanna's parents looked shame-faced. Sebastian hastily opened the door for them as Tanhi guided the softly protesting hybrid back into the trailer. Katherine followed and she warned her daughter to cooperate with their hostess.

"She's right. You should be lying down and recovering your strength." Katherine murmured thanks to Tanhi before taking her place at Savanna's side, once the girl was situated in the bunk again. She brushed Savanna's bangs aside and smiled down at her. "If it were my decision alone, you'd be going back to Hell's Gate with us."

"But Mama—"

Katherine stopped her from sitting up with surprising strength for a human woman. "I said _if_, child if mine. Your father has convinced me to let you stay here. I've got my doubts that this is a safe environment for you to recover in but given the risks of bringing you home right now, I suppose I'll have to trust that Dr. Sully and Tanhi will protect you and take good care of you."

Savanna relaxed, sighing in relief. Kato and Karyu were standing at the door and they poked their heads in to listen. Savanna smiled at them and they smiled back, just as pleased as she was. Katherine interrupted their happy thoughts with a warning.

"There are conditions to this, young woman."

Savanna sobered and regarded her mother warily. "What kind of conditions?"

"While you're here, you listen to what Dr. Sully and Tanhi tell you to do. I don't care if you think you can do _cartwheels_, you don't do any activities that Tom hasn't approved of, understand?"

Savanna nodded, not so much because she was keen on being stuck in bed, but because she knew that if she argued she could blow her chance to stay with the twins. "I can do that. What else?"

Katherine glanced over her shoulder at Kato. "Can I have a moment alone with my daughter, please?"

The twins obligingly left and Sebastian followed them, guessing this was a "mother-daughter talk". When they were alone in the trailer, Katherine eyed Savanna sternly.

"You know I generally trust your judgment, but I was your age once. I know what it's like to feel pressure, to want to please a boy to ensure he'll stay with you. I don't want you to do anything with Kato that you aren't completely ready for, Savanna."

The girl shut her eyes and groaned. "I'm _not_ going to do that. Even if I did, you don't have to worry about anything. I'm taking my pills regularly and Kato and I have never been with anyone. I probably can't have kids anyway and I know I won't catch anything from him."

"Are you _sure_ he's never been with anyone?" Katherine asked the question candidly, lifting a brow. "He's a good-looking boy and he's had plenty of opportunities here _and_ at the base."

Savanna glared at her mother. "No. Kato has never slept with anyone and he isn't a liar. Don't talk about him like that."

"Hmm, protective much?" Katherine suddenly grinned.

"I just...he's my boyfriend and I don't like you implying he's a lying womanizing cheater," excused Savanna. "You've known him his whole life and you should be ashamed."

"Okay, don't get your panties in a wad," Katherine sighed. "You really _do_ remind me of myself at your age. I'm just doing what any loving mother would do, and that's to look out for your best interests. As I've told you before, you're a gifted person and I don't want you to become another teen statistic. I've got nothing against Kato, but I know what boys want and I know how strongly they can influence girls that love them, okay?"

"Did Papa 'influence' you?" challenged Savanna, struggling into a sitting position.

Katherine sighed and smiled faintly, nodding. "I didn't want to fall for him. I didn't want to get tangled up in romance at all when I came to Pandora. I just wanted to do my research and help improve lives. Your father changed all of that. He was too sweet and cute and charming to resist."

Savanna didn't know how to respond to the admission. "Oh. Do you...resent him for it? I mean, for changing your life?"

Katherine shook her head slowly, her eyes holding her daughter's. "Not at all. And to answer your hidden question, I never once regretted having you, either. When I found out I was pregnant, I was so happy that I cried—right in front of Dr. Patel, too. You have _no_ idea how badly we wanted to have you, Savanna. I never wanted a child until I married Sebastian and found out we had a chance to conceive. We thought we never could and once we knew differently, it was all I could think about."

Savanna lowered her gaze shyly, touched by her mother's reminder that she was very much loved by her parents. "Do you think I'll feel like that some day? Desperate for a kid?"

Katherine stroked her hair. "I don't know, dear. Each woman is different. I never thought I'd be one of those women desperate to have a baby. Ramona has never changed her mind about kids and she and Lee are perfectly content with their lives. I wish I could predict how you'll feel someday."

Savanna sighed and laid back down, grunting a little as the motion pained her injury. "I hope not. I'd rather not want kids if I'm never going to be able to have them anyway. That's why I think I'll end up working with kids after graduation. If I'm a teacher, I'll be surrounded by kids all the time and maybe that will be enough for me. Maybe I'll even get sick of them."

Katherine laughed softly and squeezed the girl's hand. "I think that's sound logic. What would you teach, if you took up a career in education?"

"Art," answered Savanna without hesitation. She covered her mouth on a yawn. "I know you would like it if it followed your footsteps and I could probably teach computer tech, but art is what I love the most. And music, of course."

"Well, you do what makes you happy and we'll support that. Just please, take my advice and think seriously about any important decisions regarding your relationship with Kato."

Savanna rolled her eyes. "I have more self control than you think." She blushed a second later, thinking of how many times she and Kato had come close to going all the way. Okay, so her discipline wasn't exactly stellar yet, but she was getting better about putting a stop to things when they got really intense.

Katherine smirked. "Of course you do. Just consider it a friendly reminder from your mother. I can see you're getting tired, so I'll get you something to eat so you can take your medicine and get to sleep."

"But its broad daylight," protested Savanna with another yawn.

"That doesn't matter. Your body needs rest to heal and it doesn't care about the time of day. You'll be sleeping quite a bit while you're recovering from this, Savanna. You were...very lucky."

Savanna shivered again, detecting the emotion in her mother's final sentence. She wondered how close she really came to death.

* * *

Norm heard the calls of the lookouts high in the branches of Hometree and he guessed that Jake and Neytiri were on their way in. There were no shouts of alarm and no sound of rotary blades chopping the air. The excited exchange of voices from the lookouts left little doubt in Norm's mind that his assumption was right. He looked at his family and Sylwanin, all cuddled up together in the hammock—except for Grace. She still slept in her own single hammock and Tsu'tey had traded places with the girl that usually slept in the next hammock over, so that he could sleep near Gracie. Norm could see him tossing restlessly in his sleep and his heart went out to him.

He hadn't told any of the children that Neytiri and Jake were coming. After everything that happened recently, there were no guarantees. Being on communication silence made it impossible for Jake to contact him and let him know they were safe. Ni'nat agreed with Norm that they shouldn't tell the kids until they knew they wouldn't be giving them false hope. Norm gently shook his mate's shoulder and whispered to her. She stirred and looked at him with sleepy confusion. When she heard the drums and saw the hopeful expression on his face, she smiled and sat up.

The girls stirred as well, roused by the noise up above and the motion in the hammock as the two adults began to climb out. "What's going on?" Ralu asked, stalling the couple.

"Nothing to be alarmed about," Ni'nat assured. "It is only a hunting party returning late."

Ralu's face crinkled in confusion. "_This_ late? It's going to be dawn in about five hours."

Norm shushed the girl, even as he marveled at how accurate her inner clock was. "Don't wake Sylwanin. Just go back to bed while we check on things. You know the lookouts would raise the alarm if there was anything to worry about."

Ralu glanced at her friend, who fussed softly in her sleep and murmured her deceased brother's name. She lay down next to Sylwanin and hugged her comfortingly. Satisfied that she was obeying them, Norm and Ni'nat finished climbing out of the large hammock and they entered the trunk, heading up the inner spiral to the ikran nests. As soon as they stepped out onto the branches, they recognized the clan's _Tsahik_ and former _Olo'eyktan_. A small group of Omaticaya surrounded Jake and Neytiri, asking questions and debating with each other over whether they should fetch Emazu. When they saw Norm approach, they stepped aside for him and Ni'nat.

"Norm," Jake said with a tired smile and a nod. "I see you, brother."

Norm reached out to clasp Jake's forearm. "I see you. Neither of you are hurt, are you?" His eyes swept over them both anxiously and settled on Neytiri's bandaged thigh.

"It is not bad," Neytiri assured when Norm tried to have a closer look. "Jake's brother nursed me to health. The bullet is gone and I am much stronger now."

"_Tsahik_, are you coming back to us?" the hopeful question came from an older woman off to the right.

"What about Emazu?" whispered a man near her, "is he still our _Olo'eyktan_?"

"Everyone relax," Jake advised in a hushed voice, "and don't wake the whole village. Neytiri and I are still a danger to the Omaticaya. We came to see our children and Mo'at, and then we're going to leave and hide out in the wilds. You all know why we've got to do this, so please, don't argue."

There were quiet looks of sadness and subtle admiration as the small gathering reluctantly agreed with Jake's request. "What will we do for a _Tsahik_?" asked one of the young men softly. "Mo'at belongs with the guardians now and Grace has not been initiated yet."

"When Grace is ready, I will pass my wisdom down to her through the Eye of Eywa," Neytiri assured them. "It will not be much longer and our people can manage without a _Tsahik_ until then. The Great Mother lives in us all."

Norm heaved a heavy sigh and Ni'nat approached Neytiri and laid her hands on her shoulders, saying what was on her mate's mind. "At least stay for the night, sister. You have traveled far and if UNEC _does_ come for some reason, we will know long before it is too late for you and Jake to hide yourselves. This is your home, _Tsahik_, no matter what has happened." The others gathered around them nodded and murmured in agreement. They had no intention of turning the couple away.

Neytiri returned the gesture with a wan smile. "You are right, Ni'nat. It would be a joy to sleep here for a night. We cannot do it, though. We waited until late to come for a reason."

Jake nodded. "The fewer people see us, the better. We don't want to cause a scene and people have just started adjusting to the changes around here. It's best for everyone if we bed down in the mushroom grove for the night and leave before the clan gets active in the morning."

"But, your children," Ni'nat reminded softly. "And Mo'at. You do wish to see them, don't you?"

"Very much," agreed Neytiri. "That is why I wish for you to bring them to the grove for the night. We will sleep as a family again, before Jake and I travel."

"All right," Norm sighed. "I'll wake the kids up and bring them to the grove. Jake, there's something important I've got to tell you when we meet up there."

Jake immediately frowned. "Has something happened to one of the kids?"

"Nothing terrible," Norm assured him hastily. "It's just something you need to know about."

Jake glanced around at the audience, which was beginning to politely disperse upon catching the hint that the conversation didn't include them. "Is this good news or bad news, Norm?"

The anthropologist grimaced uncertainly. "That depends on your point of view, I guess. I think you'll be happy with it, though."

Jake furrowed his brows, intrigued and puzzled. "Okay, you've got my attention. Neytiri and I need to say goodbye to Shadow and get our ikrans first, but we'll head to the grove right after that."

Norm glanced at the old toruk and then gave Jake a sympathetic look. By the solemn expression on the former clan leader's face, this would probably be the last time he said goodbye to his faithful toruk. Jake's first banshee passed away a few years ago, but Shadow had been with him from the beginning of his life as a Na'vi. Remembering his first ikran Lrrtok, Norm felt some empathy for his friend as he watched Jake pat Shadow's muscular neck fondly. Neytiri likewise turned to the animal and gave some affection. Though he wasn't her bond mount, the toruk had faithfully carried her family safely for years, and his loyalty to Jake never once wavered.

"Come," Ni'nat softly bade Norm when she saw him wipe his eyes hastily. "This is between a hunter and his mount. We must prepare the children."

Norm nodded in agreement and put an arm around her waist. They left with the others to give Jake and Neytiri their time alone with Shadow.

* * *

"Well boy, we had a really good run together." Jake smiled at his animal companion as he stroked his snout and patted his neck. "It's time for you to retire, now. I don't want you to spend your last years fighting gunships and getting shot at."

Shadow looked at Jake with curious amber eyes, blinking. A milky film was starting to dim the left one and it wouldn't be long before the vision in it was gone. Jake swallowed as the toruk nudged him and Neytiri stroked his arm gently, adding silent support. Shadow probably wasn't going to see the last of his fighting days when Jake released him. Odds were, he would meet his end in a losing fight against a younger, stronger toruk. With any luck though, Shadow would pass in his sleep with a full belly and a comfortable nook surrounding him.

"It is right for a hunter to release his mount when it grows too old," Neytiri assured him when Jake gave her an uncertain, questioning glance. "Shadow will live out his life to its natural end, my Jake. It is best."

Jake breathed a sigh and he nodded, laying a hand over the one she had resting on his bicep. "I never thought I'd get this attached to an animal. I cared about Aungia too, but Shadow is...he's..." struggling for words, he trailed off and looked up at his mighty toruk.

"He is your spirit animal," Neytiri finished for him, her eyes shining with understanding. "The bond stays for life, Jake. He will remember you always."

Jake looked at the night sky, where the smaller moons hung over the distant planet of Polyphemus like pearls. He gave Shadow another pat and looked at him again. "She's right, boy. Maybe we'll see each other again, but this was our last ride. Fly free, Shadow." He stepped away and slapped the toruk lightly on the flank, prompting him to spread his wings. "Go on. You've earned it."

Shadow gazed at him silently for a moment and Jake could have sworn the animal understood his words. The toruk tilted its head back and warbled at the starlight before taking off, leaving Jake and Neytiri embracing each other on the topmost branches of Hometree. Jake watched him go and he held his mate close. He was thankful for her presence and he told her so in a murmur. She kissed his throat and rested her cheek against his shoulder as they watched Shadow's silhouette dwindle over the canopy in the distance.

* * *

_~Tell them. You have to tell them.~_

Grace swallowed nervously even as she smiled at the sight of Jake and Neytiri exchanging a heartfelt family embrace with their son and daughter. She had protested weakly when Norm urged her to come with, feeling like she would be intruding on their special moment when she and Tsu'tey were told that his parents were waiting at the mushroom grove. Her parents gently reminded her that she had something important to reveal to the Sully family and in doing so, she could brighten their lives substantially. Norm offered to speak on her behalf and inform Jake and Neytiri when she told him she wasn't sure how to say it. She licked dry lips as she and her parents waited politely for the other family to finish their reunion greetings.

Norm glanced at her when Jake and Neytiri slowly pulled out of the shared embrace with their kids. He stepped forward with a smile as the couple approached and Ni'nat put an arm around Grace's shoulders supportively.

Jake addressed Norm and Ni'nat first, before the former could open his mouth to spill Grace's secret to him. "You two have been lifesavers. I'll never be able to thank you enough for watching over our kids and taking up my slack with clan matters."

Ni'nat smiled softly and accepted the praise with gracious thanks. Norm looked completely embarrassed. "Uh, it's okay, Jake. I just did what I needed to do and I know you'd have done the same thing if the situation was reversed."

Jake looked to Grace and he approached her with a little smile, giving her a quick glance up and down. "Still as pretty as a supermodel. How have you been holding up, kid?"

"I'm okay, more or less," she fibbed, forcing a smile. He gave her a paternal hug and Neytiri followed suit a moment later. "I'm so relieved to see you're both okay. Well, except for Aunt Neytiri's leg. What happened?"

"Just a minor wound," Neytiri answered. "It is almost healed."

Norm took his place on Grace's other side and like his mate, he put an arm around her. "There's something you both need to know, Jake. It's about Grace."

The young woman tensed and both of her parents tightened their embrace on her, as if fearing she would run away. Perhaps she would have, if she could. All she knew was that she was about to tell the two people that had led her clan all her life that she was expecting their dead son's child. That ordinarily wouldn't be such a bad thing, except for the fact that the baby was conceived before either of them were officially "legal" to be mates. Gracie wondered if human girls in similar situations suffered this kind of uncertainty and desperation.

Jake's fond smile faded into a look of concern, while Neytiri regarded Grace with curious interest. "I'm guessing this is the 'good or bad' thing your dad hinted at when we first got here. I can't think of anything good about you being sick, so that can't be it. Did you have a vision or something?"

"N-no," Grace stammered. She saw Tsu'tey watching her from behind his parents and his eyes were silently begging her to tell them.

"The thing is," Norm began, prepared to speak up on her behalf, "Gracie is—"

"I'm pregnant," Grace blurted in a rush. Once it came out, she felt much better—even when Jake's eyebrows went up and Neytiri frowned in confusion. "And Tommy is the father."

"Tommy?" Jake repeated, sharing a bewildered look with his mate. Beside Tsu'tey, Sylwanin squealed with girlish excitement. Jake shook his head as if to clear it and he frowned at Grace. "_Our son_, Tommy?"

She nodded.

"How? When?" Jake looked around with wide eyes, as if expecting Tommy's ghost to jump out and declare that he'd been haunting Gracie in a very naughty way.

"The night before he was killed," she explained in a small voice, lowering her gaze. "We would have waited...we wanted to, but...my body was ready. Tommy said we weren't going to do anything without being paired first, so we bonded before Eywa and then...well, you know."

Both Neytiri and Jake were utterly silent, save for their breathing. Grace dared to look up again and when she saw the stunned expressions on their faces, she misunderstood. "Please don't be mad! I loved him and he loved me. We wanted to make you all proud and follow tradition but we couldn't wait."

"We are not angry," Neytiri assured her, finding her tongue at last.

Jake reached out and cupped Grace's face. "Angry?" He shook his head and gave her a broad, toothy grin. A huff of laughter escaped his mouth and a second later, he cleared his throat and seemed to struggle with a mixture of powerful feelings. "Nothing could be further from the truth, Amazing Grace. You...our son is alive inside of you. Ugh...Neytiri, you take over. I've uh...got something stuck in my throat." He turned away and coughed, then placed his hands on his hips and stared up at the darkened sky.

"I think Jake said it best," Neytiri whispered as she reached out to stroked Grace's cheek. "This is something to be thankful for, Gracie. Because of you, a part of our Tommy will live on in the flesh. We will have a grandchild by him—something I lost hope for when he went to Eywa. This happened for a reason and you are not the only female to need a mate before being initiated as a woman."

Grace began to relax and with the release of tension came a trembling in her body she just couldn't stop. Her knees went weak and she started to cry all over again as her "aunt" embraced her. Neytiri stroked her hair and whispered comforting words to her. Jake turned back around and patted Gracie's back.

"What did you think we were going to do? Have you kicked out of the clan?" Jake's teasing smirk faded and he sighed. "You and Tommy respected each other enough to try and wait. When that didn't work, you made a lifelong commitment to each other. As far as I'm concerned, you both acted more than honorably, Gracie. I don't want to see that look of shame on your face again."

She calmed down a little and nodded, sniffing. "But there's more you should know. I love Tommy and I miss him so much."

"We know that," Jake assured her with a painful little smile. "You don't have to convince us of that."

"I want to be her mate," Tsu'tey announced.

Jake stopped comforting Grace and he turned to stare at his son. "Huh?"

Tsu'tey took a deep breath and walked to Grace. He took her hand and faced his parents. "I want to become Gracie's mate and help her raise the baby. Tommy was my brother and Grace is one of my closest friends. She shouldn't have to go through this without the support of a mate—and not just because people might talk. It's going to be better for her and the baby if she has a birthing partner."

Neytiri gave him a tender, pained little smile. "Son, this is a good thing you wish to do, but Grace was already mated to your brother. The bond is very strong. She _felt_ his death and what she bears now is more than the grief you know."

"I...don't want to do it alone," Grace said.

Neytiri looked at her with sympathy. "But do you love Tsu'tey? This will be for life, just as it was with Tommy. It will not be broken until one of you returns to Eywa."

Grace looked at Tsu'tey and she saw by the gentle smile on his face that he knew and accepted the fact that she would probably never feel for him what she'd felt for his brother. "I understand what it's going to mean if we go through with it, Aunt Neytiri. Tsu'tey wants to be a part of this child's life and I want a partner. I trust him and I _do_ love him—even if it isn't the same way I loved Tommy. But if you disapprove, I won't do it. I don't want you and Uncle Jake to think I'm using your son."

"Oh, come on now," Jake protested with a pained look. "We watched you grow up and we know you better than that, Gracie."

"But that doesn't stop you from being concerned," she persisted, "and I don't blame you. I know how it looks. I lost the father of my baby and now his younger brother is offering himself to me as a mate, so that I won't have to feel alone or out of place. I'm sure it looks like I'm clinging to Tsu'tey because I'm scared or using him because he's Tommy's brother."

"Is any of that true?" Neytiri asked her evenly. There was no judgment in her gaze; merely a silent advisory for Grace to think very carefully about her true reasons.

Grace looked at Tsu'tey and parted her lips to deny it, but she stopped upon gazing into his eyes. No, he was nothing like Tommy and she could never make the mistake of thinking she could bring her lost love back through him. Gentle, soft-spoken and fine-boned in the face, he had none of his brother's decisive, more "manly" appeal. In some ways she made him think of the elves in human fantasy books.

"Maybe the first part is a little true," Gracie admitted with a sigh. "I _am_ scared, Aunt Neytiri. Tsu'tey makes me feel safe. I trust him and I care about him. I might be clinging to him a little, for those reasons."

Jake glanced at Tsu'tey, who had one arm around Sylwanin and was gently shushing her when she tried to ask a question. Jake turned to Norm and Ni'nat, next. "Well, what are your feelings on this?"

Norm grunted softly and combed his long fingers through his hair, inadvertently dragging a few strands loose from his braid. "I think I want my daughter to have as much support and happiness in her life as possible. I'd also like my grandson to grow up with a father in his life, even if it isn't his biological sire. Even so, I don't want either of our kids rushing into something they could regret. Marriages can be undone easily enough if both people decide it isn't working out, but Na'vi bonding is on a totally different level."

Ni'nat nodded in agreement. "We have already spoken to them about this, Jake. They have agreed to give themselves some time to consider the matter carefully before acting."

"How _much_ time?" Jake glanced at Gracie's toned, flat stomach and she guessed he was trying to calculate how much time she had before her condition became obvious.

"A couple of weeks," Tsu'tey said with a shrug. "I think that's plenty of time for both of us and I don't want to wait too long."

Neytiri nodded in understanding and she took Grace into her arms for a gentle embrace. Fearful of accidentally bumping the _Tsahik's_ healing thigh, Grace returned the gesture carefully. "I'm so glad you're taking this well," the girl whispered.

"We will all do our part to help you," Neytiri murmured back. "You should spend some time in meditation, Gracie. Your spirit is overly burdened and it does not need to be. I know training must be hard for you now."

"Actually, I've been training with Mo'at nearly every day," Grace replied as the embrace ended. "Tsu'tey joins the lessons too. It's comforting to both of us, I think."

Neytiri smiled fondly at her son and motioned him over. She stroked his hair when he complied and she measured him with her eyes. "You have a _Tsahik's_ gifts, son. If you had the temperament for it, you would have made a good spirit leader."

Tsu'tey gave her a modest smile. "That's Gracie's calling. I'm content to be a provider and supporter for the clan and my family."

Neytiri didn't seem surprised or displeased with his response.

* * *

After everyone said their goodnights, Tsu'tey and Sylwanin bedded down with their parents in the mushroom grove to sleep as a family with them. A light rain began to fall but they all crowded under one of the giant octoshrooms and snuggled up together. Tsu'tey and Sylwanin slept between Jake and Neytiri, propped up against the mushroom stem. For a long while after the siblings fell asleep, their parents simply watched them. Neytiri looked across at Jake and she smiled. He returned her smile and reached over the kids for her hand. She took it and they both closed their eyes at last, giving into the need for rest. The colorful fungus cap over their heads acted as a giant umbrella and the family slept at the base of the stem, each of them free of nightmares for the first time since Tommy's demise.

* * *

Unfortunately, sunrise brought with it some harsh realities for the Sully family. Norm's family and Mo'at came to the grove to share breakfast with them and afterwards, Jake and Neytiri reluctantly prepared to leave. Sylwanin was determined to change their minds and she hugged her father tight around the waist before he could finish gathering his gear.

"I don't want you to go!"

Jake looked down helplessly at his daughter as she clung to him and cried against his stomach. Neytiri was speaking with her mother nearby and she came to his rescue when she heard the little girl's tearful proclamation.

"_'Ite_, your _sempul_ and I cannot stay here. We risk danger to the Omaticaya, if we try. It is for the clan's protection that we don't stay."

"It isn't fair," sniffed Sylwanin. "They killed Tommy and now they're making you go away! Can't we come with?"

Jake carefully pried her off of him and he squatted down to look at her gravely. "No. That's no life for you, sweetpea. Your mother and I are going into hiding and I won't lie to you; it's going to be tough. We want you to stay here, where you're protected and surrounded by friends. This won't last forever, Sylwanin. When they finish the investigation we may be able to cut a deal, but I'm not going to trust them until I know more about what's going on and what we can expect if we cooperate."

"B-but my birthday is coming," she protested, wiping her eyes futilely.

Jake forced a strained smile and nodded. "I know—next month. You'll be eleven years old." He glanced up at Tsu'tey, who was watching with sad eyes. "Your brother's going to be turning eighteen a few weeks after your birthday, too. I'll tell you what; you can spend your birthday week visiting at the Tree of Souls. Your mother and I will be close enough to spend time with you. Tsu'tey can come with and we'll all celebrate both your birthdays together. How does that sound?"

She brightened a little. "Promise?"

Jake smiled and drew her to him for another hug. "Absolutely. We'll be settled in by then and it should be safe enough."

The others smiled as Sylwanin returned his embrace and nodded enthusiastically. "That sounds good."

When the embrace ended, Jake stood up again and called out for his banshee. Neytiri followed suit and the animals soon came to them. Mo'at looked indecisive for a moment as the couple mounted up, but then she stalled them.

"Wait. I must come with you."

Jake halted his actions, just before he would have ordered his ikran to ascend. He looked at his mother-in-law quizzically, confused by her choice since she had seemed so certain of watching over the kids. "What?"

Mo'at gazed up at him calmly. "I must return to _Ayvitrayä Ramunong_. It is time."

Confused by the announcement, he could only frown. "Time for _what_? I thought you wanted to stay and keep training Grace to become a _Tsahik_?"

"She has learned everything she can from me," assured Mo'at with a brief smile Grace's way. "When it is time, she will make a fine spiritual leader for our people. Now, I wish to return to the Tree of Souls and rest."

He disliked the direction the conversation seemed to be heading. "But the kids love you," he protested, suddenly feeling sick to his stomach.

Sylwanin and Ralu both picked up on Jake's anxiety and it upset them. "Are you sick, Grandma?" Sylwanin approached Mo'at and hugged her around the waist.

Mo'at looked down at the child and stroked her hair. "No, little one. I am just a tired old woman, who wishes to be closer to Eywa. I love you all very much." She looked back up at Jake. "You must bring me with you, son."

He sighed, still not fully understanding her reasons but respecting her too much to keep arguing. "Okay, then. We'll wait for you to gather what you want to bring with."

"I have all that I need with me," she assured him.

Jake looked at his mate helplessly and he noticed the sadness in her eyes as she watched her mother. Turning his attention back to Mo'at, he gave up trying to understand what was going on. "We'd best get going, then."

He offered a hand down to the old _Tsahik_ and she took it. Her grip was strong, despite her age and seeming frailty. She climbed up behind him and embraced him securely while Jake looked down at his kids and his friend. Ralu and Sylwanin started to cry a little, but they didn't argue with Mo'at's decision to leave. Grace stood between her parents and watched Jake and Neytiri solemnly, with one hand unconsciously laying over her lower abdomen in a protective gesture.

Jake's throat tightened warningly and he forced a smile. "Take care of each other, all right?"

The younger girls hugged each other and nodded, while Tsu'tey went to them and laid a hand on each of their shoulders. He gave his parents a little smile that promised he would do everything he could to look after everyone. Jake almost faltered, seeing how brave and responsible his son was being. He knew then that with Tsu'tey as his foster father, Gracie's baby would be in great hands.

"Be careful," Tsu'tey advised. "I know you can't exactly contact us yourselves when you make it there, but have E'quath or Peyla send us some kind of message to let us know you've arrived without a hitch, okay?"

Jake nodded. "You got it."

He send the silent order to his mount and took to the air, before he could lose his composure and turn into a sobbing jackass in front of his kids. Neytiri joined him and she shot him a pained look that told him she was in a similar boat. As they flew away from the Omaticaya village, Jake considered the trials Tsu'tey might soon face.

The clan would never try to force Grace to pair up with Emazu, but she had a strong sense of loyalty and Jake suspected the pressure she felt had a big influence in her desperate plan to pair up with Tsu'tey. She was a smart girl but she had a big heart. Jake wouldn't put it past her to forgo her own happiness to appease the tribe and that was why he hadn't been more opposed to the idea of his son hooking up with her. As much as he respected Emazu's leadership potential, he really didn't like the idea of his grandson being raised by him.

With those thoughts in mind, Jake admitted to himself that he truly hoped Tsu'tey and Grace would mate fast, before anything could go wrong. He didn't believe for a second that Emazu would be an abusive partner but some part of him believed he was capable of giving into seething jealousy and finding a way to discreetly cause a miscarriage.

"God, I'm awful."

He had completely forgotten about his passenger and he jumped when Mo'at spoke to him. "What troubles you so much, son?"

As usual, he couldn't keep his inner thoughts from her. "Emazu. I keep thinking these terrible thoughts about him because I'm afraid for Gracie and my unborn grandson. I've got no right or reason to think Emazu would ever do anything to hurt her or the baby, but I can't get it out of my head."

"He would have no right to harm her, even if they were a mated pair," Mo'at insisted, squeezing him a little more tightly to comfort him. "Her choice is Tsu'tey, so there is no reason for concern."

"But what if she gives in because she feels like she has to mate with the clan leader?" Jake asked. "I know it's not exactly the law, but Omaticaya tradition usually pairs up the _Olo'eyktan _and the _Tsahik_. Grace loves her clan, Mo'at. I don't want her making a choice she'll regret because she's trying to respect traditions."

Mo'at listened to his concerns thoughtfully and when he finished speaking, she offered her opinion. "If she is meant to be mated with the _Olo'eyktan_, then Grace will choose Emazu. She may be uncertain but she will follow her heart and I tell you now, it does not beat for him. A woman _knows_, Jakesully. Just as my daughter chose what her heart wanted, Grace will too."

Jake grimaced at the reminder of how he and Neytiri hooked up. He knew Mo'at loved him as a son and bore no ill will against him for basically "stealing" her daughter from the man she was going to originally mate with, but mention of his old rival and friend always made him uncomfortable. His relationship with the former clan leader had always been of the love/hate sort and it wasn't until near the end of Tsu'tey's life that the two of them fully appreciated one another as brothers of the People.

"I sure hope Tsu'tey junior doesn't have a lot of drama to put up with over this mating business."

Mo'at squeezed his shoulder, offering a mother's sympathy. "Our Tsu'tey is stronger than most realize. His gentle nature does not make him weak and he will stand strong against any difficulties he may face."

Jake found her words comforting and he reached up to pat her hand thankfully. As mother-in-laws went, Mo'at had to be the coolest.

* * *

A few days after Jake, Neytiri and Mo'at left for the Tree of Souls, Grace came to her decision. She marched through the _pa'li_ meadow with a strong sense of purpose. Emazu was there, along with a few other hunters of varying ages. He was inspecting his chosen mount's hooves when Grace came up to him. He knew about Jake and Neytiri's visit, of course. He took it in stride and he publicly declared that despite their insistence that the clan treat them as outcasts, they were always to be welcomed and protected by the Omaticaya. Seeing him speak thusly with such confidence and pride, Grace almost lost her incentive. He truly was shaping up to be a brilliant leader and plenty of females in their age bracket sighed after him—even the ones that weren't currently ready for a mate.

Bearing this in mind, Grace imagined that a lot of girls were going to think she was absolutely out of her mind. Who would turn down such a handsome, strong and brave specimen of manhood? Still, Gracie was about to do just that. She wanted this baby to grow up cherished for who he was, not the percentage of Na'vi genetics in his DNA. Emazu was racist and Gracie knew deep down that no matter how hard he may try to be understanding and loving of her baby, he would always resent it.

Emazu looked up when he heard her approach and he favored her with one of his rare smiles. He straightened up and wiped his hands on his thighs. "Are you going out for a ride this morning? I will come with, if you need company."

That simple statement gave her pause and made her feel terrible. She could see it in his eyes; he _did_ love her, even if he couldn't get past his own prejudice. He worried for her, always insisting that someone be near her at all times, even if it wasn't him. His genuine concern for her well-being made what she had to do heartbreaking.

"I need to speak with you alone," Grace announced mechanically, reading the rehearsed speech from her mind like flash cards. "Can we go to the creek together, Emazu?"

He looked faintly excited and she cursed inwardly, hating herself for giving the wrong impression. "Of course. We can go right now." He patted the stallion he'd been inspecting and he walked away from the _keltural_ with her.

She mentally reviewed everything she'd gone over in her head as they walked together. She really didn't want to hurt him. For all his faults and aggression, Emazu was growing to be a better person and a good leader. She could cause real harm to that progress if she didn't tread carefully. The last thing her clan needed was an embittered, resentful _Olo'eyktan_ leading them.

What made it all even more difficult was that by explaining her decision to him, she was going to be revealing her secret. Her pregnancy would become common knowledge soon and though Na'vi weren't as harsh as humans tended to be when it came to judgment, she was still going to face some discrimination. After all, a smart girl would have waited to get home and speak with the council before answering nature's call and taking a mate.

It was almost more than she could bear and she stopped uncertainly when they arrived at the mouth of the creek, looking at her male companion warily. Emazu sensed her anxiety and he frowned at her, showing some concern.

"What is it you want to talk about?"

Grace drew in a deep, slow breath and braced herself. "You're going to make a wonderful _Olo'eyktan_ for our clan, Emazu."

He evidently appreciated the compliment, because his posture straightened a bit and he nearly smiled. "I will always put the good of our people before everything else."

She faltered again, sensing a hidden message in his words. The good of their people included a smart match. If she were as devoted as him, she wouldn't be there now, preparing to turn down his advances. If she were loyal to her people, she would do as so many of her foremothers had done and mate with the chieftain, to lead her people at his side and strengthen the Omaticaya. Apparently her foremothers had the ability to ignore their hearts, though. Either that, or they had genuinely come to love the men they mated with. None of it mattered, though. She saw with clear eyes that a union with Emazu would only bring misery—for both of them.

"You will be a great leader," she predicted again, "but it won't be with me at your side as a mate. I'll help you guide our people as the _Tsahik_, but I can't be your mate, Emazu."

His expression fell and though he tried to hide it, his disappointment and anger was apparent. "You do not know what you want, yet. You say this now, but when you begin having a woman's needs—"

"I've already had them," she interrupted gently, holding his gaze. "With Tommy. He and I mated the night before he died. I'm carrying his baby."

Emazu seemed to quite literally freeze in place. His expression was like stone as his eyes went to her stomach. "You...you are pregnant?"

She nodded and she instinctively covered her belly. "Yes. Even if I agreed to be your mate, the first child won't be yours. It isn't fair to you."

Emazu dragged his fingers through his mohawk-styled braids. "I would be a good mate to you. I would help you raise the child and we will have more later."

Grace bit her lip and shook her head. "No. Emazu, you've made it clear that you think anyone with 'Sky person' blood is tainted. You resent the human in me and you would resent it in this baby, too. I'm going to pair up with Tsu'tey."

He looked angrier. "Tsu'tey? Why? He is barely a man!"

Grace suddenly didn't feel so inclined to let him down gently. "Don't insult him. You've bullied him his whole life and all he's ever done is love this clan and his family and friends. Tsu'tey _is _a man and he _sees_ me. You don't. You never have."

Emazu deflated under her attack and he became somewhat desperate. "If you want a more sensitive man, I can change. I _do_ see you, Grace."

She shook her head. "No, you don't. You see a prize you want to claim. You see only the outer layer of who and what I am. When you look into my eyes, you don't see into them. You even call me 'tainted' in front of other clan mates, Emazu! How can I be with a man that has so much contempt for a part of me that I can't change? I wouldn't even _want_ to get rid of the human in me if I could. It's part of me and you don't respect that."

"I...I respect you," he argued lamely.

She sighed and approached him, feeling safe to put her hands on his shoulders and give him a kiss on the cheek. "I know you want to, but you can't. I don't judge you for it. I know you have your reasons for hating humans the way you do and I know you're a good man, despite that. I just can't be your mate. Please accept that, Emazu."

He pursed his lips and for a moment, she thought he was going to try and compel her to change her mind. He had the advantage of power and influence at his disposal and knowing her loyalty to her people, he could have used it against her. Instead, he shut his eyes and nodded. He took a moment to collect his thoughts and when he spoke them aloud, she was surprised.

"I would not wish for you to be unhappy. At least believe that."

Her tension faded a little. "I'm going to ask one favor from you, Emazu."

He seemed wary. "What kind of a favor?"

"Stop giving Tsu'tey such a hard time." She crossed her arms over her chest and favored him with an uncompromising scowl. "He's going to be my mate and he's a good man. He would have made his first kill long ago if it weren't for you riding his butt."

Emazu seemed torn between amusement and confusion. "I have no interest in riding any part of him...especially his backside."

"It's a figure of speech," she explained, relaxing her stance a little. "Just another one of my 'Sky person' quirks, I guess. It just means you're being too hard on someone."

"Ah, I see." Emazu scratched his chin and frowned. "For you, I will try to be nicer. He can do better, though—and he should since the finest woman in the clan has chosen him as her mate. He must be a better provider for you and the baby."

"I don't _need_ a provider." She scowled with annoyance. "I can 'provide' for myself just fine without a man. What I need is emotional support and companionship—which Tsu'tey is able to supply. I just don't want my choice to cause friction between the two of you, okay?"

Emazu shrugged. "I dislike him enough for other reasons. I have already promised I will try to be nicer, for you."

Satisfied with the response, she managed a hesitant smile. "I was really worried about talking to you."

His unhappiness showed in his gaze, just before he looked away. "You think I don't care. Now you know better."

She almost reached out to him, but she thought that would be inappropriate. "I'm sorry if I've hurt you."

He gave her a frustrated look and a shrug. "You have made your choice. Now I have things to do." He gave her one last regretful look before turning away and leaving her alone with her thoughts.

* * *

When she had the chance to speak with Grace over the transmitter and swap information about their respective status, Karyu decided it was time to travel again. A little more than two weeks had passed since Savanna's incident with the slinger and once the poison was purged, the stab wound was quick to heal. Still, Karyu didn't want to push it and she went to her father with the proposal. "Dad, I think we should all go and stay with the Omaticaya for a little while."

Tom looked up from the sample he was examining through the telescope. "Not that I'm surprised you want to visit your cousins but I'm curious as to what brought this about so quickly."

"Well, something's going on," she admitted as she hopped onto the counter and kicked her feet absently. "I spoke with Grace for a little while and she sounded weird, like she's hiding something. I want to find out what. I also want to find out what's going on with Uncle Jake and Aunt Neytiri, but we can't speak freely about that stuff over the transmitter."

Tom chuckled with amusement and shook his head before squinting into the microscope again. "You always have to know about everything that's going on, don't you? Grace is probably just coming out of her grief, sweetheart. There _are_ different stages, you know. As for your aunt and uncle, I told you as soon as I got word that they've settled in safely."

"Yeah, but being secretive isn't a stage of grief," insisted the girl. "I'm telling you, something is _off_ with her. I don't know any of the details about what's going on with my aunt and uncle, either. Grace and the others can tell us exactly what's going on face to face. Besides, Kato and I are adults now and we want to show off our ikrans to our friends."

Tom sighed. "Right. You're adults and you can go whether I approve or not. Thanks for rubbing that in."

She feigned innocence. "Me, rub it in? You must have me confused with someone else. So, can we go or not?"

He looked up from the specimen again and smirked at her. "You know damned well I can't make that decision, now. Why are you bothering to ask my permission?"

Karyu hopped down from the counter and kissed him on the cheek. "Because you're my _Sempu_ and I kind of like you. Maybe I want to give you time to get used to your powerless status. I also want to make sure Savanna's well enough to make the trip."

"You're too kind," he sighed. He put an arm around her and hugged her, nonetheless. "So, when did you want to go on this endeavor?"

"In a couple of days," she answered. "That'll give you and _Sa'nok_ time to make any clan arrangements you need to and Sav can pack anything she needs to take with."

"All right then. I'll finish up here and then I'll speak with your mother about it." Tom smirked and kissed her on the forehead. "Thanks for asking first. As long as she rides in front of someone to put less strain on her torso, Savanna should be okay to make the trip now. We'll just have to take more rest breaks to be sure her injury doesn't act up."

"No problem." She frowned suddenly. "Dad, have you ever heard of a Na'vi having green eyes?"

He was visibly puzzled. He shook his head slowly and gazed at her inquisitively. "I'm afraid not. Skin pigment can vary depending on the location and climate, but as far as I know, all Na'vi have yellow tinted eyes. It can be darker or lighter but the color doesn't really differ. Why?"

She looked away and shrugged. "It's not a big deal. I just keep thinking about my vision during my _Uniltaron_. I saw a pair of green eyes set in a Na'vi face, just before I saw the fire. I guess it was just the influence of the toxins making me see vivid colors or something."

Did this green-eyed Na'vi have anything to say to you?" Tom asked, intrigued.

She shook her head. "No. I only saw him for a couple of seconds and the only reason it sticks out is because the eyes were green. I don't mean 'greenish', either. They were _bright_ green, like moss."

Tom smiled. "Maybe there was some significance in the color. You probably won't ever meet a full-blood Na'vi with eyes of that color, but there could be something beneath the surface that made you see them that way."

"Hmm, obscure. Well, I'll go and tell Kato and Savanna about it. I can send Mother in here to 'interrupt' your work if you want."

Tom coughed into his hand. "I really don't like discussing things like that with my daughter."

"Don't be a prude. What you two do with your time is up to you and I don't want to know about it," Karyu chastised. "All I did was offer to send her up to the trailer."

Tom chuckled. "Then please do."

* * *

Savanna was excited about traveling to the Omaticaya village. She looked forward to seeing her friends there again and though she wouldn't admit it aloud, it would be nice to be closer to home. Staying with the Omaticaya clan would give her ample opportunities to visit the base and see her parents and friends more often—though she was very much aware that she would have to practice great caution when doing so. The puncture in her side was closed up and other than some stretching and itching sensations around the wound site, she felt like herself again.

Karyu strapped her duffle bag to her banshee's back and Savanna rode in front of Kato on his mount. Tom also had a duffle bag full of belongings, making her feel a bit less like a weirdo. It seemed that humans relied on "stuff" much more than Na'vi did and Savanna was a little embarrassed for needing so many changes of clothes and art supplies. None of the ikran clan members accompanying them on the trip seemed to care, but she could imagine them inwardly shaking their heads and wondering why she and Tom needed to lug so much crap around with them.

The journey to Omaticaya territory wasn't so bad—except that Kato had the annoying habit of constantly asking her if she was comfortable enough. At one point, she yelled that her bottom wasn't any weaker than a Na'vi woman's and Karyu snickered with amusement. That seemed to clear up Kato's misgivings, because the barrage of questions ceased afterwards and he only asked after her comfort if she showed signs of pain.

They arrived at the Omaticaya Hometree early that evening and Norm and Ni'nat greeted them. Tom exchanged hugs and handshakes with the couple, while Tanhi greeted them with warm dignity. Norm's eyes latched onto Savanna and he whistled softly as he stepped toward her.

"You've grown some more, since I last saw you." He approached with a smile and she gladly hugged him, giggling softly. "What have they been _feeding_ you, Sav?"

"Grubs," answered the hybrid playfully. "Lots of them."

Norm chuckled and moved aside to give his mate room for an embrace. "At least you're getting plenty of protein." He looked at the twins and sighed. "Adults already. I can't _believe_ you two tamed your ikrans before you even turned eighteen!"

Kato scratched his head and brushed his foot back and forth across the huge tree branch they stood on. "Well, you know us. We never follow the rules."

"Which is why their responsibilities are much greater now," insisted Tanhi with a stern look at the twins.

Ni'nat smiled graciously. "I am sure they take their status seriously. Some are meant to lead."

Karyu embraced her. "Hopefully, it's going to be along time before I need to put on the _Olo'eyktan_ headdress. I want my mother to lead the clan for a long time."

"Of course you do," Ni'nat agreed with a smile and a pat of the girl's back. "What daughter would not wish for her mother to have a long life?"

"The ungrateful, stupid kind," answered Karyu without missing a beat. She smiled and pulled away from Ni'nat. "Where is Grace? I'm really anxious to see her."

"She should return soon," answered Ni'nat. "She went with Tsu'tey into the forest to gather some nuts for a stew."

"She's never been a big soup eater," Karyu observed. "Is she cooking for someone else?"

Ni'nat and Norm exchanged quiet, secretive little smiles and Karyu made a mental note of it. "She is planning to cook for more than herself, yes. Why don't you say hello to Ralu and Sylwanin? They are playing "hide from the thanator" at the base of the _keltural_."

Kato chuckled. "That sounds good. Maybe I can sneak up on them and give them a scare."

* * *

"Are you sure?" Tsu'tey eyed his potential mate warily, struggling with a mixture of excitement and uncertainty. "The council approved of it?"

Grace nodded. "My parents and I spoke to the elders last night. They agree that I should have a mate if I want one, and I do. We did as we promised our parents and waited to think about it first. If you really meant all those things you said, I'm ready to bond with you, Tsu'tey."

He stared at her, covertly admiring her sculpted bone structure and the shape of her eyes. She was such a beauty and he knew the boys in the village would never forgive him for taking her. However, this wasn't a normal mating courtship. This was for convenience and protection, to provide Grace and her baby with a partner. She might never come to love him as a true mate and part of him still felt like he was betraying his brother by trying to pair up with her. Still, he couldn't think of anyone else he would rather link his queue with. He reached for the long braid and held it up, swallowing. They were just outside the village, near the path leading to the bathing pool. Nobody was likely to cross their paths and disturb them at this hour, and they wouldn't be performing the act of mating.

"I'm ready."

Grace reached for her queue and she held up the tip, watching quietly as the tendrils emerged and waved around searchingly. "Once we do this, we can't turn back. I'm going to ask you one last time if you truly want to do this, Tsu'tey. I care for you and I don't want to hurt you."

Some of his tension faded and he smiled gently at her. "Grace, if I didn't mean to go through with this I never would have brought it up. I want to be with you through all of it and help my nephew or niece grow up safely. Please trust me."

She returned his smile and took one of his hands in hers. "That's all I needed to hear from you. I _do_ trust you...more than I trust just about anyone, right now." She raided her queue expectantly, waiting for him to join his to it.

Tsu'tey also raised his queue and he looked into her eyes as he brought it closer to hers. The tendrils of both hair plugs reached out for each other instinctively; which was a very good sign. Compatibility was key in a mating bond and if the participants' queues rejected each other, a successful bond obviously couldn't occur.

"I promise," Tsu'tey whispered, holding her gaze, "that I will do everything I can to give you the companionship and support that you deserve, and to be a good parent to this baby. I love you, Gracie."

With that quiet vow, he connected his queue to hers and drew her into his embrace. The shock of feeling everything that made Grace who she was stunned him. Her quickly indrawn breath hinted that she was equally affected and her nails dug into his shoulders as her fingers curled over his back. It was utterly amazing. The sensation was euphoric and despite his best efforts to be a gentleman, Tsu'tey's body responded to the pleasure in a rather obvious way.

"I'm sorry," he gasped when he felt her tense in response to being rudely poked in the stomach. "I...It just kind of happened."

Grace shook her head and held him tighter. "Don't apologize. Just hold me."

Gulping, he nodded and tightened his embrace on her. He shut his eyes and laid his cheek on the crown of her head, blown away by the intimacy of the bond. He could sense her feelings and with an uncomfortable surge of clarity, he realized that she in turn could sense his emotions too. He tried to control his feelings, worried that she might reject him before the bond was complete if she picked up on them.

She didn't. She pulled her head away from his chest and looked up at him with wonder on her fair features, leaving little doubt that she knew exactly how he really felt. She traced his lips and cheekbones with her fingertips and she sighed. "Tsu'tey."

"It's all right," he assured her, blushing. "You had to have known on some level, anyhow. It doesn't change anything. Heck, it's going to make me a better mate, if nothing else."

"But it isn't fair to you," she whispered. Her eyes welled with tears.

He brushed a drop of moisture away from her right eye with the pad of his thumb and he shook his head. "Don't. Don't do that. This is what I want and I really don't mind if we never have a 'normal' relationship. Since Tommy can't be here, I will. It's all right, Gracie."

She sniffed and turned her head to kiss the palm of his hand. The bond deepened and Tsu'tey knew they had Eywa's approval when he could no longer tell his thoughts apart from hers. He hugged her tight and nuzzled her hair, both happy and sad. He would have given anything to have his brother back alive and safe, to watch him and Grace experience the joys of partnership and children together. It wasn't meant to be, however. He'd _always_ loved Grace but he'd always understood and accepted that she was meant for his brother. Now she was his mate and his brother was gone. Tsu'tey honestly didn't know how he should feel, so he just held her tightly and struggled against the urge to cry.

* * *

"Wow, you both look like hell."

Grace's surprise at being intercepted by the twins on their way back into the village was quickly overridden by annoyance. "Thanks, Kato. That's just what a girl likes to hear before supper."

"We've had kind of a rough day," Tsu'tey added. "When did you guys get here? We didn't even know you were coming!"

"It was a surprise," Karyu excused with a smirk, looking them both over with sharp eyes. "Think of it as moving downwind. It's not good to hunt the prey if they can tell you're coming."

Tsu'tey lifted an eyebrow and stepped closer to Grace—an instinctively protective gesture that made the twins eyeball each other curiously. "So now you're making a habit out of hunting your friends and cousins?"

"Hunting for clues, is more like it." Karyu looked between the two of them with interest. "I know you two have a lot to deal with but you're both acting really strange, lately. We haven't talked much but I can tell something's going on."

"You're imagining things." Grace averted her gaze.

"Not if you're looking like that," Kato insisted, agreeing with his sister. "You act like you've got something to hide. Hey, it's _us_. Just tell us what's going on, already."

Grace and Tsu'tey shared a look as the considered what to say. The future _Tsahik_ finally spoke up. "You'll probably hear about it anyway, so we might as well tell you. Tsu'tey and I are a mated pair now and I'm pregnant by Tommy."

If she was looking for a comical reaction, she got one. The twins blinked at her with dumbfounded expressions on their attractive, young faces. Kato ogled her openly and for once, Karyu was struck speechless—for about ten seconds.

"Excuse me...do you want to run that by us again?" Karyu asked after finding her tongue. "I could swear you just told me you're knocked up with Tommy's kid and mated to Tsu'tey."

Gracie nodded. "That's the basic summary, yes."

Karyu and Kato looked at each other and the male twin spoke up next. "H-how did this _happen_?"

Grace sighed and Tsu'tey put a gentle hand on her shoulder, speaking up for her. "Grace was ready for a mate during the last hunt we had with my brother. She had her needs and the two of them were already planning to pair up, so they took care of things. That's how it happened."

"But...just _one time_?" Kato challenged, flabbergasted. "It only took one try? Our parents had to do it like bunnies to conceive us!"

"There's a mental image I could do without," Karyu grumbled, nudging her brother none-too-gently in the side. "You've got to remember, Tommy and Grace are genetically closer to each other than our parents were."

"Right," Kato agreed, smacking himself in the forehead. "We've only got a small sliver of human DNA, compared to our Dad. Maybe that means Savanna and I can—"

"Put on the brakes," advised Karyu suddenly. "We might have cheated the system and gotten our adult status early, but you're still both _way_ too young to be thinking about starting a family. Don't make me kick some sense into you."

"Listen to her," advised Grace when Kato looked at his sister with an offended air. "You don't need to get her pregnant to show her that you love her. If things were different, Tommy and I would have waited at least long enough for both of us to pass our trials." She placed a hand over her abdomen and lowered her gaze, obviously pained. Tsu'tey put a supportive arm around her and pulled her close to him.

"I guess you're right," Kato conceded, seeing the affection and selfless care that Tsu'tey gave to Grace. "That level of loyalty doesn't just come on its own. So are you both okay with all of this?"

"We're managing," Tsu'tey answered with a rueful little smile. "We've got our parents to help us get ready for the baby."

Karyu sighed and she reached out to place her hand on Gracie's still-flat abdomen. "It's really ironic. I hate to see you going through this but I'm glad you're carrying a piece of our cousin inside of you."

Grace laid her hand over Karyu's. "I know. I feel the same way. This isn't how I imagined starting a family, but Tsu'tey has been a wonder." She looked at her mate with a fond, sisterly expression. "I honestly would have lost my mind by now, if it weren't for him."

Kato looked at Tsu'tey's tender expression and he began to make an observation, but Karyu caught it in time and she stepped on his foot to stall him, giving him a warning look. "Hey, that's what friends are for, right?"

* * *

Once Grace and Tsu'tey left them alone and headed into the village, Kato rounded on his sister accusingly. "Okay, why'd you stomp on my foot like that?"

"Because you were about to blurt something that doesn't need to be said," she answered coolly, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm sure Gracie knows he's madly in love with her. Things like that tend to slip through the link when people join their queues, you know."

Kato glanced uncertainly in the direction where their friends had gone. "But what about _him_? There's no way in hell she's over Tommy yet and she's carrying his baby! How is Tsu'tey going to deal with being the rebound guy?"

"He's not," Karyu insisted. "Knowing the two of them, they had a long talk about this whole arrangement before they went through with it. I don't think Tsu'tey needs either of us to come to his rescue."

"But that's just it," insisted Kato, "He's too nice to ask for any help or complain. Grace is recently bereaved, so she's not in her right mind. She might not even realize she's using him."

Karyu faltered a bit at that and she chewed her lower lip. "I know it all looks bad, but do you really think Dr. Spellman would have allowed his daughter to go through with this if he didn't think she was mentally competent? Look at how protective that guy is of his daughters and tell me he'd cave easily."

"I guess not," conceded Kato with a shrug. "It's just awfully worrying. Can you even fathom how hard this could be on Tsu'tey? He's mated, but he'll probably never get to mate. For a guy, that's pretty—"

"Stupid," interrupted Karyu with a scowl. "Is getting laid really _all_ you care about? Stop thinking from between your legs and at least _attempt_ to comprehend that maybe for Tsu'tey, sex isn't everything."

He stared at her evenly. "I never said it was 'everything', but it's pretty damned important. Just because a guy wants sex doesn't mean it's all he thinks about and you're an idiot if you think Tsu'tey doesn't care at all whether he gets it. Until you know what it feels like, please try to treat the rest of us with a measure of respect."

Unused to being blessed out this way by her more sensitive sibling, Karyu stared at him. "Um...okay. Just remember though, Tsu'tey _chose_ to be Gracie's mate and you aren't going to do them any good by getting all bent out of shape because he might not be getting any. Get over it and be glad you aren't in the same situation."

Kato sighed, but he was used to his sister's inability to express affection without sarcasm. He put an arm around her and half-dragged her away. "Whatever. Let's help get supper ready."

* * *

Savanna smiled as Kato nuzzled her ear and handed her leaf plate to her. "I'm okay," she assured him softly, amused and touched by his subtle worry.

"I've set up a sleeping cubby for you on the second level of the trunk," he informed her, piling his own plate with roasted fish meat that had been passed around. "That way you won't be too close to the den and get woken up by people coming and going. Are you okay to climb, though?"

She glanced at the spiral branches that composed the "stairs" within the den and she nodded. "I can manage it. I'm really feeling a lot stronger. Please don't worry so much."

"It's my fault you were hurt," he murmured, his gaze sliding to the bandage around her torso. "I shouldn't have taken you so far from the village."

"Now you're just being silly." Savanna raised her cup and smiled to Karyu, who sat across from them next to Sylwanin and Ralu. "You couldn't have known that would happen. If you didn't think it was safe, you wouldn't have taken me there."

"Yeah, but I still should have known better." He poked aimlessly at the food on his plate without any real appetite. "When you got hurt, I swear it felt like my life was over."

Savanna smiled brightly at him. "You are so sweet. To think I had such a crush on you for all these years and I never imagined even making it onto your radar."

He blushed and shrugged. "You were always on my radar, Sav. I just didn't want to move in too quick. Ask my sis, if you don't believe me."

She took a bite of one of the roasted root veggies on her plate and she leaned against him with a contented little sigh. "That makes me happy."

He took the opportunity to stroke her rich, mahogany hair while his fingers were clean. "How about visiting your parents for the weekend? Would that make you happy too?"

Savanna tilted her head back and looked up at him with a smile. "Really?"

"Yeah. We've already talked about it with our parents and the Spellman family. They think it would be good for all of us to pay a little visit and spend time with our friends on the base."

"It seems like it's been forever since I saw Dusty," she sighed. "I'm definitely in!"

Kato chuckled and embraced her gently. "We've just got to be careful with you. We might have to sneak you in or camp you out in the woods if there are too many UNEC people wandering around."

She frowned. "There's one thing about that which I don't think my parents have considered."

"What's that?"

She looked up at him again. "The odds are that people at UNEC have already heard about me. There's no law against talking about me, after all. Rumors spread."

Kato's expression hardened. "I never considered that. Maybe we shouldn't—"

"We _should_," she interrupted determinedly. "I want to see my parents and my friends again. If UNEC knows about me they know about me...there's nothing we can do about it. I think if they wanted to take me away they would have done it by now."

"Sav, I don't want to put you in danger."

She shook her head. "You aren't. Trust me Kato, I'm in danger just by existing and sooner or later, people are going to have to learn that they can't fix everything for me. I'm not going to go looking for trouble but I'm not going to live my life in constant fear, either."

He had some trouble with that; mostly because it was a painful reminder of how powerless he truly was to stop bad things from happening to her. He took a bite of hexapede steak and chewed absently, trying to think of the best way to share his feeling without insulting her.

"I think I'm in love with you."

Savanna set her leave plate aside and stood up abruptly, coughing into her hand. Karyu practically leaped over the firepit to come to her friend's aid and she started to wrap her arms around her torso, but she remembered the healing injury and she started patting her back instead. Savanna shook her head and caught her breath, assuring Karyu that she wasn't choking. Kato stood there looking and feeling like an imbecile while his sister rounded on him.

"Okay, what the hell did you do to her?"

"He didn't do anything," coughed Savanna, holding a hand out to stall Karyu's next interrogation. "I was just surprised and I swallowed a bit of food the wrong way. I'm okay."

Karyu looked at her and Kato suspiciously before returning to her place to finish her meal. Kato scratched his head and gave his girlfriend a wary glance. "I didn't know you'd take it so hard. Sorry for making you choke."

"Oh no," she insisted, grabbing his bicep urgently. "It was just a surprise to hear you say it so suddenly!"

He relaxed and he smiled at her. "So it didn't scare you?"

She laughed and leaned in to put her head on his shoulder. "Only in a good way. I've felt the same way since I was old enough to start noticing boys."

He was visibly relieved. "That long, huh?"

She shrugged and lowered her eyes shyly. "I tried not to stalk you."

Kato smirked and he urged her to sit back down while he fetched her plate for her. They resumed eating and Savanna burst into giggles when she saw the obnoxiously puzzled look Karyu was giving her from across the firepit. Poor Karyu just didn't understand, yet. One day she would, though.

* * *

When they arrived outside Hell's Gate that Friday, Tom and Norm went into the base first to determine how many UNIC operatives might be around. They went into the lab building before even considering heading for the residential bio-dome. Max put aside his work when he found out they were there and he invited them into his office for some privacy.

"I trust you had a safe trip?" Max asked once the office door was shut and locked.

"Uneventful," agreed Tom with a nod. "Expect a storm this evening, though. I think we barely kept ahead of it and it was headed this way."

Max shrugged. "I'll have maintenance inspect the power generators just in case. Have you spoken with Sebastian and Katherine yet?"

"Not yet," answered Norm. "We just got here and your lab was closest. Is it safe to bring Savanna into the base?"

"Everything should be fine," assured Max. "General West was here three days ago to collaborate with Trudy about search teams, but UNEC personnel doesn't come here often. Fortunately, I think they trust us to tell them if Jake contacts us."

"How is that fortunate?" Tom inquired.

"Because the more they trust us, the less chance there is of them sending in agents to keep an eye on us." Max looked out the window at the overcast sky. "It's no secret that I don't approve of the actions Jake took and I honestly think he would be better off surrendering to West. They trust that in my desire to serve Jake's best interests, I'll cooperate with Earth authority and have him detained if I see him."

"Would you?" Norm looked somewhat wary.

Max smiled without humor and shook his head. "No matter how wrong I think his choices are, Jake Sully is my friend. You should know better, Norm. We've all been through too much together and unless I feel it's necessary to save his life, I'll never betray him. That isn't to say I won't try to talk some sense into him, though."

Tom snorted. "Good luck with that. I'm going to go out and get the others. We'll bring Savanna to the recreation building so the kids can all catch up together, unless the Thomas family would rather her go straight home."

"I'm sure the rec building will be fine," agreed Max. "Usually when UNEC people come, they stay around the main part of the base. The bio-dome should be safe for Savanna to stay in if we get any more visitors while she's here but I'm not expecting any this weekend."

"Good. I'll go and get her now, then."

"I'll go and get Sebastian and Katherine," Norm offered.

* * *

The storm came in later that evening, just as Tom predicted. Since the main part of the base wasn't covered with a protective dome of reinforced thermoplastic materials, getting from one building to the next resulted in being soaked to the bone. The rain was coming down so hard you couldn't see across the street. Dustin, Andrew, Savanna and the visiting Na'vi kids didn't quite make it through the doors of the airport before the downpour began. Ralu shook herself off like a dog and Tsu'tey politely asked a passing MP if there were towels anywhere they could use to dry off with. The human female advised them to wait while she went to the supply room.

"Its just rain, Tsu'tey," grumbled Karyu. "We aren't going to melt."

Tsu'tey wiped some moisture off of the clear visor of his breathing mask and he glanced meaningfully at Grace and the two youngest girls. "It's an air conditioned building and I don't want anyone to catch a cold."

Karyu followed his gaze and she remembered Gracie's situation. Of course, Tsu'tey wouldn't want to risk his mate getting ill. It would be a real tragedy if something caused Grace to miscarry. As for Sylwanin and Ralu, Tsu'tey considered them both his responsibility. It was all well and good, but Karyu seriously worried that her friend might be piling too much on his young shoulders.

"So how are you two enjoying flying on your banshees?" Andrew asked the twins.

"It's great," answered Kato enthusiastically. "We're getting better at it all the time."

"I can imagine the kind of stunts you two get up to," Dustin said with a half-worried smirk. "I just hope you use your common sense when you're riding."

"Give us a little credit," sighed Karyu. "We're not suicidal."

The MP came back with a bundle of towels. She handed them out to the kids and advised them that lockdown of the airport would be at nine PM.

"That's okay," Dustin assured her, "I just wanted to show my friends the Samson that's been assigned to me. We won't stay for long."

"Just don't get any bright ideas about taking an unscheduled flight." The woman's brown eyes twinkled, though her expression was serious.

Dustin smiled. "I'll be sure and get clearance before I take my friends out for a flight. I learned my lesson the first time."

Nodding in satisfaction, the MP left them and Dustin guided them down the corridors toward the hangar area. "I don't think I'm ever going to live that incident down," he admitted to his friends with a sigh.

Remembering the incident in question, Savanna chuckled and ruffled his curls affectionately. "You were very brave to take that tiltrotor and go looking for our friends, Dusty. I don't care what anyone says."

He started to answer but he saw the sorrowful expression on Gracie's face before she could hide it. Talking about the volcano eruption clearly made her think of Tommy. Tsu'tey took her hand supportively and Dustin tactfully avoided lingering on the subject. "If the weather is clear enough tomorrow, I could probably get clearance from Ma to take the Samson out for a couple of hours. I can show you guys the new purification plant they've built by the river to the north."

"That sounds cool," Kato agreed.

"Um...how are your flight skills?" Tsu'tey asked uncertainly, having never been aboard an aircraft piloted by his friend.

"He's one of the top ranking pilots in his class," answered Andrew for him. The blond flashed a proud smile at his shorter companion. "It's in his blood, man."

Dustin shrugged and smiled modestly at the compliment. "I have an advantage over most of the other learning pilots. My Ma took me out for practice regularly, so I had the benefit of learning in a real tiltrotor instead of a flight simulator."

"He's even flown me on a couple of research gathering assignments," Andrew said. "We found this _really weird_ fungus the last time. I swear the thing looked like some kind of hybrid between a mushroom and an amoeba."

"It sounds like a mooncap," Kato observed thoughtfully. "Was it blue with a purple 'yoke' inside the cap?"

"That sounds about right," Andrew nodded. "And here I thought we'd found something new."

"Well, they aren't common," Karyu excused. "They only grow when the moons and Polyphemus are aligned a certain way and the soil has to be just right."

"Are they poisonous?" Savanna asked.

"Oh yeah," Kato confirmed with feeling. "_Very_ poisonous."

"When people in our clan find them, they usually dry them out and preserve them to make toxins for arrowheads," Karyu explained. She intended to say more but as they walked past some of the military personnel photos hanging on the wall, something caught her attention. The others didn't notice that she fell behind, because they were engrossed in the subject of Na'vi poison manufacturing and the other uses for deadly fungus.

"What the _hell_?"

Karyu stared unblinkingly at the picture that had drawn her attention so completely. Standing in full uniform in front of a US flag was a young human marine. He was nice-looking for a human and his brown hair was cut to military regulation. He _almost_ looked like he was on the verge of smiling, like he had a joke on the tip of his tongue waiting to be told. His attractive visage wasn't what drew Karyu's attention, though. His eyes seemed to leap out at her from the image. They were a vivid, mossy green color—just like the eyes she remembered from her vision.

"But they're in the wrong face," she muttered, confused. The nameplate beneath the portrait said "Private Baxter Howell, USMC."

"Hey Karyu, what are you doing?" Kato had noticed her absence and he came back to get her. "We've only got a little while to look at Dustin's Samson before we have to leave."

She didn't look away from the photo. "I've seen him before."

Kato shrugged. "Probably, so? We see a lot of MP's around here. Look, here's Uncle Jake. They've got his old human picture up next to his avatar one."

"No, I saw him in my vision," Karyu explained stubbornly. "Except the face is wrong."

Kato turned his attention away from the photos of Jake and he gave her a faintly worried look. "Uh, you're Dream Hunt vision?"

She nodded. "Exactly. Those were _his_ eyes I saw...I know it."

Kato looked at the picture warily. "The eyes in the fire?"

"No, the eyes _with_ the fire," she corrected, "pay attention! I never said the eyes were in the fire. The fire was in the background somewhere."

"Okay, so you think this guy was in your vision," reasoned Kato. "What did he do, blow something up?"

"I don't know," she confessed. "And like I said, the face is all wrong. He had an avatar face in my vision."

Kato was at a loss. "Well, if you're right about this then he must be part of the Avatar program or something. We could ask Dustin if he knows the guy. Since his mother's head of security, he's bound to know most of the military personnel on this base."

Karyu considered the idea and then made her decision. She reached out and snatched the picture off the wall, frame and all. When Kato gave her a hairy eyeball, she shrugged. "I'm just borrowing it for a little while, until I figure out who this guy is. I'll put it back when I'm done."

He didn't offer any arguments to her, simply because by now, he knew it would do no good.

* * *

Karyu managed to wait until Dustin was finished showing off his ride before asking him about the soldier in the picture. When he saw that she'd taken the picture, he was immediately alarmed.

"Karyu, you can't just snatch military property like that!"

"I wanted to have the picture on hand to show you," she excused. "I'll put it back. Do you know this guy?"

Dustin took the picture and stared at it for a moment. He shook his head and frowned. "He doesn't look familiar to me. Andy, do you recognize him?"

Andrew leaned over Dustin's shoulder to look at the picture. "I don't recognize the face but I swear I know that name."

"Well, it isn't like you'll run into a lot of people named Baxter Howell," Sylwanin said with a perplexed look on her face. "What a weird name!"

"I don't care if his name is Herkimer Poindexter," Karyu insisted, "I just want to know who he _is_ and where I can find him."

Grace looked at her suspiciously. "Why is it so important to you to find this one human?"

"Because I'm pretty sure I saw him in my vision when I had _Uniltaron_ and there was fire involved. I need to know if he's going to be trouble or not."

The group sobered at that and the teasing glint in Kato's eyes faded. Her logic was perfectly reasonable and any thoughts of insinuating that she had a sudden crush on a strange human went out the window.

"You think he might be an enemy?" Tsu'tey guessed, eyeing the photo.

"Like I said; I _don't know_. I want to find out, though." Karyu looked at her human companions expectedly, but Savanna was the one to come to the rescue.

"I can do a search for the guy's name under military personnel tonight," offered the hybrid. "Anything in-depth will be classified but I'm sure I can pull up basic information about him. I could probably convince Papa to help me if I need to, since this could be important to the safety of the Ikran clan."

"I'll ask my parents if they know him, too," Dustin added.

Karyu relaxed a little. She took the picture back and stared at it again, memorizing the young man's features and the shape of his eyes. He had to be a recent arrival, for her to have visited Hell's Gate so many times and never once crossed paths with him. She realized how hard she was staring at his picture and she forced herself to put it down and look away, not wanting her friends to get the wrong impression.

* * *

The next day after breakfast, Savanna met up with her Na'vi friends at the Avatar cabin, where they were sleeping during their visit. She urged Karyu and Kato to follow her outside and around the back of the cabin, so that the wrong ears wouldn't hear the conversation.

"Okay, here's the scoop," Savanna said as she opened up the purse at her hip and pulled out a holopad. She turned it on and showed her friends the files she'd saved on Baxter Howell. "The guy was in the enhanced Avatar program, like your father. He was one of the Nova crew survivors."

Karyu frowned. "Then, that would make him our parent's age." Going by his human picture and what she saw in her vision, she had expected someone much closer to her age.

"Well, technically that's true," Savanna answered, "but he hasn't had the chance to age much since we were all born. He's been in cryo for all this time, so he's still physically about twenty."

"What's he doing in cryo?" Kato asked.

"He was in an accident." Savanna considered the twins with a look of irony on her face. "And guess who caused it?"

Karyu shrugged, in no mood for guessing games.

"Your old friend, Lieutenant Phelps," answered Savanna, taking the hint. "He mouthed off to Mr. Howell and the guy tried to climb the prison yard fence to kick his butt. He got shocked by the electric current and it put him in a coma."

Karyu's eyes went round and she looked down at the files. She saw a picture of Howell in his avatar body and she found herself staring at it even harder than she'd stared at his human picture. His eyes were still _green_ in his avatar body.

"How is that _possible_?"

"What?" Kato prompted.

"His eyes are green, just like they were in my vision." She took the device and pointed at the picture of Private Howell. "See? I'm not imagining it. They're green."

Kato squinted at it and shrugged. "It's probably just a genetic fluke. The DNA mixture they used to make his avatar must have had enough human in it to overpower the Na'vi eye color trait, is all. It isn't a big deal. Sav's got hazel eyes and you aren't freaking out about that."

"But Savanna's a special case," argued Karyu. "This guy's supposed to be like Dad."

"It _is_ kind of unsettling," Savanna agreed. "Just because he doesn't look like he's got much human in him, except for the eye color. We're all used to seeing avatars with yellow eyes."

"So, he's still in a coma?" Karyu demanded, steering the subject back to more important matters.

"That's what the records say," confirmed Savanna with a nod. "I phoned Dustin and he's trying to find out where this guy is right now. He might be able to get you in to see him, if you want."

Karyu felt like she was walking a dream all over again. "How could he be in a coma? Unconscious people don't blow things up."

"Maybe he doesn't blow anything up," suggested Kato. "Maybe he was just in your vision by coincidence?"

Karyu compressed her lips and shook her head. "Maybe my finding him is going to trigger some sort of disaster."

Savanna and Kato looked at each other and the hybrid girl tried to be reassuring. "Oh Karyu, don't think like that. I'm sure there's a logical explanation behind all of this. The fire in your vision could just be a bonfire or cooking pit. Maybe you cook him something in the future."

Karyu stared at the other girl. "He's in a coma. Any meals he has in the future will get fed to him through a tube."

Savanna sighed and she started to answer, when her satellite phone went off. Murmuring thankfully for the interruption, she answered it and she gave her companions the "thumbs-up" sign when Dustin's voice spoke through the device. "Yeah, she's here. Oh, so you found him? That's great, Dusty. Yes, I'll tell her. Thanks, we'll see you in a little while."

Karyu watched her friend warily as Savanna hung up and replaced the phone in her purse. She relinquished the holopad to her when Savanna reached for it and suddenly, she felt unreasonably uneasy. "Dustin found him?"

"Yup. He's in the cryo bank for critical patients. They've got a few people 'frozen' in there, apparently. Dusty got the clearance for you to have a look at the guy if you want to."

Eywa, _did_ she? What good could come of it? It wasn't as if she could ask the man any questions or demand that he get out of her head.

"I'm not sure there's any point in going to see him," Karyu finally said, looking away. A chill went up her spine and she rubbed her hands together.

"I thought you wanted to have a closer look at him," Kato reminded her, puzzled. "Don't you think it could at least give you some closure?"

"No, it won't," she insisted. "Because looking at him won't get me the answers. It won't tell me why he showed up in my vision with a fire burning behind him. If it was an omen then it _should_ mean he'll wake up sooner or later, but I won't get my answers until that happens."

Kato stared at her. "You're afraid."

"Don't be stupid," she snorted, but her voice lacked its usual conviction. "What could I possibly have to be afraid of? The man is in a coma and even if he weren't, I could probably take him out."

"You're afraid that if you go and see this guy, you'll trigger something you can't stop."

"You can't stop the ripples once you drop the pebble into the water," Savanna agreed sagely, also watching Karyu thoughtfully.

"Are you both finished? I just don't see the point in doing this."

"But you were determined to see him in person until a minute ago." Kato crossed his arms over his chest and regarded her with candid interest. "What changed your mind so fast, if you aren't afraid?"

"He shouldn't be real, that's what," she blurted in exasperation. "Dream Hunts are just glorified acid trips that help us find our paths in life."

"Now you sound like Tommy," Kato announced softly. "So that's it...you didn't fully believe in it until now and the proof that the visions are genuine has you freaking out."

"Stop trying to psychoanalyze me," she growled. "How would _you_ feel if you dreamed about somebody you've never met before and then found out they weren't just a figment of your imagination?"

"I'd probably want to see them in person to make sure they're real." Kato shrugged. "If nothing else, you can at least get confirmation that you aren't losing your mind."

Savanna added her persuasion. "Well? Are you going to go and see him or not? Like you said, he's in a coma so it isn't like he can do anything."

Karyu was about to refuse again, but her pride won out when her brother smirked at her. If only to save face, she shrugged and agreed. "Let's go, then."

* * *

The others stayed at the cabin with their parents while the twins and Savanna went to the medical and research facilities to meet up with Dustin.

"Hi, I've got clearance," Dustin showed his ID tag to the woman at the reception counter and she eyed it for a moment before pressing the button to unlock the doors.

"Go right in, Mr. Patel." She looked at the other teenagers and cleared her throat. "Please remember to keep your voices down, so you don't disturb the patients."

Karyu frowned at the woman, wondering how in the world they could possibly "disturb" coma patients.

Dustin answered the question before she could ask it. "She means down the hall. There's a trauma ward there."

Shrugging, the huntress went through the doors and the others followed. She hesitated as they walked down the hall and drew closer to the room labeled "Cryo Bank". Dustin bumped into her from behind and he mumbled a quick apology, flushing with mortification as his face briefly collided with her bottom. Karyu hardly paid attention. Her eyes were glued on the black lettering on the glass doors up ahead.

"Are you chickening out?" Kato challenged in a whisper, grinning at her.

"Of course not," she scoffed. She forced her feet to keep moving and she tried to ignore the adrenaline rush she felt as the doors slid open to admit them. She looked around curiously, having never been in a cryogenic storage chamber before. The room was circular and the capsules containing the stasis recipients were set into the walls. It reminded Karyu uncomfortably of a morgue, in fact.

"Okay, which one is he in?" She started to look for Howell's capsule hastily, scanning over the identification labels on each one. The others spread out to help and Kato found the correct capsule first.

"Over here, sis."

Karyu looked over her shoulder at her brother, who was examining a stowed capsule across the room. The urge to run out of that place was so strong she actually took two steps toward the door before realizing it. Savanna noticed with a frown and she went over to Karyu and put an arm around her waist.

"Just one peek, okay? You'll feel better for it."

Karyu felt foolish, being gently chided by the smaller girl. Sav was only trying to help though, so she found the patience not to snap at her and she walked with her to the other side of the room.

"How do I get this thing open?" Kato asked, looking for a catch release to slide the capsule out.

"You don't," Dustin said with hasty alarm, bounding over to him. "We're not here to open his cryo pod, Kato!"

"I didn't mean _open_ it," explained Kato. "I just meant slide it out so we can have a look inside. We can do that, can't we?"

"Oh, right." Dustin relaxed. "Yes, of course we can do that. The pods are designed so medical staff can check on the patients without interrupting the hibernation. Here, I'll push the track release."

Moment's later, the capsule slid out—just like a morgue container. It was unsettling and Karyu's skin prickled as she approached to look through the transparent cover of the cryo pod. There he lay, looking as though he was sleeping. She tilted her head, feeling a little relieved that he looked so natural. With the impression the environment gave her, she almost expected him to look dead. The steady blip of the vitals monitor assured that though he was "frozen" in time, his organs were working just fine.

"He's cute," Savanna observed guilelessly, earning a raised eyebrow from Kato.

"You think he's cute?"

The hybrid looked at her boyfriend and grinned. "Are you jealous?"

"Of a coma patient? Give me a little credit."

Dustin interjected. "Okay, we've seen him now. Let's go."

He started to stow Howell's capsule again but something made Karyu stop him. "Give me a few minutes, okay?"

He looked at her with mildly curious brown eyes, but he didn't try to tease her or insinuate anything. "Okay. We'll be just outside."

"You're obviously not the only one that thinks he's cute," Kato whispered to Savanna as they turned to leave.

Karyu decided to remind him of her current reproductive status. "I don't have a sex drive, remember?"

Kato glanced at the comatose marine. "Things can change."

"Whatever." She turned her back on her sibling, annoyed with his stupid assumptions. When she was alone in the room with the oblivious private, she sighed and leaned over his capsule, propping her elbows on the smooth, transparent surface of the lid. She absently traced little patterns over the cool, glass-like surface.

"What were you doing in my vision? You'd better not give me any trouble if you ever wake up. You won't like what I'll do to you."

There was nothing she could do to further interpret the meaning behind her vision until Baxter Howell came out of his coma. She believed he had to wake up eventually, since he was in her vision. The fact that he was real proved to her that her vision was real as well, though she still had no idea what his connection was to the flames she saw. She stowed his cryo pod again and left the room to rejoin her companions.

Kato gave her a sly look when she rejoined the group and she ignored it. Let him think he had something to tease her about. She had more important things than his assumptions to worry about.

* * *

-To be continued


	13. Chapter 13

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 13: Full Circle

* * *

Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Beware: lemon scene in this chapter. All these euphemisms for genitalia make me laugh. On a separate note, I'd like to wish a happy birthday to one of my readers, Shkkf. I hope I got this chapter out soon enough.

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

Kato noticed his sister's pensive mood over the rest of the visit to Hell's Gate. He tried to encourage her to talk about it on the morning of their last day to visit, after noticing her brooding in a reclined position on the bunk she'd chosen within the avatar cabin.

"I'm fine," she insisted.

"You haven't cracked a smile or picked on anyone since you identified that guy as the person from your Dream Hunt vision," he observed.

She opened the small pack by the foot of her bunk. Kato glanced down to see her pull the "borrowed" picture of Private Howell out of it. "What happened to putting that right back when you were finished identifying him?"

Karyu gave him a sullen look before staring at the image. "I will before we leave. I'm just trying to figure him out. You know how they say you can see who someone really is if you look hard enough into their eyes."

"You're trying to see into him," Kato guessed, surprised. Karyu usually went along with traditions because it was the right way to show her respect to the clan she loved, but lately she really seemed to be opening up her spiritual side. "I don't think it's going to work."

She smirked ruefully and glanced at him sidelong. "Why not? You don't think I have what it takes to look past the surface?"

"No, I don't think it'll work because that's just a photograph."

She sighed and laid the picture frame down over her thighs. "Good point. His spirit isn't in there."

"You'll have to do it in person to try that," agreed Kato.

"Yeah, but then it might be too late. If he torches the forest or blows up the village, I'm sure as hell not going to be taking time to peer into his eyes...except to poke them out."

"Why are you so convinced he's going to blow anything up?" Kato asked, "don't you think you're jumping to some pretty radical conclusions?"

"Don't you remember the in-fighting that was going on when Dad came to Pandora?" Karyu swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up, pacing. She began to nibble her nails between words. "Some of those soldiers that came here were loyal to the RDA. The rest sided with Hell's Gate and the clans. That jackass Phelps caused as much trouble with the people on his 'side' as he did with the opposition so how do I know this Howell guy wasn't one of the RDA supporters?"

"Try asking Dad. If he can't confirm whether this guy was with or against us, he can probably get you a list of the people charged with assaulting our clan and the base."

Karyu nodded. "You're right. I should have thought of that. I guess this really is bothering me more than I thought."

He shrugged. "I know how you are when you've got an idea in your head. You're as tenacious as a viper wolf and you just won't let go. Maybe if Dad can help you clear some things up, you'll feel better."

For once, she didn't try to dispute her brother. The affectionate rivalry that usually prompted her to try and disprove his theories or come up with a better argument lay dormant, because she really wanted to know more.

* * *

Karyu found her father outside helping her mother and Grace's parents with breakfast at the fire pit. Kato was still inside, taking advantage of the human plumbing system with a shower before meeting up with Savanna. Tsu'tey was spreading out a woven blanket in the grassy area under the trees so that everyone could enjoy breakfast in comfort together. Grace helped him, while Sylwanin and Ralu played a game of "I spy" in the shade.

Karyu approached Tom and asked him in a whisper to come away with her for a moment. She shrugged at her mother when Tanhi raised a questioning brow and she hoped she looked more casual than she felt. When she and her father were a satisfactory distance away from the others to speak privately, Karyu handed her "borrowed" picture to him.

"I was wondering what I saw tucked under your arm," He said as he took it. "I'm afraid to ask where you got this from." Tom studied the framed military photo his daughter had given to him and he grimaced.

"I'll put it back," she promised—for what felt like the thousandth time. "But I need this right now so I can find out more about him."

Tom took his attention off the photo and regarded her curiously. "Why? What's got you so fixated on this one soldier?" His expression darkened. "He hasn't been bothering you, has he?"

She sighed. "Well, that answers my first question. So you don't know who he is."

Tom shrugged. "Should I? I've spent the last almost nineteen years of my life living with the Ikran clan. What makes you think I'd be familiar with any of the young soldiers here on base?"

"Because this one was with the Nova crew," she answered him. "He's one of the avatar operatives that they sent to try and take over Hell's Gate; like the people you came here with. I thought you might at least recognize the name, since his team was basically trained for the same thing yours was."

"The Nova crew," Tom repeated with a thoughtful frown. "Well I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I was on the research team. The soldier operatives were military and we generally didn't associate much with them on a casual basis. I also underwent the transfer procedure before everyone else on my team _or_ theirs."

Karyu found the news a bit disappointing. "Oh. I was hoping you could tell me a little something about this guy."

"Again, I would like to know why you're so interested in this man. If he arrived with the Nova crew then this is an old picture you've snatched and he's around my age." Tom looked even more suspicious. "Karyu, if he's been bothering you, I hope you'll tell me."

She suddenly realized what he must have been thinking and she laughed. "Oh...you think an old pervert is hitting on me?"

Tom looked a little lost. "Well, I'm not _sure_ what to think, because you keep avoiding my questions and asking some pretty strange ones of your own. I may not be a fan of violence but I'm just as protective of my daughter as the next man."

She shook her head, still chuckling with amusement. "It's not like that, _Sempu_. This marine couldn't make a pass at me if he wanted to, in fact. He's been comatose in cryo for the past seventeen years. He was in an accident when Kato and I were still babies and they had to freeze him to keep him stable. He's really only two years older than I am, since he's been in stasis since he was twenty."

Tom blinked. "This sounds oddly familiar to me. I might have heard Jake mention something about an MP getting injured in an argument, but it was years ago."

Karyu nodded. "This must be the guy. Phelps started it and Howell got zapped by the electric security fence."

Tom shut his eyes and visibly struggled to recall the details. After a moment, he shook his head and handed the picture back to her. "I'm sorry, but I really didn't know this guy personally. I can't tell you anything about him, sweetheart. Can you at least tell me _why_ you're so obsessed with him all the sudden?"

"I. Am. NOT. Obsessed," she growled, fed up with people drawing sly conclusions.

Tom's eyebrows went up at her defensive tone. "Uh, okay. Yes, it's perfectly natural for a teenage girl to show a sudden, tenacious interest in a man she's never met before—who happens to have been in an extensive coma for nearly two decades. I can see how I misspoke."

"Dad, your sarcasm is—"

"As bad as yours, I know." Tom smirked dryly. "Just tell me what exactly has you so interested in this man."

Karyu showed him the picture again. "Look at his eyes."

Tom looked. "What about them?"

"The color."

He sighed. "They're green. You've seen green eyes before."

"But not like those. The only time I've seen that specific color green in someone's eyes was in the vision I had, during _Uniltaron_."

"I thought you said your green-eyed friend was a Na'vi. Oh, wait..."

It was her turn to smirk. "Forgot that he's an avatar operative, didn't you?"

Tom grumbled under his breath. "You think Private Howell was the person in your vision, then?"

"If he's not it would be a pretty damned big coincidence, don't you think? Unless green eyes aren't as rare in Na'vi and avatars as we thought. Savanna looked up some files for me and she found a picture of him in his avatar form. He's the one I saw in my vision."

"I think I'm starting to get it. You want to know what role he might play in your future, if he ever wakes up."

She nodded, relieved that he understood and didn't seem to be keen on accusing her of having a crush. "That's right. I saw a fire burning behind him. I just want to know if he's a good guy or a bad guy."

Tom thought about it for a few seconds and he looked up at the sky when thunder rumbled overhead. "I can't be much help to you, but I think I know someone that can. Come on."

Karyu looked up at her father with a mixture of hope and suspicion as he put an arm around her waist to lead her away from the resting cabin and toward the street. "Where are we going?"

"To talk to Trudy. She can arrange a meeting for you with one of the Nova survivors that I trust to give you straight answers."

* * *

Trudy didn't seem too concerned over why Karyu wanted to ask the soldier about Baxter Howell. She knew the twins well enough by now to stop bothering trying to make sense of some of the things they did. She checked the schedule and paged Ellis before leading Karyu to one of the rooms in the security building. She told her Sergeant Ellis would be along shortly and she warned her not to keep him long, as he had more important things to do than hang out with a teenager all day long.

Trudy also informed Karyu that Howell was one of the operatives that sided with Hell's Gate, but the young woman wouldn't be satisfied until she knew more about him as an individual. Maybe he didn't side with the RDA after surviving the accident, but his reasons could have been entirely selfish. She thanked Trudy and the pilot left with Tom and shut the door behind her.

The sector she was in wasn't pressurized for human lungs. It seemed to be specifically designed for Na'vi or avatar subjects. The room she was in appeared to be some sort of observation room—probably for interrogation of naughty avatar prisoners. Karyu looked at the mirrored panel of wall to her right and stuck her tongue out at it, just in case. Trudy had promised to give her and her companion privacy, but Karyu knew her father well and she wouldn't put it past him to want to hear how this turned out.

* * *

Behind the observation glass, Trudy snickered behind her hand and looked up at Tom. "I guess she knows her old man's watching. Well, I'm going to respect her privacy and let her talk to Ellis alone. Maybe you should too, Tomcat."

"She's my daughter," he said simply.

"Darren is married with a kid of his own," Trudy sighed. "He's not going to try anything funny with Karyu, I promise."

Tom rolled his eyes at her. He knew Darren Ellis too, after all. "That isn't what concerns me. I'm interested in hearing more about this Howell person myself."

"I can tell you a few things I remember about him," Trudy promised. "Come on, you're better than this. Don't eavesdrop on your daughter. You _know_ she'll come to you if anything comes up."

* * *

Karyu recognized the avatar soldier that walked into the air-conditioned room several minutes later. He was in his late thirties or early forties and she had seen him around on base quite a few times. He was wearing the common dull green fatigues worn so often by other military personnel, but the style and number of bars on his badge indicated that he was a Master Sergeant. Savanna had mentioned him before and she had described him as quiet and disciplined, but moral and decent-minded.

"Miss Sully," Ellis greeted with a polite gesture at the chair across from hers. "Mind if I sit?"

Karyu shrugged and gave a nod at the chair. "Why would I mind?"

The man offered a hand to her and she went ahead and shook it, figuring she should try to be a polite while she was getting information from him. "So you knew Private Howell?"

Ellis paused in mid-sit and frowned at her. "So much for me asking you what this meeting request was all about."

"I'm sure you're busy," Karyu said, imagining how strange this must seem to him. "I probably could have tracked you down myself, but Auntie Trudy works with you so this is faster."

He finished the action of taking his seat and he threaded his fingers together on top of the table. "Let's back up for a minute. I want to know why Corporal Sully's niece is coming to me asking about one of my men."

Karyu wasn't intimidated, though she imagined lots of other people her age might have been. Ellis was cool, collected and in control. While his steady gaze didn't worry her, it _did_ command a certain amount of respect that most adults failed to impress upon her. She found herself sitting straighter without consciously thinking about it. "I have my reasons."

"You're Savanna Thomas' friend," he went on softly, a bare hint of a smile curving his lips. "One of the twins she's always with when the Ikran people from the Eastern Sea visit."

"Her _best_ friend," corrected Karyu self-importantly. "Or at least, one of them. I think my brother ranks higher right now because they're always making out together and I'm just _not_ going to do that."

Ellis coughed suspiciously, muffling it behind his hand. "Well, uh...I think I understand what you mean. You were also there when Lt. Phelps was shot, as I recall."

"I was." She clasped her four-fingered hands together on top of the table. "I should probably get to the point, since you don't have a lot of time to 'hang out with a teenager'. I recognized a picture of Private Howell from...somewhere. I just want to know what kind of person he was and I was told by my father and Auntie Trudy that you were the one to talk to about that."

The man's face went blank for a moment and Karyu experienced some concern, taking the expression to mean something bad. "Baxter Howell," murmured Ellis after a few heartbeats, prompting the young woman to lean forward a little.

"Was he anything like Phelps?" She wondered if she had just asked him for classified information, by inquiring about the coma patient. Maybe he couldn't tell her what she needed to know after all.

Darren's eyes shot to her and for a second, he looked utterly surprised. "Like Phelps? Howell? No. Not in a million years. He _hated_ that man and so did most everyone else...even the people that sided with him."

Karyu felt some of the weight lift from her, but she wasn't ready to relax just yet. "Was he loyal to the RDA?"

"At one point, we _all_ were for one reason or another," Ellis replied, "including your father and uncle. Things change."

She found the answer acceptable. "What was he like? Private Howell, that is."

"He was a good soldier. As long as it didn't compromise his morals, he'd follow orders and he could be counted on in a crisis."

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, that's great...but what about his personality? You military people _do_ happen to have those, you know."

Ellis raised his eyebrows warningly and she hastily revised her approach. "I'm not trying to be nasty. I just need to know what kind of _person_ he was; not what kind of soldier."

"What kind of soldier he was is part of who he was as a man," Ellis explained patiently, "and I learned about his gumption as a marine before I learned anything else about him. Under the uniform, Baxter always had a good sense of humor. He liked the ladies and he was big on helping people. I'd say his biggest flaws were an inability to take things seriously enough and an impulsive streak that eventually put him in the hospital."

Karyu absorbed this information and she was getting an image of a playful, boyish flirt. He sounded a bit like her uncle, except that she knew Jake would have had enough sense not to try and scale an electric fence to get at an obnoxious jerk. "Was he slow?"

"'Slow', as in stupid?"

She shrugged. "I was trying to be polite."

Ellis huffed a dry little chuckle and shook his head. "No. Bax was nobody's fool. He just thought with his heart a little too much, that's all. Half of our crew wouldn't have made it to the emergency sectors if he hadn't been so stubborn and determined to help move them. The others helping to get the injured and unconscious to safety had enough sense to give it up and secure themselves when it got too close for comfort, but Private Howell stuck right by me and didn't stop until we had absolutely no hope of rescuing anyone else. You tell me, was that bravery or stupidity, young woman?"

"Some people might say it was both." Karyu picked absently at the beaded armlet tied around her slim bicep. "But in this case, I'll believe it was just bravery. Do you think he'll ever wake up?"

"I wish I knew," sighed Ellis. "They've kept him in cryo to give him time to recover without muscle deterioration, but by doing so, they've actually slowed down the healing process. That's what the doctors have told us, anyway."

Karyu nodded in understanding. "Cryo doesn't literally freeze you in time; it puts you in a state of hibernation that slows down the body functions and stops the aging process. His mind would have kept on healing but at a much slower rate than it would have if he'd been left outside of stasis."

Ellis blinked. "I'm impressed. You sounded like one of our researchers, just now."

"My father is a scientist and he made sure we learned about this kind of stuff as we grew up." Karyu decided she'd learned all she needed to know about Howell's personality and she stood up. "Thanks for coming and telling me about him."

He stood up as well and he shook her hand. "I'm still not sure why you wanted to know all of this, but I hope I've cleared up any misconceptions you may have had concerning Private Howell."

She thought it would be a good idea to use the excuse she formulated, because the vague explanation she'd given at the beginning obviously wasn't enough to assuage his curious suspicion. The man was his friend, after all, and someone he only knew by sight was asking weird questions about him.

"I'm making a list of everybody that was involved with Phelps. I was partly responsible for the _skxawng_ Darwinizing himself and one of my friends mentioned that his old friends might try to get revenge on me someday. I wasn't sure where Howell stood so I wanted to find out what kind of man he was."

"Well, even if he _was_ one of Phelp's people, he's in a coma," rationalized Ellis with a puzzled frown. "He would be harmless to you."

She shrugged. "People in comas can wake up."

"You somehow don't strike me as the sort of girl that would worry too much about how a bunch of criminals feel about you." Ellis smirked. "But I suppose it's good tactics to find out what you can, even if the odds of anything happening are slim. You don't need to worry, Karyu. The few people that sided with Phelps are still safely locked up and if Private Howell _does_ awake anytime soon, he'll probably want to shake your hand for tormenting the man that tormented so many other people before he died."

"Maybe. I've only got one more day to spend with my friends here and I'm sure you've got a busy schedule."

He gave her a nod and he opened the door for her. She remembered that in human culture, such an act was merely a form of courtesy and not an insinuation that she needed pampering. She thanked him and she thought her father would be proud of her for minding her manners so well. She paused on her way out the door and she peered over her shoulder at him thoughtfully.

"I really hope that when your friend wakes up, he'll still be the same person you remember."

"_If_ he wakes up, I'm sure he will be," answered the marine in the tone of a man who was afraid to hope too much.

"He'll wake up," Karyu insisted calmly.

"What makes you so sure? Not even the doctors can tell us if Howell's going to come back."

She shrugged and smiled a little. "The same thing that makes you so sure he'll be the same man he was before. See you later, Sergeant Ellis."

* * *

That evening, Savanna was over at Dustin's house, catching up on the last of the details concerning what had been going on at Hell's Gate during her absence. An empty bowl with some kernel remnants of homemade popcorn sat between them on the sofa and the "floating" numbers of the holographic clock on the coffee table indicated it was getting late.

"So I guess there's no convincing you to stick around when they leave," guessed Dustin. "Not that you probably should even if you want to. It's hard to be sure when UNEC might send people here to collaborate with us, even without the investigation going on."

She frowned and her toes fiddled with her sandals, lying before her on the floor. "I'm not sure what I want, Dusty. I'm never going to fit in here, even though the avatars are hybrids themselves. I love being with the Na'vi clans and I can't stand being separated from Kato for long, but I'm not really cut out to live with them permanently. What happened to me with that Slinger thing is proof of that."

"Well, to be fair you haven't actually tried full-on hunter training," excused the young man sympathetically. "Who knows how much you're capable of, Sav? Maybe with enough practice, you'll be as good as the next Na'vi hunter and you could hold your own out there."

"Think there's a banshee small enough for a shrimp like me to ride it?" She pulled her legs up and rested her forearms on her knees, bracing her feet against he lounge cushion.

"Actually, forest banshees are too small for regular Na'vi to ride. Maybe a large specimen of one of those would be right up your alley." He looked at her limber position dubiously and his brow furrowed. "Is that even comfortable, or are you just showing off?"

She blinked, having not even realized the position she'd curled up into might appear awkward to the average human. "I wasn't showing off. I wasn't even thinking of it. Hmm, a forest banshee, huh? _Ikranay._ I don't know...I'm only a couple of feet shorter than most Na'vi women. I think I'd be too big for one of those."

"But you just called yourself a shrimp," Dustin teased, gently goosing her. "If you think a mountain banshee would be too big for you, logic dictates that you should go for a smaller model."

"They aren't cars," she snorted. "But I see your point. Maybe if there was a hybrid cross between the two...that would be the perfect size for me."

"There you go." His smile faded a little and he sobered. "In all seriousness though; I think you should talk to the twins about giving you some extensive lessons in hunter skills. I'll bet they'd do it if they thought you wanted to learn. It would also improve your safety while you're staying with them and give you a little more freedom. Just think; no more escorts every time you want to go more than twenty feet out of the village perimeter."

She nodded and sucked her teeth. "It _would_ be nice not to have to go and drag Karyu with me every time I need to use the bathroom. I've been thinking of mentioning the possibility of building an outhouse by his trailer to Dr. Sully. He lets me use the little lavatory inside when I need to go number two but I hate having to bother him, too. It's better than going behind a tree and wiping with—"

"Okay, I think we're drifting into the realm of TMI," he interrupted with a laugh. "It might be more convenient if they built a bathroom complete with its own plumbing and a filter system, but I think Dr. Sully's trailer is about as much as the Ikran clan will allow close to their village, as far as human technology goes. An outhouse would just be a smelly eyesore to them and one more thing for Dr. Sully to maintain. Think of the animals the smell would attract if it ever got backed up, too. There's certain logic to burying...uh...that...in the forest and avoiding going in the same place each time, you know?"

"I know. I just miss some things about Hell's Gate sometimes. Toilets and wiping paper happen to be at the top of the list."

Dustin took her hand. "I can imagine. I guess it must be that much harder for a girl, too. Is there any chance we can steer the subject away from bowel movements though? I feel for you but this isn't my favorite subject."

She giggled and laid her head in his shoulder, sprawling her legs out again and crossing her ankles. The couch was meant for humans and Savanna always found it awkward to sit in without drawing her legs up or crossing them. "Okay, let's talk about something else. I overheard one of the girls from our Earth History class talking about you, when I dropped off some of my assignments this morning."

"Oh? Who?"

"Lindsey Sinclair. She was whispering to the girl next to her about how she'd like to go on a date with you."

He glanced at her and patted her shoulder in a brotherly fashion. "Really? What did you think about that?"

Savanna shrugged. "Not that I have a right to tell you who you can or can't date, but as far as humans at our school goes, she's one of the few that doesn't give me a lot of grief. I wouldn't mind if you went out with her. I'm more worried about whoever you date accepting me as your friend. I don't want anyone trying to pressure you to stop talking to me."

He smiled. "That's never going to happen."

"How can you be sure?"

"Just trust me. I'd never date someone that tried to pick and choose my friends."

She relaxed and shut her eyes. "Yeah, you're too good for that. So what do you think of Lindsey? Would you ask her out if you got the chance?"

"No."

Savanna opened her eyes and tilted her head back to look at him. "Why not? You don't think she's pretty?"

"She's pretty and like you said, she's not obnoxious like some of the people we go to school with. I just sort of have my eye on someone else."

Savanna sat up and looked at him with excitement. "Who? You _have_ to tell me! Do I know her?"

"Er...I don't want to say anything just yet," he excused cautiously. "I might jinx it if I do and I'm trying to play it by ear, you know?"

She nodded enthusiastically and pretended to zip her lips. "Okay, mum's the word. But you'll tell me the minute things start going your way, won't you?"

He gave her a lopsided, almost cautious smile. "Sure, Sav. I promise, you'll be the first to know." He looked at the clock. "It's getting close to eleven and you've got to be up in the morning to make the trip back to Ikran territory. Let me walk you home so you can get some sleep, okay?"

"Okay," she agreed, stifling a sudden yawn. Funny, she wasn't tired until he mentioned the time. It was strange how little things like that could provoke reactions. "When are your parents supposed to be home?"

"Who knows," he answered with a shrug, stretching his arms and shoulders as he stood up. "Dad's caught up in manufacturing an avatar for me and Ma's doing her weekly security maintenance inspections. I'll bet your parents aren't going to be home yet either, as caught up in their work as they get."

"They'll be home," she said with certainty. "They've been home early every night the whole time I've been here. I think if they weren't trying so hard not to act like 'helicopter parents' they'd have checked in on us by now to be sure I didn't get snatched or something."

Dustin unlocked the front door and stood aside politely while Savanna went through it. "You have to give them credit though, most parents wouldn't handle the situation better than they have. They wouldn't let their daughters go and live with a native tribe—especially after being attacked and almost killed by such a dangerous creature."

She tilted her head and frowned a little as she waited for him to lock up behind them and join her on the pathway leading away from the living complex. "Sometimes I forget that things are hard for them too. I'm always thinking about how tough I've got it and half the time, I…think I blame them."

Dustin joined her on the walking path and he brushed a couple of curls out of his eyes before responding. "You wish you hadn't been born?"

She shook her head. "No. I love life and I'm glad I'm here. Sometimes I just wish my parents were both human or Na'vi or avatar. Even if one was an avatar and the other was Na'vi, I could fit in better. I guess I sound pretty selfish, huh?"

Dustin looked away and grimaced empathetically. "No. A lot of people aren't happy with who they are. Some are just afraid of how others would react if they knew. The truth is, you're probably always going to have it hard because people on all sides thought someone like you couldn't exist. It either scares them or fascinates them, but most of them are never going to see past your terran/xeno biology to get to know you."

"Gee, that's comforting," she pouted sourly at him. "Do you understand the concept of cheering up a friend, Dusty?"

He smiled a little sadly at her. "So you'd rather me lie and tell you it's all going to be okay eventually? That some day, this world is going to accept you and you'll stop having to worry about prejudice?"

"I don't know," she muttered, kicking a pebble out of the way. "Most people would try to say something positive, at least."

"I've offered suggestions and my honest opinion. I think the truth is more valuable than a comforting lie."

She took his hand and conceded with a sigh. "I know. I can always count on you to tell me the truth and I do appreciate that. It's just one of those nights."

He said no more about the issue as they walked down the street, avoiding shadows. There were regular security patrols through the streets within the bio-dome all through the night, but it was late and their parents had taught them both never to drop their guard completely, even in their own colony. When they made it to Savanna's apartment, Katherine and Sebastian were up waiting for them. They greeted them warmly and insisted that Dustin stay on the sofa bed for the night, since his parents weren't home. He agreed and he left a message on his father's voice mail letting him know.

Once everyone was in bed and Dustin was settled into the sofa bed, he pulled out his satellite phone to set the alarm on it. He wanted to be sure to have time to wake up before his friends had to leave in the morning. On a whim, he started flipping through the digital pictures stored on his phone. He smiled at a couple of his parents. Max always tried to take good pictures but Trudy detested having her photo snapped so she always managed to pull a face—unless the camera holder was fortunate enough to catch her off guard. Dustin found one of he and Savanna as children that he had forgotten was on there and he had to muffle a laugh. Not many boys got "piggy-back" rides from girls their age. He came across a more recent one of he and Andrew and he paused, looking at it contemplatively.

Andrew was in his avatar body in the picture, standing beside Dustin. He was hovering one hand over the young scientist's head in a silent demonstration of how short Dusty was compared to him. Dustin remembered the day the picture was taken. It was the second day after Andrew's avatar became operational, before the volcano incident. Andrew was very clumsy in that tall blue body at the time, having barely familiarized himself with operating it. Savanna was the one that took the picture, using Dustin's phone.

In a matter of months, Dustin should have an avatar of his own to "drive". Max had completed the first stage and the clone embryo was already beginning its incubation. With the growth acceleration process the research team had perfected, the avatar should reach full maturity within a year. It wasn't something Dustin asked his father for, but Max decided that he had too many gifts to restrict them all to a human body. Being a stoic sort, Dustin agreed to start training for it and at least give it a try, but inwardly he hoped it wasn't just a big mistake. He might be a good pilot and he might have a strong understanding of science, but neither of those were guarantees that he would excel or even succeed at being an avatar operator.

"Well, at least I'll have you there to help me adjust," he murmured to the picture of his friend, just before a yawn broke free. Shutting the phone off, he set it on the arm of the sofa and settled in to go to sleep.

* * *

Jake and Neytiri had become nocturnal, coming out only after the sun set and staying up until dawn. By day, they slept in cave network not far from the Sacred Grounds. When it was safe, they came out and made their way to the Tree of Souls to visit with the Guardians and Mo'at. They shared any kills they made with the clan, doing what they could to contribute and alleviate the impression that they were squatters.

E'quath and Peyla always brought them meals during the day, so that they didn't have to come out and risk exposing themselves. Jake tried to argue that anyone spying might take notice of their daily trips to the same cave systems but Peyla shrugged it off and told him it was easy to excuse. Mates often sought out privacy together, staying close enough to get help if attacked but far enough away to enjoy intimate moments in solitude. If any Na'vi saw them, they would just assume they were going to a favorite mating spot and humans could certainly understand a desire for modesty.

Jake walked through the mountain paths with his mate, enjoying the chance to get out again. "Sylwanin and Tsu'tey are coming in a couple of weekends," he said un-necessarily, swinging her hand in his like a teen. "Are you excited?"

"Very much," agreed Neytiri with a sidelong smile at him. "It will be good to celebrate the birth of our children with them. They have suffered so much and they need to know that _Sempul_ and _Sa'nok_ are always going to be a part of them."

"They will," he promised, "we'll have so much fun they'll be sick of us, by the time they return home."

Neytiri blessed him with a soft laugh and a smile. "That is unlikely, but still a worthwhile goal. Will you dance around the bonfire with me tonight, my Jake?"

He pretended to consider it. He'd never been much of a dancer but then Earth dancing was very different from Na'vi. They danced for the sake of doing it, not to impress others. There weren't any rules or expectations except for enjoyment. "Will you wear one of those sexy shawls?"

"If it will convince you to dance? Of course."

He tugged her closer and half-embraced her, inhaling the fragrance of her hair. "Then I'm totally in."

Neytiri laughed again, with greater feeling. It seemed like it had been a long time since she could genuinely laugh and her mate always had a gift for bringing it out in her.

* * *

While Jake waited for the dancing to begin, he chatted with E'quath, Peyla and their son. Tsanten had his mother's light-hearted demeanor but he was blessedly quiet-spoken, like his father. He asked Jake about the dances people used to do on Earth and the former chieftain tried to explain it to him.

"Well, there's social dancing and professional dancing. I never went for the professional stuff but my brother took a few lessons. It's all too constrained and judgy for me."

"So you never danced on Earth?" Peyla asked with a smile.

Jake shrugged. "I don't know if you could call what I did 'dancing'. I usually reserved it for hard rock concerts and came home with a sore neck."

E'quath looked intrigued. "What sort of dance would give you a sore neck?"

"Head-banging."

E'quath and his family exchanged bemused looks between them. "Humans have a dance that involves banging their heads against something?"

"So, _that _is what's wrong with them," Peyla added with a sage nod.

Jake burst into laughter at Peyla's candid remark. When he regained control of himself, he shook his head and tried to explain further. "We don't actually bang our heads against anything. It's just...here, I'll give you a demo."

Jake did the "horns" sign with his fingers and started banging his head. The beads at the ends of his braids knocked together with the aggressive motions and the tip of his queue bounced against the rock he was seated on. E'quath's family stared at him with open astonishment and some of the other people nearby stopped what they were doing to watch the _Toruk Makto's_ odd behavior.

"That looks fun," Tsanten observed. "I want to try it."

"You both look like you are having a seizure," E'quath announced as his son joined Jake's head-banging. "That cannot be good for you."

"Oh, let him be," Peyla chastised when her mate looked like he might try to stop Tsanten. "Jakesully is not suffering mind illness, so I am sure it is harmless."

Jake stopped banging his head and watched the little boy. "He'd do great in a mosh pit back home." He couldn't contain his grin at the sight of a Na'vi child rocking out to flute music.

"Jake, come and dance with me." Neytiri approached him as other people began to dance to the music. Her smile was warm and inviting.

"Well, I did make you a promise," Jake sighed, but he was smiling back at her. Participating in these celebrations worked as a soothing balm on their spirits. He could almost dare to say he was starting to feel like his old self again and Neytiri's smiles were no longer an endangered species.

He followed her lead and admired her as she twirled amongst the gyrating Na'vi bodies. The gossamer shawl draping her shoulders fluttered delicately with her motions like silvery webbing. She took his hands and drew him close to press up against him. He resisted the instinctive urge to grind against her and he silently admonished himself for being a horn dog.

"Sometimes you're too sexy for your own good," he murmured into her ear, splaying one hand at the small of her back. "I almost made an idiot of myself, just now."

The firelight reflected off her golden eyes as she gazed up at him with a soft, amused smile. "You have better control over your body than you once did, my Jake."

He shrugged and the sensor spots on his face brightened a little with embarrassment. The first few times Neytiri convinced him to dance with her, he hadn't been able to control his resulting arousal. Being the only male present with a boner was a humiliating experience and he started making a habit of thinking unsexy thoughts when dancing with her from then on.

"What are you thinking of?" Neytiri asked as she swayed against him and stepped delicately to the beat of the drums.

"Car accidents," answered Jake bluntly.

Her crooked smile hinted that she knew what was going on, but she feigned ignorance. "Why would you be thinking of such things while we are enjoying this wonderful night, my Jake?"

"Because you know what you do to me," he mumbled, shooting her a frustrated look. "Sometimes I think you do it on purpose, too."

"I would never cause you discomfort on purpose." She was visibly struggling not to laugh.

"Sure, you wouldn't," Jake said dryly. He started to add something else but she pressed flush against him and the feel of her small, perfect breasts pushing against his chest made his thoughts fly out the proverbial window. "Uh."

"What is it, Jake?" Her fingertips skimmed over his back in a sensual glide, drawing goose bumps.

He shivered and deliberately bumped his pelvis against her so she could feel the way her teasing was starting to affect him. "The Guardians are going to think I'm an uncouth _skxawng_ in a few minutes, if you don't cut it out. I _will_ toss you over my shoulder and carry you into the bushes if you get me too excited."

Neytiri shrugged. "Enjoying each other's bodies is the right of all mates. They know this and they would not think badly of us for satisfying our needs."

He stopped dancing. "Really? Okay, then."

Neytiri opened her mouth to speak but he suddenly ducked and hefted her over his shoulder. "Jake! Put me down!"

He was grinning like a demon as he began to carry her out of the dance circle. "No can do, babe. You said it was cool so I'm just answering the call of nature." He refrained from giving her a playful smack on the bottom, guessing there was only so much he could get away with before his actions were considered unforgivably rude. He spotted Mo'at near the cooking pot and he grinned and waved at her when she looked up at the sound of her daughter's protests. The old _Tsahik_ gave the couple an amused smile and she shook her head, returning her attention to preparing the food. Neytiri would get no help from her.

"Jake, I mean it! Put me down right now!" Neytiri was slapping his back demandingly but the blows lacked force—which told Jake she wasn't being sincere.

His blood sang with increasing lust and he could smell the arousal she was trying to mask. They hadn't mated since the tragedy happened and he meant to remedy that as soon as possible. His passion for her hadn't diminished over the years and his virility hadn't suffered a decline—thank Eywa.

"I'll put you down when I'm satisfied with the spot I'm going to pick."

"Jake, I—" Neytiri's words were cut short as someone came running toward them from the direction of the gathered clan.

"Jakesully! Neytiri! Sky People approach!"

Jake stopped and cocked his head to listen. E'quath wasn't the sort to pull pranks and Jake knew he wouldn't have come running to warn them if he wasn't sure there was a reason to. Sure enough, Jake heard the sound of tiltrotor blades cutting the air in the distance. He set Neytiri on her feet and looked up at the night sky with a grumbled oath.

"They're getting pretty bold, flying after sunset so often."

"You must return to the caves," E'quath urged. "If they come to ask questions, we will deny you are here."

Jake nodded. UNEC must want them pretty bad if they were flying night missions to search for them. He put an arm around his mate and urged her into motion. "Thanks, E'quath. We'll get scarce before they get here. If they start making threats to attack your people, you've got to come clean and tell them where I am, got it? I don't want any violence to happen over this."

"I will do what is best for my clan," agreed the warrior stoically. "But I will avoid doing so at your expense, _Toruk Makto_."

"That's all I can ask of you." Satisfied with the plan, Jake and Neytiri kept moving while their old friend returned to the gathering and urged his people to pretend that Jake and Neytiri were never there.

* * *

General West glanced over at the commissioner that was accompanying him on this trip. Archer was an attractive woman but she was about as easy to read as the Sphinx. She kept her thoughts well-hidden unless she chose to discuss them. The one piece of non-volunteered information West knew about her was that she seemed to have empathy for Parker Selfridge. He could be completely wrong but to him, it seemed like Miss Archer invested some effort into helping Selfridge see the error of his ways and atone for past wrongdoings. Why the woman gave a damn what some corporate weasel did in the past was a mystery to him, but there was no denying she spent a lot of time talking to Parker about his errors.

"Let me do the talking," West advised when the pilot announced that they were almost to their destination. He looked out the window as the gunship circled around and he could see the magnificent Tree of Souls glowing in the distance. "These people know me pretty well by now and they're about as close to trusting me as they can trust any military operative."

"I'm just here to observe and take notes," agreed Archer. She adjusted the fastenings holding her glossy hair in its bun and she regarded the general with curious dark eyes. "I've never met military that works so hard at keeping the peace, General. Is there a special reason or are you just following orders?"

"Believe it or not Commissioner Archer, not all MP's are hellbent for war. The first and most important goal of the military is to protect its citizens. Maybe some folk lose sight of that but I haven't. Nobody wins if another bloody war starts and I've already seen my share of civilians paying the price for government greed."

"I see." Archer raised one dark brow thoughtfully, before retrieving her holopad from her vest pocket. "Let's hope we can maintain this peace treaty. Personally, I'm not a big believer in the government keeping its word to indigenous people, but perhaps things really can change."

Un-offended by her observation—which was in fact an accurate one—West shrugged and checked his equipment. "Let's hope."

The sister Scorpions to the left and right of the main gunship stayed in careful formation as they began to descend. The convoy had already gone under fire once during the trip, attacked by a group of banshees with more balls than brains. Hopefully the return trip wouldn't involve combat.

* * *

E'quath studied the general mildly as he and a group of warriors met up with the visiting humans, keeping them from moving in too close to the sacred tree. He was familiar with West and he dared to say he even liked the man. The general seemed to have a strong code of honor that was sadly uncommon in his species. Beside him was a woman E'quath had never seen before, with copper skin and dark hair and eyes. She looked around at the curious Na'vi faces and she seemed both fascinated and cautious.

"E'quath, good to see you," greeted West with an offered hand. He greeted Peyla respectfully as well and asked after her health.

The Guardian chieftain shook the human's hand, still bemused by the custom but respectful of foreign ways. "You risked much, coming here at night. It must be important."

"It is," he agreed. He glanced at his female companion and introduced her. "I'd like you to meet Commissioner Archer. She came in on the last ISV to help maintain peaceful negotiations between humans and Na'vi. She represents the Cherokee nation of Earth; one of the strongest native tribes of today."

"What's left of us," she agreed. "_Kaltxi_, _nawm_ _Olo'eyktan_. The honor is mine."

E'quath gave the woman a respectful, dignified nod. She spoke perfect Na'vi and he found himself approving of her immediately. "_Kaltxi_, friend. _Eywa_ _fyawintxu_ _nga_."

"What can we do for you, General?" Peyla asked, reminding them all that there was more to this visit than pleasantries.

"We've gotten reports of a sighting close by," answered West, taking the hint. "You know I've got orders to bring Jake Sully and his mate in for questioning in this investigation. If you've seen or heard from either of them, you'd be doing everyone a lot of good by telling us."

"How would helping Sky People capture our brother and sister help them?" demanded Peyla.

"Those soldiers killed Jakesully's son," called one of the accompanying warriors accusingly. "It was his _right_ to give them the punishment they earned!"

"_Mawey, _Tsu'ayo," E'quath advised sternly, giving the younger male a warning look. "_Lu_ _fnu_."

The young hunter lapsed into grudging silence as his leader bade him, but he glared stonily at West and the soldiers flanking him. E'quath resisted the urge to sigh and he returned his attention to the human visitors. "We have not seen or heard from Jakesully or Neytiri since the tragedy."

Mo'at called out and people respectfully parted to allow her through the crowd. She used a gnarled cane for balance as she came up between E'quath and Peyla. "Gen-ral West," she greeted. "My children know better than to provoke Sky People anger onto this place. They will not come here if they pass through this land."

West studied the old woman carefully and it was clear that he suspected she wasn't being truthful, but he had too much respect for Mo'at to call her bluff in front of everyone. He nodded up at her and motioned for his people to return to their aircrafts. They left without question and E'quath sent his warriors away as well.

When everyone except E'quath, Peyla, Mo'at, Archer and West were gone, the general spoke up. "Your word is good enough for me. I've never had a Na'vi lie to me before." He gazed at Mo'at meaningfully, too disciplined to outright accuse her.

"Some lessons are harder than others," answered the _Tsahik_ regretfully.

Understanding, West bowed his head. "Sky People have taught your kind plenty of lessons. I guess that's one of them. If you do happen to see your son-in-law, I urge you to talk to him about surrender. We need his testimony in court, Ma'am. I can promise you, I'll pull whatever strings I need to pull to see to it that he gets treated fairly, but this investigation can't close until we've got all the facts. I want him brought in safe an unharmed and I'll do my best to make that happen, understand?"

Mo'at considered him silently for a moment. "You want true justice to be done," she guessed.

"Yes Ma'am, I do," he confirmed with a nod. "I can't promise there won't be repercussions for Corporal Sully but there's not a soul alive that doesn't empathize with him. He's got people's hearts on his side and that's no small thing."

"Your companion seems surprised," Mo'at observed with a graceful gesture at Archer. She was staring at West with something like amazement on her face.

"My companion is used to seeing soldiers just doing their job," he excused. "The notion that any of us care what happens is foreign territory for her."

"I never suggested you don't care," objected Archer. "I've just rarely met a soldier that lets his personal feelings get in the way of his orders."

West didn't bother responding to that. He watched Mo'at inquisitively as he spoke. "I'm in a position to make things easier on Sully, if he'll just cooperate. I've got my reasons for wanting to help him and I'm sure you'll see that if you look into my eyes, _Tsahik_."

Mo'at did as he advised and she held his gaze for several heartbeats. Finally, she broke eye-contact with him and nodded in satisfaction. "I trust you are telling the truth, Gen-ral West. Only Eywa knows if I can be of any help to you."

"All I ask is that you try." He gave her a half-bow of gratitude before addressing E'quath again. "You don't have to worry about the military converging an attack on your sacred grounds, _Olo'eyktan_. As long as I'm in charge, that's not going to happen. I want to see that treaty honored, not broken."

E'quath nodded, relaxing a little. He placed his long-fingered hand over General West's left shoulder in a gesture of brotherly respect. "Most Sky People would not inspire trust with those words, but you have never given us reason to believe you speak false. I hope you remain in place as leader of your warriors, Gen-ral."

"I hope so too," agreed West. He was too short to return the gesture so he shook E'quath's other hand instead. "Thank you for taking time to listen to my proposal. We'll leave so your people can get back to whatever they were doing."

"It was an honor to meet you," Archer said to the Na'vi sincerely.

"Likewise," Mo'at responded with a dignified nod of her head. She watched with her younger companions as the humans turned and walked back up the path, where their flying machines waited to take them home. When the gunships took to the air and there was no risk of anyone overhearing, Mo'at turned to E'quath and Peyla. "I must go and speak with my son. Walk with me to the caves."

"Of course, _Tsahik_," answered Peyla.

* * *

"So West thinks he can help me if I surrender to him," reasoned Jake after hearing the recount of the conversation.

"I would not trust him," Peyla insisted. "He may be more sympathetic than most Sky People warriors, but he is still loyal to them. How can you be sure he would keep his word, Jakesully?"

"I can't," sighed Jake, "but of everyone from UNEC, I think West is the person I can trust the most. Don't ask me why, though." He absently caressed Neytiri's shoulder and she cuddled closer to him against the cave wall.

"Jake, you are not considering surrender, are you?" Her worried eyes drew him in, making his heart clench.

"I don't know," Jake admitted in frustration. "All I _do_ know is that I don't want you stuck living like this for the rest of our lives. I want you to be safe and sound in our home, Neytiri. I want you to have the chance to be a grandmother and help our wacky kids survive parenthood. You can't do any of that if you're stuck hiding in caves and living like a nomad."

"I wish to do none of that without my mate," she insisted firmly, pinching him in the side until he winced. "We belong together, my Jake. I will not abandon you to human 'justice', so do not ask me to."

"Ow...easy, Neytiri," he gently disengaged her hand from his right side and smirked at her. "You don't want to see me thrown in jail but you don't mind beating me up every chance you get."

Peyla snickered softly and E'quath shared a smile with Mo'at.

"I was not paying attention in my passion." Neytiri _almost_ looked contrite. "Forgive me, my Jake. I just cannot bear the thought of you sacrificing yourself. We were both sick with grief and we did what we felt was right. I am as much to blame as you are."

He shook his head and brought her hand to his lips for a quick kiss. "None of the killing shots were yours, beautiful. You only shot to wound and distract, so I could get in there and finish them off. I'm going to make sure they know that, if something happens."

"What will you do?" Mo'at demanded. "This must be your choice, son."

Jake frowned. "I need to think about it for a while. Thanks for covering for us, though."

"We will leave you to discuss it," E'quath said tactfully before Peyla could offer more of her opinion. The huntress sighed and nodded with agreement. She helped Mo'at to her feet and the three of them left the cave to give Jake and Neytiri some privacy.

Jake regarded his mate quietly for a moment, appreciating the way the glow from the cavern pool cast reflections over her beautiful face. There were deeper laugh lines and crinkles at the outer corners of her eyes but for the most part, she looked about the same as she had when he first met her.

"Do you have _any_ idea how gorgeous you are?" Jake whispered, caressing her features with his fingertips. "I could eat you up."

"Why do you always want to eat things?" She forced a smile.

He shrugged and pretended to nip at her. "I can't help it. You just look so tasty." He licked the graceful column of her throat and he enjoyed the taste of her soft skin on his tongue.

"Jake, now is not a good time for this," Neytiri chastised breathlessly. "We have much to consider and talk...about." She faltered when he blew in her ear and made it twitch.

"Let's not worry about it for now," he insisted, running his hand over her shoulder and down her arm. He pressed soft, seductive kisses against her jaw and he skimmed his fingertips over her hand. "All I want to concentrate on right now is you."

She splayed her hands over his chest as if to push him away, but she ended up caressing his pectorals instead. Her tail flicked in agitation and she tried very hard to sound like she wasn't aroused when she spoke again.

"Jake, if you are planning to give up—"

His mouth covered hers and his demanding kiss interrupted her. "I'll never 'give up'," he breathed between kisses. "You know that." His hand burrowed under her necklace to cup a breast and he grinned when the nipple hardened immediately against his palm.

"Don't be smug," Neytiri advised breathlessly. "I have no control over that."

He fondled her leisurely and he nipped and licked at her neck. "Are you saying I make you lose control?" He flicked his thumb back and forth over the pebbled nub. It was practically hard enough to cut glass and her soft whimper of pleasure rewarded him. He rubbed in gentle circles and he fondled her nearly naked bottom with his other hand, urging her closer.

"I...I am saying...you are too full of yourself," Neytiri insisted. Her accusation ended in a little gasp when he gently squeezed her nipple.

Jake chuckled in delight. "Full of myself, huh? It took you _this_ long to start catching onto human slang." He squeezed her ass as she rubbed against his thigh instinctively. Oh yeah, she was plenty ready for some loving. He kissed her on the mouth again and her tongue lanced in past his lips, seeking his eagerly. He granted her unspoken desire and caressed the probing tongue with his own, stroking and thrusting against it. Her hands clenched into fists against his chest and she made another low sound of lust in her throat, unconsciously pressing her loins harder against his thigh.

Jake's sense of humor was rapidly fading before his desire. Teasing her was all well and good but Neytiri had a habit of getting him hot and bothered quickly. She straddled him and her hands slid down to his stomach. He impulsively lifted his hips when her fingers hooked the sides of his garment and he did what he could to help her remove his loincloth without ceasing his fondling of her body. Soon, his naked erection was pushing against her smooth inner thigh and the tip was shiny with viscous dew. He cupped her other breast and gave it the same attention as the first, until both nipples were hard as pebbles against his palms.

Jake tossed Neytiri's necklace away somewhere, hardly paying attention to where it landed. He embraced her and he pressed his face between her naked breasts, loving the feel of them pillowing him. He purred softly as she rubbed her thigh against his sex, causing a delicious friction that made it twitch. He stopped fondling her breasts and he dragged his hands over her ribcage and down. He caressed the skin around her navel before he began to remove her loincloth.

"Sometimes these things are more frustrating than a bra," Jake grunted, taking a moment to look at what he was doing. The way the garment fit around her tail in the back made it difficult to remove easily. Neytiri chuckled with amusement as he tugged, shifted and pulled on the strings. She finally rose up a little and helped him finish the job.

"Thanks," Jake sighed when her loincloth landed next to his. Instead of answering him verbally, she kissed him hard and pressed her hands against his chest. He caught on and he lay back compliantly, guessing she wanted to be on top. The stone floor was uneven and cold, but he really didn't care. Who would notice a few jags and bumps with a woman like Neytiri straddling him?

"Jake, I have missed you," Neytiri confessed as she caught up his straggling queue and brought it to hers.

"I've missed you too, beautiful," he agreed. He shut his eyes and sighed as _tsahaylu_ washed through him. "Everything's going to be all right. Promise."

She looked down at him and nodded. Though he could see the uncertainty in her eyes, she wasn't allowing it to ruin the moment. She bent over to kiss him on the mouth as she began to undulate enticingly on top of him. Jake settled his hands on her hips and groaned softly, aroused to the point of pain. Sometimes his mate preferred to tease him for a while before going for the gold and he honestly didn't know how much teasing he could take this time. He could literally claim a case of the blue balls and not just because of his skin color.

"Neytiri," he gasped when she curled her fingers around the base of his erection and tugged on it. She stroked him slowly and smiled at him in satisfaction. Jake rolled his eyes. "You like torturing me, don't you?"

"I enjoy the sounds you make when I pleasure you," she agreed. Her hand slid down to the base and back up to the tip again, applying firm pressure to maximize the friction. Her middle fingertip massaged the underside of his sex while she rubbed it, skillfully intensifying the sensations.

"Well, you're going to hear a lot of those," predicted Jake as he tilted his head back.

He pumped his hips instinctively, silently begging for more. Neytiri moved all of the sudden and he opened his eyes and prepared to blurt a disappointed complaint. He didn't get the chance to say anything, because the next thing he felt was her lips closing over the head of his arousal. "Oh...cool."

Neytiri chuckled around the rigid shaft and the vibrations of her mouth made Jake moan softly. He stroked her hair as she began to find her rhythm and he murmured in appreciation when her head began to bob up and down. He really hadn't been expecting a treat like this and he didn't know what he liked more; the feel of the tight, wet suction or the contented little slurping noises she made as she pleasured him.

"I swear, you should get a medal for blowjobs," Jake informed her breathlessly as the firm, sure strokes of her lips and tongue made him shudder. "Uh, sorry. That was...rude. It was meant as a compliment."

She released his erection from her mouth and glanced up at him with a smirk. "You talk too much, my Jake. Just feel."

"Got it," he agreed. "Just feeling. Oh, baby...it feels great."

Neytiri didn't admonish him again, though he could sense how much she wanted to. A purr of satisfaction rumbled in her throat and the vibration made his breath catch. She kept sucking and licking until he was panting heavily and on the verge of losing it. He didn't need to warn her since they were connected in the bond; she felt how close he was and she stopped just as his groin tightened warningly.

"Calm down," Neytiri ordered him as she straddled his lap again and caressed his flushed face. "I am not finished with you."

He laughed breathlessly and cupped her hips. "So you're '_Jake Makto_' now, are you?"

Neytiri considered the question and she smiled. "Rider of Jake. I approve of this new name. Do you think you are settled enough to accept me as your rider, my Jake?"

He swallowed. "Talk dirty like that and there's nothing I won't do for you. I'm more than ready, sweet thing."

She laughed with delight before gently gripping his shaft again. She lifted up a bit and guided his swollen length to her entrance. He took a slow breath as he felt her moist, silken folds against the tip of his sex and he rubbed her hips in circular motions, silently pleading with her. Neytiri sank down on top of him and splayed her hands over his chest as she took him inside. She was slow about it, giving them both time to enjoy every agonizing sensation as her body steadily sheathed him.

"Mmm, Jake," Neytiri sighed when he was firmly wedge inside of her to the hilt.

"You said a mouthful," he grunted, struggling not to blow his top too soon. He hadn't counted on how amazing it would feel to be inside of her this way again and he sucked in slow, steady breaths.

Neytiri almost started to move but she felt his desperation and she obligingly held still, letting him adjust before seeking her pleasure. She ran her fingers through his braids and kissed him softly while he panted and strained beneath her. "I should have waited longer."

"No, it's okay," he assured her, giving her a dazzling, white-toothed smile. "Just caught me off-guard, is all. I'll be good to go in a minute."

She waited patiently and Jake quietly blessed her for it. He could tell she was approaching desperation herself but she kindly waited for him to recover. When he felt it was safe enough to continue, he cupped her breasts and fondled them. He began to pump beneath her, starting up a slow, steady rhythm at first. Neytiri moaned his name and synchronized the motions of her hips as she undulated atop him. Her hands explored his body with quiet admiration as she rocked gracefully on top of him.

"This moment is perfect," Neytiri announced. Her sentence ended in a whimper as Jake bucked firmly, driving himself in deep without being overly aggressive. "Oh, my Jake."

"That's my baby," Jake said in a shaken voice.

He bucked again and when she tossed her head back and moaned, he felt how pleasing the action was to her. He did it again and again, driving his aching flesh firmly into her. She matched his pace and her fingernails dug into his shoulders a bit as she gripped them. Jake tossed his head and blurted a few swear words as their lovemaking pushed him dangerously close to the edge. He released her breasts and gripped her hips again, urging her to ride him faster. Neytiri eagerly complied, as hungry for him as he was for her.

Jake sat up and held her tight as their mating urges overcame all semblance of rational thought. All he could do was feel her and gasp hoarse endearments. When her pleasure mounted to the final stage and she clenched and quivered around him, Jake gasped his thanks and finally let go. He joined her in the final bliss and she stroked his hair as he grunted and trembled beneath her.

For some time after their mutual release, the couple held one another and dwelled in their nearness. Jake would have been perfectly happy to stay like that, with his softening flesh still buried inside of her. He knew it would eventually get uncomfortable for her though, so he gently lifted her off of him and stretched out on the cave floor, motioning for her to join him. Neytiri lay down beside him and snuggled close, heaving a contented sigh against his chest.

"You were magnificent, my Jake."

"Stop, you're making me blush." He grinned and kissed the crown of her head.

Her fingers traced patterns over his back and the next time she spoke, her voice almost sounded shy. "I do not want you to surrender, no matter how fair that man tries to be. I have lost so much to the Sky People. Please, do not make me lose my mate, too."

"Wow, you're devious," he muttered. "Butter me up with sex and then make me promise—"

"Jake, I am serious." She pinched him, making him wince. Her faint smile didn't distract from the sincerity in her eyes as she looked at him. "I could not bear it, Jake."

His joking mood faded and he nodded. "Don't worry, baby. I'm still here, aren't I? I'm not giving up without a contingency plan. Let's just not worry about that right now, okay?" He did his best to send soothing vibes through the link.

She laid her cheek against his chest and shut her eyes. "Very well. We will not speak more of this tonight, but I expect you to take me seriously."

"Always," he assured her. "You know you're the only one I really listen to, when push comes to shove."

She smiled. "I know. Sleep well, my Jake."

* * *

Saying goodbye to her human friends was always difficult, though Karyu would have denied it with a passion if anyone ever asked. She smiled and exchanged a reserved hug with Dustin, worried as always that she might accidentally harm him if she put full strength behind it. Andrew was wearing his avatar body for the send-off so she and Kato were able to give him more generous hugs.

"So you've warmed up to me, finally?" Andrew asked her with a smile when they broke the embrace.

Karyu shrugged. "You still don't know how to operate a holo-projector, but I suppose you're all right. Dustin has good taste in friends."

Andrew nudged his smaller friend, nearly causing Dustin to stumble right into Tanhi. "Hear that? Pay up, shorty."

Karyu glanced at the young pilot askew before addressing Andrew. "What does he owe you for?"

"He said I wouldn't get a hug out of you for at least two more visits. I told him you probably warm up to people faster than he thinks and we made a bet."

Kato took a prudent step back as Karyu bristled. "You made a bet that I would hug you?"

Dustin quickly interceded, positioning himself between the two of them so that Karyu would have to knock him aside if she wanted to hit Andy. "It wasn't what you're thinking, Karyu."

"I've seen 'Animal House' and those 'American Pie' type movies," she growled. "I know the sort of sick things human males bet on."

Tom tried to speak up on the boys' behalf. "Honey, I really don't think either of them meant—"

"So did also bet on how long it's going to take for him to get into my loincloth?" Interrupted Karyu.

"What? No! Listen, it isn't like that," Andrew defended himself with honesty that was difficult to disbelieve. "There wasn't anything sexual about it, Karyu. It's just...you aren't easy to make friends with and Dusty said it would take a lot longer for you to warm up to me."

"So you just made a bet on how much of a super-bitch I can be." She glared at each of them in turn. "Thanks. That makes me feel all warm and gooey."

"We didn't mean anything by it," Dustin said, flushed with humiliation and guilt. "I never should have said anything."

"I take the bet back," Andrew stated diplomatically. "I never took it seriously anyhow. I was just picking on Dusty. You're not a bitch and neither of us thought so, Karyu."

Since she wouldn't be seeing them again for possibly months, Karyu decided to be generous and forgive them. "Apology accepted. Don't do it again." She pinched his ear painfully, making him hiss.

"You'll make a really strict Mom some day," Andrew grumbled, rubbing his sore ear.

She smirked. "If I'm going to spend nine months sharing my body and then another six to twelve breast-feeding, you'd better believe I'm going to command some respect."

Andrew wisely chose not to say anything more on the subject.

Savanna exchanged hugs next and she lingered in her father's embrace the longest. "I promise you, I'll contact you as soon as we make it back to Hometree," she assured him. "And I'll contact you again tomorrow when we make it to the Eastern Sea."

Sebastian nodded and he reluctantly let go of her. His gaze went to Tom, who nodded calmly and promised in a soothing tone of voice that he'd take good care of Savanna. Katherine took Sebastian's hand as Kato mounted his ikran and lowered a hand to Savanna. The hybrid climbed up to sit in front of her boyfriend as the others finished saying their goodbyes and mounted their banshees.

"You guys take care," Trudy called. "We'll let you know if anything spectacular happens around here, got it?"

"Thank you," Tanhi said, favoring Trudy with one of her reserved smiles. "Watch yourselves." She spoke to her ikran and the animal spread its wings, leading the flight out of Hell's Gate. Her family and clan mates followed closely and fell into formation while their human friends watched from the gate entry below.

Savanna leaned back against Kato's body, relaxing trustingly in his embrace. He nuzzled her temple affectionately and told her not to be afraid to nap if she got tired. She nodded and smiled. Not many girls her age could boast having such a considerate boyfriend. She glanced across at Karyu, who flew to the immediate right. The huntress felt her gaze and she returned it. She rolled her eyes and pointed at her brother, mouthing: "whipped."

Savanna laughed outright, prompting a curious look from Kato. "What's so funny?" he asked.

She looked at his smirking twin and decided to employ tact. "I was just thinking of the ball game we had yesterday, when that one avatar got hit in the crotch with the foul ball."

He sighed. "You girls always laugh when a guy gets wracked. Sure it _looks_ funny but it hurts like hell!"

She wriggled a little to get more comfortable and she craned her neck to look at him. "I'm sorry. I promise not to laugh if it ever happens to you." She kissed him contritely on the mouth, keeping it chaste since his parents were flying right next to them.

"That's better," Kato said gruffly, putting one arm around her waist.

Savanna tried not to look smug. Boys were so easily pacified.

* * *

A week passed since Tom's family visited and things began to heat up on the base. Darren Ellis was just doing his rounds on the base when he got the news. He was so surprised he just stood there blinking for a minute. When the shock wore off, he ran to the nearest transport and rode to the research and medical buildings, hopping off at the last minute with a wave at his fellow soldiers. He jogged over to the doors and passed through without stopping, hardly staggering as his lungs adjusted to the change in atmosphere.

"Master Sergeant Darren Ellis," he said to the security guard when he reached the restricted area. He showed his ID tag. "I've got permission to be here. Where's Howell?"

"They're just bringing him out now, Sir," answered the guard with a salute. "You'll have to put on a sterile gear before going into the cryo room."

"No problem." Darren went through the doors and slipped the required clothing articles on over his uniform before joining the medical staff in the cryo bank. Baxter Howell's capsule was just powering down to be opened, so that the staff could remove him from it.

"I know this is an emotional moment," Max Patel said when he saw Darren. "Are you okay?"

Ellis nodded and took a deep breath. "I'm fine."

The cryogenic chamber opened and the staff moved to retrieve Howell from it. He hadn't aged a bit since the day they put him in and Ellis realized with a shock that he was literally still twenty years old. His young avatar features were so still and pale that Darren started to take a step forward, until Max intercepted and reassured him.

"Everyone is a little sickly when they come out of cryo. His vital signs are good and we have every reason to believe he's going to wake up."

Darren nodded and he caught a glimpse of his wife on the other side of the door. Janet had just come to join him and she hurried to his side as soon as they let her through the door. "Is he awake yet?"

Ellis shook his head. "Not yet. They just brought him out of cryo. Dr. Patel thinks he'll wake up soon."

She looked at the unconscious private with the same sense of surprise as he did. "I hope he's going to adjust okay when he comes around."

"He's in for a bit of a shock," Max said, absently going over the charts, "but that's what support networks are for. With the help of his friends and counseling, he should be all right. I hate to say it but I need the two of you to leave the room while we finish preparing him."

"Certainly," Darren agreed, too happy with the possibility of his friend coming back to argue. "Come on, Janet. They'll get us if they need us for anything."

"Please be careful with him," Janet said un-necessarily, giving a worried look to the unconscious avatar. She and her husband had spent all these years worrying over getting the call that he passed away in the night.

Max placed a hand on her arm and looked up at her sincerely. "We'll give him the best of care. I promise you, if he begins crashing, we'll have him put back into cry in no time. This is the opportunity we've all been waiting for and I'd hate to forgo taking advantage of it."

"They'll do everything they can," Ellis said with confidence. He was a bit pale with worry but he was coping wonderfully. "Come on, Janet."

"All right," she sighed. "I'm coming."

The couple left the room together and Max focused on prepping the patient for what would hopefully be his first conscious moment in several years.

* * *

_Space. The final frontier. To boldly go where no man has gone before._

Unfortunately, Baxter Howell seemed to be stuck there and William Shatner's opening line played over and over in his head. He had long since decided that he was dead and he must be trapped in hell. Why else would he be drifting through space past the bodies of his fallen comrades, with the litany of an ancient sci-fi program playing in his head?

"Man, who'd I piss off to deserve _this_?" he asked himself as he floated past more shrapnel. He shouldn't even be able to speak. In space there was no air, no sound, no music. Somehow or other he still managed to hold conversations with himself, though. Obviously because he was dead—otherwise his eyeballs would have exploded by now, like the poor bastard that drifted past him. He saw the nametag and he frowned.

"Wait a minute...Ellis isn't dead! He made it to Pandora with us."

_These_ _are the voyages of Starship Enterpr—_

"Would you shut _up_ for a minute, Captain Kirk? I'm trying to figure something out, here!"

The non-existent voice obligingly shut up.

Howell stared at the corpse that was steadily floating away from him with the other bits of shuttle and remains of crew. "I _know_ I've got this right. Ellis didn't die in that accident so I shouldn't be seeing his body out here. Something's really off."

He twisted around and he peered at the blackness of the universe and the tiny pin-point lights of the stars. Surely there must be some clue to explain why his superior's body was showing up in hell with him. He saw a sun off to the left and he stared at the bright, orange-gold nimbus. He narrowed his eyes and frowned as the light grew brighter and brighter, to the point of making his eyes hurt. He blinked away tears and he realized the sun must be going super-nova. It was expanding, eating up matter around it as it prepared for the final implosion that would result in a black hole. Despite his best efforts to "swim" away from it, Baxter found himself drawn into the light and heat.

"Shit...this isn't good!"

It was burning him. He shut his eyes and he could still see the white-hot light through his lids. He screamed and the sound of his voice evaporated in the incredible heat. There was a roaring sound in his ear, like jet engines. When it stopped, the light dimmed and he was able to open his eyes. He expected to find himself a charred wreck but for the first time in as long as he could remember, he actually felt _pain_. He couldn't lift his head. Blurred figures hovered over him and echoing voices muttered things he couldn't fully understand.

Howell remembered having a similar experience, the first time he woke up in his avatar body. Maybe someone found him and figured out a way to transfer his soul into a different avatar? He blinked and groaned a complaint, waving a feeble hand against the light shining in his eyes.

"Quit it," he muttered. "Too bright!"

"Private Howell, can you understand me?" The voice came from a bearded man looking down at him. As Baxter's eyes adjusted, he was able to see more details and he recognized the round spectacles and worried face they adorned.

"Dr. Patel?" He asked uncertainly. The face was the same he remembered, except it had aged. There were deeper lines on the skin and the dark curls were shot through with gray.

Max smiled at him and nodded enthusiastically. "That's right. You remember me...that's a good sign. You've been in a cryogenic hibernation state, Baxter."

"A cryogen...wha? Why?"

Max nodded at one of the nurses and she brought over a cup of water while one of the male doctors helped Baxter sit up on the gurney. "Here, try sipping this. If you feel sick just let me know."

Baxter was surprised by how difficult it was to lift his hand and take the drink. He didn't remember it being this bad the first time he awoke from cryo, but then, it had been an emergency and he didn't really have time to worry about muscle coordination. His hand shook as he took the cup and Max helped him bring it to his lips to take a sip.

"Why was I in cryo again?" Baxter asked after gingerly sipping the water. The last thing he remembered was getting blown off by Jill...which still hurt.

"You were in an accident," explained Max. He motioned one of the nurses to him and he whispered in her ear. She hurried away while Baxter frowned in bemusement. "How much can you remember, Baxter?"

He grimaced. "I remember my girl breaking up with me. I remember snitching a bottle of Jack Daniels from the imports supplies and having my way with it. After that...uh...I couldn't tell you much. Did...did I get hit by lightning or something?"

Max looked a bit uncomfortable. "In a manner of speaking, I guess you could put it that way."

The doors opened and a welcome sight strolled in, prompting a smile from Howell. "Corporal Ellis! Private Taylor! You guys have _no_ idea how glad I am to see...wait a minute. Why do you two look older than I remember?"

Ellis and his wife approached, wearing identical expressions of mixed relief and trepidation. The former reached out and patted Baxter on the shoulder. "It's a good thing you're sitting down, old buddy. You've been through a...well, you've literally had a shock."

"Meaning, Sir?" Baxter instinctively addressed his superior as he would on duty.

Darren and Janet looked at each other. She murmured to him that he was probably the best person to break the news and Ellis sighed before nodding and speaking to Howell again. "Bax, you've been in a coma for seventeen years. You were intoxicated and you got into an argument with Lt. Phelps on your way past the prison compound. He mouthed off to you and since your judgment was so impaired, you tried to climb the fence to get at him. The electric jolt put you into a coma and the doctors decided that stasis was better for your recovery than routine coma patient care."

Baxter stared at him. "Wait...wait...I got zapped by a fence?"

"Yes."

"And I've been wiped out for seventeen years?"

"That's the gist of it," supplied Janet, reaching out to take his hand.

It was difficult to digest. "With all our medical technology, this was the best they could do?"

"Some fields are more advanced than others," Max excused, having overheard him. He came to him with a vitamin injection and he fed it into Howell's IV tube. "Unfortunately when it comes to the human brain, we're a long way from curing trauma. How are you feeling, Private?"

"Mostly confused," admitted Howell with a sigh.

"He's not a Private any longer," Ellis corrected, smiling at his friend. "He's a Corporal."

Baxter blinked. "Huh? I went up two ranks? When?"

"While you were out. I did the paperwork for your promotion a couple of months after we got here, but then you went and zapped yourself before I could make it official. Congratulations, Corporal Howell."

Baxter regarded the smiling couple suspiciously. "Are you two pulling my leg?"

"Honest to God, we aren't," Janet promised him. "Darren felt awful about you going into a coma the day before your promotion, Bax. You have no idea how much we've prayed for you to wake up and come back to us."

He smiled at her and his green eyes flicked to the silver band around her left finger. He looked at Ellis' hand next and he whistled. "I'll be damned...did you two tie the knot?"

"While you were out," agreed Janet with a chuckle. She held her husband's hand and gave him an affectionate peck on the cheek. "I don't know what you said to convince him to pop the question but thanks."

"I just told him he'd regret it if he never took a chance," Baxter said bashfully. He held a hand up and smiled at his superior. "Well, all right! Way to go, Sir!"

Ellis slapped his hand and grinned, holding it for a moment before letting go. "I thought you might be pleased. We have a son, too."

"Seriously? What's his name and how old is he?"

"Timothy," answered Janet, "and he's nine. We'll bring him in to meet you tomorrow, after you've had some rest."

"Sounds like a solid plan," agreed Baxter. "Hey, what rank are you now, if I'm a Corporal?"

"Master Sergeant," answered Ellis. "Yes, I'm still your superior."

"Damn." Baxter snapped his fingers. He sobered a little and lowered his eyes. "So, what about Jill? Do you guys know whatever happened to her? I mean, I'd get a little schaudenfreude hearing she got horribly dumped by some guy but I hope she's okay otherwise."

"Actually, she transferred to UNEC."

A blank look was the response from Howell. "Whatsy?"

"UNEC," explained Janet. "It stands for United Nations Earth Consulate. The UN found out everything that the RDA did and they took over. They have a separate colony here on Pandora now and Hell's Gate is officially an autonomous state. They've drawn up peace treaties with us and the Na'vi clans."

"Holy shit...what else did I miss?"

"A lot," Ellis admitted gravely, "but we're going to help you pull it back together, Bax."

"We've got a counselor set up for you and everything," agreed Janet.

"Whoa, wait a minute...a counselor? Let's not get all hasty with the head shrinks, guys."

"You're going to be suffering some severe disorientation," Ellis sighed. "You know I'm not big on psychiatry but the doctors and Janet raise a good point. You're going to need someone to help you cope with this. It isn't open for debate, Corporal."

Baxter looked between the two of them with displeasure. "So you're ganging up on me now, is that it?"

"We want you to be healthy and fully capable of carrying out your duties," Janet excused gently. "That means psychiatric evaluation and care have to be part of your recovery process. Please, just cooperate. We only want what's best for you."

Baxter sighed. "You've got me by the balls, Taylor. I don't have much other choice, you know?"

She smiled and ruffled his hair affectionately. "Nope."

Darren clasped his hand in Baxter's and smirked. "Good to have you back, Howler."

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Uniltaron_** = Dream Hunt. Similar to a Vision Quest.

**_Skxawng_** = Moron

**_Ikranay_** = Forest banshee; smaller cousin of the mountain banshee ridden by Na'vi.

**_Kaltxi_** = Hello

**_Nawm_** = Great, noble

**_Fyawintxu_ **= Guide

**_Nga_** = You

**_Mawey_** = Calm

**_Lu_** = Be

**_Fnu_** = Quiet


	14. Chapter 14

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 14: The road less traveled

* * *

Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. This chapter isn't as long as usual, I'm afraid. There is some stage setting taking place in this.

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

The twins' family and Savanna stayed with the Omaticaya for another week before returning home to their village. Tsu'tey concentrated on improving his skills and honing his instincts, while Grace listened carefully to her parents' advice and did her best to get enough sunshine, exercise and nutrition. When the weekend of their scheduled departure for the Tree of Souls came, Sylwanin was so bouncy and excited that a human parent might suspect her of suffering ADHD. Ni'nat gently tried to calm her as they readied the ikrans for the journey but the little girl was practically dancing with joy. She couldn't seem to stay in one place for longer than five seconds and even Ralu was giving her the hairy eyeball.

"We're going to see _Sa'nu_ and _Sempu_! We're going to see—"

A hand clamped down gently over the child's mouth, muffling her eager proclamations. "Shh, Sylwanin. You'll wake up the whole clan and we don't need our business broadcasted."

The girl squirmed in her brother's arms and looked at him in confusion when he released her. "But I thought the clan was on their side."

Tsu'tey nodded with tolerant patience. "They are, but it's still best not to draw curiosity, understand?"

In the background, Norm and Ni'nat watched with Grace and Ralu and the couple exchanged an impressed look between them. Each day, Tsu'tey came out of his shell more and exhibited fatherhood potential they never knew he had. His calm rationalizing with his sister proved that he had the skills to navigate around childish logic and command respect, without being cruel.

"Okay," Sylwanin sighed. "I'll be quiet—at least until we're in the air."

"If you start hooting and shouting while we're in flight, you could attract predators. You wouldn't want to get gobbled up by a toruk, would you?" Tsu'tey pretended to bite her and she giggled and swatted at him.

Satisfied that his younger sibling was willing to behave, Tsu'tey helped her climb up onto Norm's ikran and he bade her to wait while they finished making preparations. Ralu was placed on her mother's banshee, while Tsu'tey and Grace were forced to ride with the two hunters accompanying the group for safety. Norm could sense and appreciate the young man's frustration as he climbed up behind the recently initiated male. After all, Tsu'tey was already in a pair bond with a baby on the way. The council had agreed to allow him to complete the rest of his trials early, just as the Ikran council did for the twins. The only reason they allowed it was because Tsu'tey needed to provide for his family. Grace's initiation would have to wait until after the birth of her child and there was nothing to be done for that.

Norm watched his eldest daughter join her huntress escort on the back of the ikran and he sighed to himself. It seemed all of the avatar kids were growing up faster than their Na'vi associates. In the beginning, he thought the human in them made them mature faster than average Na'vi youths, but now he suspected they were all just over-achievers—at least the oldest ones.

It made a certain kind of sense for his and Tom's offspring to be over-achievers but Norm suspected Jake's kids got it from their mother. Tommy hadn't been in too great a hurry to grow up, but poor Tsu'tey was taking on responsibilities that most adults had difficulty managing. Norm looked at the young man again as they took off and leveled out their course for the Tree of Souls. This visit with his parents and grandmother would probably do a world of good for him.

* * *

"_Sempul? Sa'nok_?" Tsu'tey peered into the shadows of the cave uncertainly, while the others waited behind them. This was the one Peyla said there parents were living in but there was no response. Other than the slow drip of water into the shallow cave pool, there was no sound.

"Maybe we have the wrong cave?" Gracie suggested, coming up behind him. "There are more further down. We can l—"

Her words ended in a surprised shriek of alarm as something within the cave yanked Tsu'tey inside. She sprung into action, grabbing for her hunting knife as she jumped in after him with a challenging yell. Norm and Ni'nat hollered after her and came in with their weapons ready. The little girls waited with anxious expressions as their families acted to defend Tsu'tey.

"It's okay," Tsu'tey assured them before anyone could shoot or stab. "Its just Dad."

Jake had him in a mock sleeper-hold and he was roughing his hair up with his knuckles while Tsu'tey squirmed. Neytiri stood crouched behind her mate with a smile. Norm and Ni'nat lowered their weapons and called the girls in, while Grace sheathed her knife and put a hand over her mouth.

"Uncle Jake...you scared us half to death!" She looked as though she wanted to add a further admonishment but instead, she stumbled out of the cave hastily.

Jake winced at the sound of the young woman retching in a nearby bush. "I didn't mean to upset her stomach. Is she going to be okay?" Sylwanin bounded in and piled onto her brother and father gleefully. Jake smiled and hugged her with his free arm.

Norm went to the mouth of the cave and watched with quiet concern as his daughter emptied her stomach. "Her stomach is just more sensitive than usual. Aside from the morning sickness, she gets nauseous from certain smells and stress, too. Try not to sneak up on her too much while we're visiting, okay?"

Jake released his kids to let Neytiri get her snuggles as well. "Will do. How far along is she now?" He frowned in concentration, counting the time that had passed.

"Almost eleven weeks," answered Norm. "She'll start showing soon."

Jake lowered his eyes and took a moment to reign in his emotions. He nodded. "It's hard to believe that much time has passed. It feels like it was just a few days ago when..." He trailed off and looked at his surviving children. He cleared his throat. "Well, what do you two want to do tonight?"

"We just want to be with you," Sylwanin answered, comfortably curled up in her mother's lap.

"I agree," Tsu'tey said with a nod. He frowned at the cave entrance. "Excuse me, I need to go and check on Gracie."

Norm moved aside for him as the young man exited the cave to help his mate however he could. The anthropologist looked to Jake and Neytiri after a moment and nodded after Tsu'tey. "He's some kid, your son. Somehow, he manages to be right at her side through everything without smothering her. That takes talent."

Jake and Neytiri shared a proud smile. "He's got his mother's tact," Jake insisted. "And he loves Gracie. I just hope they can have a normal relationship, some day. Don't get me wrong; I'm glad he stepped up the way he did. I'm happy my grandson is going to have his own uncle as his adopted father, too. I'm just worried about the whole 'best friends mated for life' thing."

Norm nodded, frowning empathetically. "Me too, Jake. It's great that they get along so well but I've got my concerns over whether this is going to work as a viable partnership. Attraction and intimacy are important, too." Ralu came to his side and he laid a protective hand on her shoulder, hoping to Eywa that she would have a smoother time of it when she came of age.

"Give her time," Ni'nat suggested softly, pitching her voice low enough to be sure the subjects of their conversation wouldn't overhear. Tsu'tey and Gracie were several feet away from the mouth of the cave, near a large patch of _loreyu_ plants. "The grieving process is different for everyone, but we cannot expect her to be ready so soon."

"She is right," Neytiri agreed, stroking Sylwanin's hair. The child had gone quiet fast, subdued by the depressing content of the conversation. "The council advises at least a year of grieving for those who lose a mate. Some may take longer and others never seek another mate at all. We must support Grace and Tsu'tey in their choice. I believe they both know what they are doing."

Jake and Norm trusted their mates to understand a woman's heart better than they did, so they let it go at that. The most important thing right now was that they were all together for a full week. Afterwards, Tsu'tey would have a full schedule, as he would be moving on through his trials. Jake fully intended to guide Tsu'tey through his trials as much as he could, but everyone knew that his participation depended on dodging UN authorities.

* * *

Jake told Norm about General West's visit and his conversation with Mo'at, E'quath and Peyla. Norm wasn't very enthused. "Do you believe him?"

Jake shrugged. "More than I believe any of those corporate suits they'd send looking for me. Do I trust him completely? No. I don't know the man. I just have a feeling in my gut that he'll at least try to do things the fair way. Also, I still keep thinking there's something familiar about him."

Norm grunted and looked across at the bonfire in the center of the mountain village. Gracie seemed to be feeling much better since their arrival that afternoon and she was dancing to the music being played. Her mother stood nearby, adding her lovely singing voice to the rest. "Jake, I hope you're not grasping at straws. What I mean is, I'm sure a part of you wants to believe there's someone you can trust in UNEC—someone you know is going to be on your side. We all know that person isn't going to be Parker Selfridge. I just hope you're not counting on West's military status to make him empathize more with you."

"Hell no," Jake denied with a shake of his head. "If anything, I'd expect a man like him to see me as a traitor. I basically went AWOL, remember?"

"But you weren't formally in the marines anymore when the conflict happened," Norm pointed out. "You were a retired veteran."

"Doesn't matter," insisted Jake. "I was still working for the military even without active duty rank. I'm not saying it's right but I don't blame MP's loyal to Earth if they think I'm a traitor. I was in their shoes once and if I didn't know the details, I might have thought the same thing about another guy in my place."

"But West obviously doesn't feel that way, unless he's a good actor," Norm sighed. "So that's why you think he can be trusted? Because doesn't treat you like a traitor?"

"I couldn't tell you exactly why," Jake tried to explain. "It's just a gut feeling I have."

"Okay, say he's really going to look out for your best interests." Norm gave a meaningful nod in Neytiri's direction. She was sitting with her mother and Sylwanin, weaving leaf plates for the group meal. "What about her?"

Jake's eyes latched onto Neytiri, caressing her with a fierce sort of protectiveness. "If I decide to cooperate with this guy, he has to be able to guarantee to me that Neytiri walks away safe and free. That's not negotiable."

Norm cringed a little at the aggression in Jake's tone. "Just do yourself a favor and make sure you don't say it like _that_. Anyhow, what if he doesn't have the authority to promise that and even if he does, what do you think it'll do to her to watch you get hauled off to prison? Worse than that, what if things go bad and you end up executed?"

"I think you're drifting into the land of Paranoia again," Jake said dryly, regaining his humor. "They're not going to execute me unless they're willing to risk a war with the Na'vi."

"Wow, you're not arrogant at all."

Jake chuckled. "It's not that. I mean, I've got political pull with the clans as it is but it's the principle of the thing. How do you think the natives are going to see it if UNEC executes a clan leader for going after the criminals that murdered his son?"

"Yeah, that wouldn't go over well." Norm grimaced and shook his head. "Still, you don't know what kind of crazy things they could get up to and you'll be taking a big risk by turning yourself in. Even if there's no chance they'd execute you, there's a good chance you'll end up spending the rest of your life in prison on their base. Losing you would devastate Neytiri. Everyone knows it."

"She's not going to lose me," Jake insisted. "Like I said, I haven't made my mind yet and there are things I want to see done before I consider terms of surrender. If prison time is the only option I'm going to at least make sure my family will have visiting rights."

"Jake, I really don't think—"

"Let's not talk about it anymore tonight." Jake clapped Norm on the arm and nodded at the meat roasting on the cooking rack at the center of the village. "The food's almost finished and I'm hungry. This is supposed to be a fun week, so don't spoil it."

Norm sighed and he absently brushed a willowy strand from the Tree of Souls away from his shoulder as he moved to follow his friend. Jake stopped all the sudden and turned to look at him with a puzzled smirk. Norm raised his eyebrows questioningly. "What?"

"It's just that I kind of pegged you as one of the people that would have encouraged me to surrender. You tried hard enough to convince me not to go after those bastards."

"Well, I never wanted you to be in this situation in the first place," excused Norm. "Now that you are, I just want the issue resolved without anyone else getting hurt or killed."

Jake nodded. "I'll see what I can do about that. Let's eat."

* * *

When they released him from medical observation, they set him up in a bunker within the military barracks. The first thing Baxter did was check the fridge. Upon finding only instant hydration meals and no sign of beer, he sighed dejectedly and went to the bathroom. When he finished, he caught sight of his face in the mirror as he was washing his hands.

He stared at his reflection with a frown. Not a single sign of aging. He looked exactly the same as he did before his boneheaded move that nearly killed him. His hair still had that tumbled look, like it was windblown. Like his eyes, some of his human genetics overpowered the Na'vi and the natural waves in his hair carried over to his avatar. He considered having it all cropped short except for the necessary queue braid but since he was an avatar operative, he wasn't required to by regulations. Maintaining a customary military style crop wasn't impossible on an avatar head, but it was a sincere pain in the ass. Most operatives chose to simply keep their hair grown long and bind it all back tightly with their queues.

"I guess this isn't so bad," he mumbled, running his fingers through the loose locks. He could trim the bangs and the ends at the nape of his neck for now, to keep it nice and neat. They were curling a bit at the ends and it would get messy looking if he let them grow any longer. He opened the medicine cabinet and searched the interior, not really expecting to find anything helpful. It was empty except for a bottle of aspirin, new comb an unopened tube of toothpaste and a packaged toothbrush.

"Looks like I need to get some living supplies. Shit...I don't even know where to go for that anymore." He sighed and shut the cabinet again. Catching sight of his reflection once more, he shook his head and grimaced. "Seventeen years and not one damned party! Okay Bax...don't panic. Your friends are still alive, they're just older...with kids and new partners and higher ranks and totally different attitudes..."

His chest felt tight and he took a deep breath and shut his eyes. "Maybe there's something to this psychotherapy after all." The disorientation of waking up after seventeen years in stasis wasn't all he had to deal with. He still had unresolved post-traumatic stress issues to deal with from the Nova event. To Baxter Howell, the horror of seeing his people being sucked out into space was still fresh. Unlike his friends, he hadn't had all this time to recover from it. Two weeks under medical observation didn't really help him, either. He was feeling stir crazy, trapped. The base was a lot bigger than he remembered but the trapped feeling wouldn't go away, because he didn't know where to go or what to do for entertainment.

"I've just got to stay busy, that's all. I need to get back to work."

He thought it was the most logical plan. They had approved him to carry small firearms again so surely, he could convince Ellis to put in a word for him and get him out on the field. He started to walk out of the bathroom and he tripped a little. Something was off with his feet. He looked down and when he discovered what the problem was, he couldn't decide whether he wanted to laugh at himself or crawl into bed and stuff a pillow over his head.

He was wearing his shoes on the wrong feet.

* * *

"We will have a gathering of the great clans this year," Mo'at informed Jake the evening after they celebrated Sylwanin's birthday. "The Horse clans, the Tipani, the Swizaw will all come to join the Guardians, Omaticaya and Ikran clans that come to share the bond with the All Mother. We will even have guests from the land across the western sea."

Jake was surprised by this information, though he was aware that they were due for another massive spiritual gathering of Na'vi. "All the way from another continent, huh? Have you ever met any clans from there in person before?"

She nodded. "Mm, long ago. The last time so many Na'vi traveled so far for such a gathering was when I was a girl. I sometimes commune with the other _Tsahiks_ through _Ayvitrayä Ramunong_, as they commune through _Utral Aymokriyä_ growing near their territory. Not all clans are blessed with sacred trees nearby, though. This is why our people come to this place for these gatherings, when the moons are aligned." She looked up at the night sky through the branches of the trees. The glowing strands of the Tree of Souls spilled around them like a curtain, while _atokirina_ floated amongst the tendrils.

"What names do these clans go by?" Jake was intrigued at the thought of learning something about the clans on other continents and he wondered if they knew anything about humans or had any dealings with them before. "Yeesh, I'm getting as bad as Norm."

Mo'at looked at him with faint puzzlement, but she didn't question the meaning behind is muttered secondary statement. "There will be only one clan making the journey from across the sea for this gathering. They piece of land they live on is much smaller than ours and they are not a large clan. Their neighbors on the bigger piece of land north of them may come as well, but I have not heard anything yet. You will at least have the chance to meet the Mune'tsyal clan, if you have not in captivity by the time of the gathering."

"Hey, I'm not going to get captured," Jake insisted with a crooked grin. "Have a little faith."

Mo'at paused at the sound of Sylwanin and Ralu laughing with a group of other children, just loud enough to be heard over the distance. No structures were built directly in the clearing around the Tree of Souls. Instead, the village was built on the other side of the stone arches, close enough for the clan to watch over the holy place without disturbing the sanctity with everyday noise and activity. Mo'at smiled in response to the distant laughter before turning her eyes back to Jake again and sobering.

"I did not say you would get captured, son. You intend to offer your freedom to them of your own choice."

Jake couldn't look away from Mo'at's wise, penetrating gaze. Her eyes were like twin moons, seeing right into his soul. "Don't say anything to Neytiri, okay? I've got a lot of things I want to do before I even start negotiating and I don't know what's going to happen between now and then."

"It is your decision," Mo'at agreed softly. She released him from her gaze and ran her long fingers through some nearby strands from the huge tree behind them. "Just be certain it is the right one, before you go through with it. Your children need their father and my daughter needs her mate."

Jake nodded. "I've already talked to Norm about this and I'm not going to do anything to separate or endanger my family, if I can help it. I just want to find out what my options are and if there's a way I can get Neytiri's name cleared, I'm going to do it."

Mo'at reached out and stroked a dangling braid over his ear. "You wish to give my daughter a normal life again. This cannot happen, Jake. She chose, as you did. Things will never be as they once were, even if she is free from hiding and you are in a Sky Person prison."

He sighed and his stoicism cracked a little as he looked at her. "Then what do I _do_? Keep running, keep hiding? Maybe get both of us killed? I'd rather sit in a jail cell so at least _one_ of us is with the kids than live like fugitives for the rest of our lives."

Mo'at whispered soothingly to him and shushed him, sensing his rising anxiety. "The strain is too much for even you, son. I only want to warn you that your captivity will not make life return to what it was for Neytiri. This is the way of things and I do not want you to expect a miracle if you choose surrender."

He drew a shuddering breath and the tension slowly faded to a more bearable level. "I know. Too much has happened and even if we hadn't put Tommy's killers down, things changed for good when he died. I can't change that. I just want to make it a little better for my family."

Mo'at smiled softly at him and patted his face affectionately. "Then be careful. Do not make hasty decisions and consider all possibilities before making your final decision."

Jake nodded. "I will. Promise."

"Dad, are you back there?" Tsu'tey's call was restrained, as if he were afraid he would disturb Eywa by shouting in the presence of the great tree.

Jake's mood lightened. "Yeah, I was just having a talk with your Grandma. We're coming."

He stood up and offered Mo'at his hand. She took it and allowed him to help her rise from the gnarled root she had been seated on and together, they walked out from beneath the boughs of the sacred tree to join Tsu'tey. Mo'at said nothing more about the conversation they had and Jake focused on enjoying the time with his family while it lasted.

* * *

Late that night, Tsu'tey finally joined Gracie in their chosen sleeping spot under the community rest tent. The shelter was designed for guests, general napping and for children when their parents wished to have some alone time in their family tent. The structure rose to an arch in the common manner of most Na'vi tents, but it was larger than the rest due to its purpose. The mouth of it was open but the rolled up hide flaps secured around the opening could easily be dropped down for added protection in the event of rain.

Norm and Ni'nat were still chatting with Jake and Neytiri on the path between the spiritual site and the village. Tsu'tey tried to stay up with them but he wasn't used to being up so late. Neytiri finally admonished him for ignoring his body's needs and demanded that he go to sleep with the others. Grace retired early and the younger girls lasted until their parents ended up carrying them to the rest tent, sound asleep.

Tsu'tey stepped carefully over the prone bodies of the sleepers as he navigated his way under the shelter towards the pallet he and Grace were sharing. He paused when he came across his little sister, who was sleeping soundly next to Ralu. The girls had a light, soft-woven blanket covering them to ward off the chill in the air that came with this time of year. Tsu'tey squatted down and adjusted the blanket so that it was fully covering them both, before moving on.

"It's just me," he whispered when he lay down beside Grace and she stirred. He drew her close and kissed her on the forehead. "Go back to sleep."

Gracie snuggled against him with a sigh. He heard her stomach growl and he smiled. "I can fetch something for you to snack on, if you want." Ordinarily he would have never encouraged satisfying "midnight munchies" as a healthy habit, but she was eating for two.

"No, that's all right," she whispered, "I don't want to get fat."

He refrained from rolling his eyes. Girls and their weight issues. "If anybody has the right to put on a little extra weight, it's you. Besides, you _need_ to gain a certain amount or you and the baby could get sick. You can't stay thin as a stick throughout the pregnancy and give birth to a healthy little one."

"I know," she sighed. "You don't have to lecture me every time I don't pig out on a whim."

He chuckled and rubbed her back. "I'm just trying to encourage good eating habits. I want you both to get through this in the best possible health. Tommy would say the same, you know."

She wavered. "I guess he would. Maybe a handful of nuts to nibble wouldn't be a bad idea."

Tsu'tey sat up immediately. "I'll go and get some from the food stores. There should be enough left in there and if not, I'll gather some fresh for you."

"Tsu'tey, wait," Grace protested with wide eyes. "If there aren't any in the storage baskets then just wait 'till morning! I don't want you going out there this late, all by yourself!"

He stopped in the process of getting up, cocking his head in a puzzled manner that seemed to be a Sully family trait. "I'll be all right."

She shook her head and grabbed his arm, urging him to lie back down with her. "No. You know what, I'm not hungry after all. I spoke hastily. Just lay down and go to sleep with me, okay?"

Tsu'tey allowed her to draw him down beside her and he gave a little start as she threw a leg over his thighs and wriggled flush against him. He swallowed, distracted by the feel of her womanly body pressing against his. "Uh...are you sure? There are nut producing trees just on the outskirts of the village if there aren't any in storage. I could also just bring you a piece of fruit; I'm sure there's _something_ to eat in there."

"I'm sure." Her lips moved against his clavicle and she brushed them back and forth over the spot as if instinctively. "My stomach can wait until morning. I'd rather have you beside me than a snack, right now."

Always easy-going and eager to please her, Tsu'tey agreed and he gladly put his arms around her. He caressed her back and shoulders with his fingertips, marveling at the silkiness of her skin. His hands itched to explore other areas but as always, he reminded himself that it wasn't a normal pairing and it would be a long time before Grace was receptive, if ever. He contented himself with the trusting way she lay in his arms and the soft, fond kisses she pressed against his throat.

"Tsu'tey."

He opened his eyes. "Hmm?"

Grace squirmed, trying to adjust her position in the dark. "Where is your queue?"

His heart slammed against his chest. "B-behind me, I think." He impulsively reached back and located the long braid. "Why?"

Grace hesitated and Tsu'tey could see her pearly teeth worrying her lower lip in the dark. Instead of answering verbally, she flipped the end of her own queue to reveal the neural tendrils. She began to reach for his and he stopped her with a gentle reminder.

"You don't have to, Gracie." Other males would have given him an incredulous look. When offered such a delightful treat, one simply didn't discourage it! Still, Tsu'tey wanted to be absolutely sure that every act of intimacy he shared with Grace was completely autonomous. If she felt even a little pressured to do these things out of duty, it would cheapen the whole experience. Other couples were sharing _tsahaylu_ as they slept together, comfortable to share their bond in the presence of others. Unless it led to mating urges that couldn't be ignored, privacy wasn't a requirement for the act. Socially, it was considered much the same as holding hands.

Grace considered him quietly in the darkness, appearing to think about it. Finally, she picked up the end of his queue and held his eyes as she brought it close to hers. "I can at least give you this, and I want to. Really."

He felt her sincerity as soon as the bond formed and he gasped softly. Gratefully, he held her close and reveled in the surge of feelings and emotions. Grace was dealing with an interesting mixture of anxiety and happiness. As a first-time potential mother, she was afraid something would go wrong but she was awed at being a part of the cycle of life. Tsu'tey kissed her with slow, gentle tenderness and he did his best to give her all the silent encouragement as he could, promising from the depths of his spirit to be there for her always. He ran his fingers through the loose strands of her hair surrounding her queue. The glossy locks slid through his fingers like silk and he paid her a silent compliment.

"Thank you," she whispered, nuzzling his jaw.

He smiled. She didn't need to thank him for thinking she was beautiful, but it was nice that she wasn't stuck on herself and appreciated compliments, all the same. That was _really_ what drew him to her, in the end. She had every right to be arrogant about her looks. She wasn't, though. She took it all with a grain of salt and though she combed and brushed her hair methodically each day, she didn't spend much time gazing at her own reflection in the water or admiring her own body. In fact, he could almost say she was more modest than average, the way she dressed to hide her bust endowments more than average.

"Tsu'tey, that isn't true," Grace whispered softly, running her fingertips down his spine. She ducked her head and flushed.

He grimaced. He needed to be more careful with his thoughts, while they were linked in _tsahaylu_. "But it _is_," he argued. "There's nothing like a beautiful woman that doesn't even know she's beautiful—or at least, doesn't care. You're...um...real."

She chuckled and moved her hand around to the front, to trace the stripes and spot pattern on his throat and chest. "I didn't know anyone thought I was fake."

"You know what I mean. You don't play games. You mean what you say and you aren't stuck on yourself, even though you _have_ to realize how many people admire your beauty. Other girls half as pretty as you don't have your integrity."

"I think _tsahaylu_ has you spouting more praise than I'm worth," she said breathlessly. "It's got me giddy too."

"But I mean everything I just said," he insisted. "You can feel that, right?" Surely, she could. He could feel everything she was feeling and he even felt the tiny presence of her unborn child.

"I can feel it," she agreed, looking at him with something like wonder on her fair face. "I just want to know how you got so sweet."

He shrugged, feeling in good humor. "_Sa'nok_ must have eaten a lot of syrup candy while she was carrying me."

Grace smiled and kissed him softly on the lips. He reciprocated and she returned the gesture again. The next thing he knew, they were lip-locked and she was kissing him in a way that was decidedly different from the affectionate, chaste way she normally did it. Her tongue slipped past his lips to caress his and he forgot how to breathe. The seductive glide of her flesh against his quickly blew away his shock, replacing it with desire that made him tremble. He held her tight against him and practiced returning the favor, reining his passion in so that he wouldn't turn such a wonderful thing into a big sloppy mess.

He took his time, mindful not to get too eager and scare her out of it. It was a fragile thing that could lead into the first steps of a real relationship with his mate or ruin everything. He kept his concerns shoved to the back of his mind so that she wouldn't pick up on them and he paid careful attention to her reactions to the motions of his lips and tongue. When he sensed her approval and delight, he stuck with what he was doing and he deepened the kiss. He was hardening in his loincloth but for once, he didn't mind. Let her feel the affect she was having on him. Let her know her mate wanted her. As long as he wasn't rude about it, he thought it might help his cause for her to feel his physical arousal along with the spiritual.

Tsu'tey could feel her anxiety rising and he made a tactical decision to ease up and stop. The unrest he sensed from her wasn't panic or distaste, but rather a mixture of guilt and desire that was confusing her. He understood; he suffered the same problem. Never mind that they couldn't do much more than kiss in the dark, with all the people sleeping around them under the tent. She needed a sense of security and as her mate, it was his job to give it to her.

"I enjoyed that," Tsu'tey whispered softly when their lips parted. He stroked her back with slow, soothing motions, careful to keep her in his embrace without holding her too tightly.

"I...didn't mean it to go that far," she replied apologetically. "I don't know what—"

He shushed her softly and shook his head. "Grace, you know how I feel. You don't have to explain anything and you don't have to feel guilty. I'll take whatever your willing to give me and I'll be grateful for it."

She sighed and laid her cheek against his chest. She struggled for words but he could feel the surge of warmth and appreciation she felt. He smiled against the crown of her head, daring to believe she was growing to love him.

"I don't deserve you," Grace whispered.

"Don't talk like that," he insisted. "You deserve everything I can give you. I'm not doing anything special."

She snuggled against him and shut her eyes. "I disagree, but you'll just keep denying it if I argue."

Tsu'tey nodded. "Yup."

They said no more about it and shut their eyes, comfortable to drift off to sleep together. A few feet away on their shared sleeping pallet, Ralu and Sylwanin listened until the soft conversation ended and then they curled their pinkies together, silently agreeing to stick with their vow to help their siblings love each other like a real mated pair. How they could do that was either girls' guess, but they were both sick of everyone being miserable. Gracie and Tsu'tey deserved to be in love. If they had to find ways to push them together at every turn, so be it.

* * *

Saying goodbye again was hard on them all, but since she'd gotten to spend a whole week with her parents, Sylwanin was calmer about it this time. She tearfully hugged her parents and grandmother close, for several minutes each. Neytiri softly encouraged her to keep paying close attention to her lessons and help her brother around the village. A few feet away, Jake was saying goodbye to Tsu'tey and he wasn't having an easy time of it.

"I'm proud of you, kid." Jake looked the young man up and down and nodded. "You've grown. Inwardly, I mean...not just on the outside. The way you've been taking care of Gracie and your sister says a lot about you. I don't care if you don't have your ikran yet; you're a man."

Tsu'tey swallowed against powerful emotions and looked down modestly. "Thanks, Dad. That means a lot to me."

Jake laid his hands over the young man's shoulders and forced a crooked smile. "You _know_ we're going to be there for your _Iknimaya_, right? One way or another, we're going to see you tame that bad boy and get your wings."

Tsu'tey smiled in return. "I know you will, _Sempul_. I promise not to let you down."

"Impossible," Jake insisted. He clapped the teen on the shoulder and nodded at the hunter waiting to take him as a passenger. "Better climb up and get ready, son. If your party waits much longer, you won't make it back to Hometree before dark."

Tsu'tey patted him back and nodded. He backed away and joined his fellow hunter, climbing up nimbly behind him. Ni'nat and the little girls were already mounted, though Sylwanin was crying softly as her mother stepped away from her. Jake turned to find Grace looking up at him with soft eyes.

"Take care, Uncle Jake. I'll look forward to seeing you again soon."

Jake hugged her gently, mindful of the precious life she carried within her. "If what I'm hearing is right, we'll be seeing you again sooner than you think. Tsu'tey's determined to get through his trials."

"He's a good man, your son," Grace said shyly, glancing over her shoulder at her mate.

"Yeah, he's something all right." Jake glanced down at her abdomen, which was just beginning to soften a bit in the first visible signs of her condition. "Just take care of yourself and our grandkid, will you?"

She smiled. "I promise. I'd better climb onto my ride now, Uncle Jake. Anilra isn't the most patient huntress around."

He nodded and shot a wink at the huntress in question. Anilra cleared her throat and gave him a nod of respect before looking away with a blush.

"Stop flirting, Uncle Jake," Grace admonished in a whisper. "It's disturbing."

"Hey, I was just being friendly," he protested.

"Women have a tendency to view it differently when you wink at them," she reminded. "Even the ones that are young enough to be your daughters. Now behave or I'll tell on you."

"There is no need to 'tell on him'," Neytiri said as she came up beside her mate and slipped her arm in his. "I saw."

Jake grinned. "Yeah, I've still got it. Ow."

Gracie shook her head and giggled as Jake rubbed his arm where his mate pinched it. "I'm glad you two are more like yourselves again. Don't change, okay?"

"We'll try not to." Jake nodded solemnly. He watched as she joined the other huntress on the banshee and then he turned his attention to Norm as the taller man walked over to him. "Norm. I guess I don't need to say how much I appreciate you and Ni'nat bringing our kids to see us this week."

Norm shook his head and reached out to shake Jake's hand. "No, you don't need to keep thanking me. I'm just trying to make things a little easier on everyone and those kids needed to spend time with their parents—especially your daughter."

Jake shut his eyes, overcome with guilt. "You've got a talent for rubbing salt in the wound, pal."

Norm looked honestly confused for a second, but he quickly caught on and he heaved a sigh. "Jake, I didn't mean...okay, maybe I did mean to, a little. I know you can't just fix everything or take any of it back and I can't say I would have acted differently if I was in your place. I guess I just want to make sure you remember your two living kids, you know?"

"We always think of them," Neytiri assured him, narrowing her eyes.

"I'd be careful about accusing her of being a bad mother," Jake warned seriously, clenching his jaw.

"I didn't mean that," Norm hastily revised. "I just...damn, I'm saying it all wrong." He dragged his fingers through his hair in frustration and sighed.

Jake took pity on him, recognizing the stress and concern for what it was. "It's okay, Norm. You've taken up a lot of our slack and we probably don't have the right to get all defensive for you pointing out the obvious."

Neytiri grudgingly agreed. "I _have_ been a bad _Sa'nok_. I put revenge before my little one and she has suffered for it. Tsu'tey still needs guidance and I have not been there."

Norm shook his head and took Neytiri's hands. "No, don't say that. I'm the one who should be sorry. I can only imagine what it's been like for you two."

"Hopefully we've got a brighter future to look forward to," Jake sighed. He patted his friend on the arm and smiled forgivingly. "No harm, no foul. Let's just concentrate on avoiding any more conflicts and making sure Grace and her baby have a safe pregnancy and delivery."

"I can agree to that." Norm returned the gesture before turning away to mount his own ikran. "Jake, I'll keep E'quath and Peylu updated on Tsu'tey's progress, so they can tell you. Anybody that _does_ happen to listen in probably won't think much of it, since your son is pretty significant to the Guardians."

"I appreciate that," agreed Jake. His smile faltered a little when he looked at the saddened eyes of his daughter. "Be good, princess. You know we'll see you again as soon as we can, okay?"

Sylwanin heaved a shuddering sigh and leaned back against Norm, taking comfort in her "uncle's" strength. "I'll be good."

Jake put one arm around Neytiri and the other around Mo'at as the Omaticaya group took to the skies, carrying his children away with them. He watched with the two women until the departing Na'vi were obscured by the trees and mountains. "Well, Neytiri and I better get back to the cave. I don't want to risk standing out in the open for too long."

"We will sing tonight," Mo'at announced pensively, her gaze staying on the sky. "We will sing an ancestral song about our Omaticaya brothers and sisters. This will ease the homesickness you feel, Jake."

He doubted it, but he nodded with respectful compliance anyway. He offered his arm to his adopted mother and she took it with dignified grace, allowing him to support her steps as they headed back into the village.

* * *

_Meanwhile, at Hell's Gate:_

Trudy took a deep breath and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She supposed she was aging more gracefully than most, but then, she had a "baby face". So did Max, for that matter. If it weren't for the gray peppering his hair, most people would probably assume he was still in his early thirties. However, they were both close to forty now and they weren't getting any younger. She held her right hand out and spread her fingers, looking down at the ring adorning the ring finger. Max's engagement ring. She'd tried to give it back to him, feeling wrong about keeping it when she was still undecided. He insisted she keep it and if nothing else, treat it as a token of his affection for her.

She still didn't put much stock into marriage. In its earliest use, it was used more for politics than anything else. Marriage for love wasn't even a concept in the beginning and even when it became the common reason for going through matrimony, usually people didn't love each other quite _enough_ to keep the marriage going. By the time she was born and going through school, it was much more unlikely for a child to make it to graduation with both parents still committed to each other instead of divorced or separated. The ugly, screaming arguments between her own parents convinced her at an early age that marriage was just a sham trap people fell into in their efforts to accommodate moral traditions.

No matter how she felt about it though, Max obviously thought it was important enough to ask her to give it a try. Her fist thoughts were that they shouldn't ruin a good thing. They had a wonderful, loving relationship that didn't rely on a document and a ring to garnish loyalty. They had a beautiful son together, with the best traits from both parents. Honestly, Dusty was probably as close to the perfect child as any parent could ever want and he wasn't even planned on. Why should she look a gift horse in the mouth and risk ruining the dynamics that made it all fit so well?

She tucked a strand of dark hair behind her ear and frowned, answering her own question a moment later. Dusty was the reason she should consider it. He never complained and a lot of couples weren't exactly "traditional" on base, but that boy deserved every hint of normalcy she could possibly give him.

Then there was Max, of course. With his big brown puppy eyes and unfailingly kind nature. He deserved to have a wife if he wanted one, didn't he? Since he only wanted Trudy, she was the only one that could give that to him.

"But what if it screws everything up?" she asked herself, staring into her own eyes for an answer. "What if it's a mistake and we can't take it back?"

It was silly, though. Marriage didn't work because the two people didn't try to make it work. She knew that, logically. Relationships didn't automatically fall apart because you put a ring on your finger. It wasn't some ancient Aztec curse; it was just an outdated ceremony. No two people who really loved each other needed marriage to prove it. Still, in his gentle way Max had hinted that it at least mattered a little bit to him—enough to make him give her an engagement ring.

Trudy took a deep breath and decided it was time to give him her answer.

* * *

Dustin was going over a rather complex xeno ecology assignment when his parents knocked on his bedroom door. He glanced up from the holopad and invited them to come in. Max entered the small room first, looking extremely pleased about something. Trudy had a wry smirk on her face.

"Can you put that away for a minute?" Max asked with a nod at the assignment pad. "Your mother and I have something important to share with you."

Dustin shrugged and turned the electronic device off. He set the paper-thin object on his bedside table and sat up. "What's up?"

Max smiled at Trudy and took her right hand. He held it out for inspection and Dustin noticed the new ring on her finger. "It's with great pleasure that I announce our formal engagement, Dusty. I asked your mother to marry me and she's finally said 'yes'."

Dustin stared dumbly at them for a few seconds, strongly suspecting a joke. "Are you serious?"

Trudy sighed and walked over to sit on the edge of the bed next to him. She ruffled his hair affectionately and grinned. "Yeah, we're serious. I figure at this point it can't hurt anything."

Dustin looked up at his father again. Max couldn't have feigned the expression of happiness on his face if he wanted to. Trudy looked a little wary, as if uncertain she could handle what she'd gotten herself into. "Wow, so you're really doing it, after all this time?"

"That's right," Max confirmed. "We're really doing it. It's not a joke, son."

A grin split his mouth and he impulsively hugged his mother, making her blurt a protest at the sudden manhandling. "That's so _great_!" He enthused. "I mean, I would have been cool with it whether you married or not, but if you guys want to do this I'm all for it!"

Trudy laughed and hugged him back. "Thought you might feel that way, kiddo. Don't expect a big shindig out of this, though. We're going to keep it quiet."

Dustin shrugged, unsurprised. It was a miracle that Max convinced Trudy to go through with it at all. He stilled and frowned in sudden thought, giving his parents concern.

"Is something the matter?" Max asked.

"You're in shock," guessed Trudy. "Damn, I know I've always been kind of anti-marriage but I never knew I came off that strong."

Dustin shook his head. "No, it isn't that. It's just..."

He hesitated, looking at them each in turn. They were honest with him and they had always encouraged him to come to them if he needed help. He knew that of all the people his age on base, he had two of the most laid-back parents of all. It was time to give them the honesty they deserved—especially since he strongly suspected their decision to marry was influenced by him.

"I'm gay."

Max's eyebrows shot up. "Gay."

Dustin nodded. "Yeah."

"How gay?"

Dustin would have laughed under any other circumstances. He cleared his throat and folded his hands into his lap. "Gay enough, last time I checked." He looked at his mother worriedly. "Ma?"

Trudy had a thoughtful look on her bronze features and she sucked her teeth before answering. "I kind of figured." She shrugged.

Max stared at her. "You _knew_? Why didn't you _tell_ me?"

"Wasn't my business." She glanced at Dustin and shrugged again. "I figured the boy would come to us and say something if I was right and that's exactly what he did. No biggie."

"How did _you_ know?" Dustin asked, as curious as his father.

Trudy tapped a finger against her temple and smirked. "I'm sharp, kid. Jake knows it, Tom knows it...but my family evidently hasn't gotten the memo, yet. You and Andy have always been a little more than best buds, right?"

Dustin blushed to the roots of his hair. "I...I didn't know anyone...um...noticed that."

"You mean he and _Andrew_?" Max's eyes were bugging out.

Trudy carefully reached into her pocket for a pack of gum. She shook a stick out and offered it to her lover. "Sit your ass down, cool it and chew, Maxi. The boy doesn't need you freaking out on him. I expected better from you."

"You're angry," Dustin added, feeling his heart plummet.

Max looked to be at a loss. "I...no, that isn't it. I'm _not_ upset with you, son. I'm angry with myself."

Dustin misunderstood. "Why, do you think it's your fault? Like we've got homosexuality in our bloodline?"

"No." Max shook his head and laughed without humor. He had a seat on the trunk at the foot of Dustin's bed and he hung his head morosely. "I'm upset because I had no idea. A father should know something like that, shouldn't he? Your mother knew."

Dustin exchanged a helpless look with his mother and Trudy spoke up. "Max, he wasn't exactly open about it and you've been as busy as a bee."

Dustin nodded and scooted over to the foot of the bed to pat his father on the shoulder. "This is the first time I've set a foot outside the closet. I've been very careful to keep it under wraps, Dad. The only reason I told you now is because you two are getting married and I know I'm part of why you're doing it."

"You shouldn't have to hide," Max said in a low voice. He turned to look at him. "Never hide who you are, Dustin—especially not from us."

Dustin felt the crushing weight begin to lift. "So you aren't disappointed?"

Max glanced at Trudy before choosing his words carefully. "I'm a little disappointed, but only because this means we won't be seeing any grandchildren out of you. I'm more disappointed in myself for failing to notice, Dusty. You've never inspired anything but pride in me. I just wish you had trusted me enough to tell me sooner."

Dustin took a slow steadying breath and shut his eyes. "I'm sorry. I was just waiting for the right moment to say something. So you're both _really_ okay with this?"

Trudy shrugged. "Be as gay as you want, kid. Like I said; I had a feeling. It doesn't change anything, except as your Dad said; you won't be giving us grandbabies. Since I never really expected to have a family in the first place it's no skin off my back and I want you to be happy."

Dustin smiled at his mother and then looked to Max. "Dad? Are you okay?"

Max nodded and he gave him a faltering smile. "Perhaps I don't look like it, but I'm really okay, Dusty. I'm just still trying to adjust to it. I hope from now on you'll feel more confident, talking to us about what's happening in your life."

"I would have," excused the young man, "but I didn't know where to start and it isn't just about me."

Max put an arm around him and hugged him. "It's going to be all right. I know how hard this must have been for you. I trust Andrew hasn't spoken to anyone else yet?"

"No." Dustin shook his head and grimaced. "He's going to kill me when he finds out I told you, in fact."

"Somehow I doubt that," Trudy said dryly. "Just be honest with him. Now that we've shocked each other senseless, how about a movie?"

Dustin glanced at his holopad and sighed. "I'd love to, but I'm behind on my assignments as it is."

"Just like your father," grumbled Trudy. "Well, if you change your mind we'll be popping some corn."

Dustin smiled at her. Just like that, things were back to normal with Trudy as if he hadn't just made an earth-shaking announcement. Max was having a little more trouble adjusting but Dustin could forgive him for that. As far as "coming out" announcements went, he knew his was better received than most.

* * *

Another week passed and Karyu still couldn't shake her concerns. She ventured past her father's trailer into the forest, sticking to the well-traveled paths and doing her best to keep alert. The incident with Savanna and the slinger was practically a fluke; usually predatory animals stayed far enough away from village territory to allow safe travel between the main village and the river. She could tell by the presence of the _tapiri_ that there was no danger nearby. Karyu grinned in spite of herself as she knelt down by the mouth of the river and clucked her tongue at one of the small, tapir-like animals. The creature bleated curiously and warily approached her, sniffing at her fingers. Used to hanging around Na'vi villages for protection, the gentle little animals were one of the few Pandora species that could be considered cuddly—and perfect prey.

Karyu wasn't interested in harming any of the little animals, though. Like most other Na'vi, the Ikran people never harmed the _tapiri_ that made their village territory home. They were considered part of the clan, more or less—like the domesticated banshees and direhorses.

"Hi," Karyu greeted when the animal licked at her fingers and nuzzled her hand in approval. She coaxed it into her lap and chuckled as its six little legs flailed until it settled down and rested against her thighs comfortably. She saw that it was a girl and she rubbed her belly. It was probably the closest thing she'd ever know to having a pet dog. The _tapirus_ snorted and cooed happily, making Karyu chuckle. The other animals came sniffing curiously and soon she was surrounded by the small beasts.

Karyu's eyes caught sight of a particularly vivid green frond of fern and she stared at it. "He's just a stupid avatar," she mumbled to her animal companions. "I don't even know him and he's in a coma. So why can't I stop _thinking_ about him?"

She already knew the answer though. The female _tapirus_ in her lap started to fall asleep as Karyu absently stroked the ridges between her eyes. She was fascinated with the damned avatar because his eyes were so unusual and he'd shown up in her vision. She had nothing to go by except for Ellis' account of what he was like. She just kept thinking of those beautiful green eyes and—

Her animal friends suddenly bolted for the thicker vegetation. The female in her lap squirmed and Karyu winced when the little nails dug a groove into her thigh and she helped the animal off. "Here, go already!"

The female made a high-pitched sound of alarm as she scampered off to join her companions and Karyu heard the sound of rotary blades approaching from the west. No wonder the little herd got so spooked. She'd forgotten about the monthly pickup. They always sent someone to trade with Tom, giving him supplies in exchange for any cultures or new findings he could produce. She sighed and looked up at the canopy, hoping that this time the package collectors were from Hell's Gate instead of UNEC. Maybe they'd get the opportunity to visit with Dustin or his parents, this time. She hoped it was just a pickup and not further interrogations about Jake and Neytiri.

She almost started back toward the village but her bladder reminded her that she had other needs. Grumbling crossly, she began to search for an ideal spot to take care of the problem, while the two aircrafts came in for a landing. After Karyu finished dealing with nature she watched the military personnel exit the two Samsons. At least they were from Hell's Gate, but she didn't recognize any of them. Deciding she wasn't in the mood to play hostess to a bunch of bumbling humans and avatars, she stayed out of sight and made her way to the grove of _loreyu_ to the southwest of the village.

* * *

"Crap. I don't _believe_ this." Baxter looked around helplessly and tried to get his bearings. "Okay, I just left from that direction...or...wait...maybe it was more to the right."

He was lost. He went to take a leak and now he couldn't find his way back to the damned tiltrotor. He started to blush, horribly embarrassed even though there was nobody around to see how much he sucked. It was a simple mission and all he had to do was stick with the convoy and shoot any big baddies that attacked them. Unfortunately, Howell wasn't having a lot of luck re-adjusting to life among the living. He was dealing with a lot of disorientation and though he passed his physicals and convinced his superiors he could be trusted for light duty, he was proving himself horribly inept.

"Okay, no panicking. I'll just check out the sun and..."

Baxter looked up and it occurred to him that looking directly at the sun wasn't the most intelligent idea. He cursed and hastily yanked his shades out of the pocket of his camouflage uniform. "I'm never going to live this down. Ellis is going to be so fucking embarrassed for letting me out."

He adjusted his cap and sighed. Now wasn't the time to feel sorry for himself. He had to _prove_ he could handle himself. If he failed to do that, he'd just end up under constant medical care or worse; discharged. It didn't matter that it would be an honorable discharge, he was still in his prime and he had a lot of work to do in the service before he was ready to throw in the towel.

"Pull it together, Bax."

He practiced as much stealth as he could as he traipsed through the forest. His combat boots didn't quite allow the same grace as bare feet but he was confident that he wasn't making as much noise as the average human or avatar. He was trained for first strikes, after all. He kept his CARB semiautomatic ready in case anything decided to try and eat him and he attempted to navigate back to the aircrafts—or at least back to the village. If he couldn't find his way back before they were ready to go, they'd start calling for him and he'd have no choice but to admit defeat and tell them he got lost. Until then, his lips were staying sealed and he was determined to get his bearings.

"Huh, I don't remember seeing _these_ before." He pushed past some hanging vines and stepped into a grove of spiral, orange plants. He hardly had a chance to admire the sight before the sharp blade of a Na'vi hunting knife was pressed against his jugular. Baxter held his hands out defensively. "Whoa, I'm here with the others from Hell's Gate," he explained to the unseen person threatening him from behind. "We're not here to hurt anyone. You can ask Tom Sully or your chieftess Tanhi, if you don't believe me. I just got a little lost."

* * *

Karyu pulled the blade away from his throat, not truly concerned. She knew he was with the people that came to trade with her father but she did enjoy toying with him a little. She sheathed her weapon and circled around in front of him. He was babbling all sorts of nonsense meant to be reassuring. She gave him a bored glance and then she stopped, frowning. Sunglasses covered his eyes and he wore a cap with a visor on it for shading. She tilted her head and stared at him, certain she'd seen him before. He held up one pointer finger and dug around in his pockets while she watched. He produced a palm-sized book from his pocket and upon glancing at the cover, she realized it was a sort of simple English-Na'vi translation guide.

"My hair is not evil," read the soldier carefully, giving her a disarming smile. "I have come for flowers."

Karyu blinked at him and she found it very, very hard not to laugh. His expression was so blasted earnest and he clearly had no idea what he'd just said. She started to say something to spare him further embarrassment, but he insisted on making an ass of himself further.

"Please, lend me your fruit and take me to your nose."

Karyu compressed her lips, hard enough to dig grooves in the soft interior from her teeth. She took a moment to compose herself before speaking. "I hope your English is better than your Na'vi, avatar."

"Oh...you speak English?" He put away the book and looked relieved. "Hey, I'm sorry if I intruded on a private area. I got separated from my team and we're just here to pick up some medicine from Tom Sully."

Karyu shook her head, still fighting amusement. "It's good to know your hair isn't evil. Come, I'll take you to my father."

He stared at her as she walked past him. "Uh...did I really say my hair wasn't evil? And...Tom Sully is your father?"

"Yes and yes." She smirked over her shoulder at him. "Are you coming?"

"I...sure. I'm right behind you."

He started to follow but Karyu got a sudden tingle down her spine. She stopped him abruptly, pressing her hand against his chest as she peered up at his face. He raised his eyebrows. "Something wrong?"

"Take off those sunglasses."

He regarded her silently for a moment before reaching up to do as she asked. "Somehow you make it sound dirty."

She parted her lips and stared up at him as the masking object was pulled away from his face, revealing the attractive features and green eyes that had been bugging her ever since she had her Dream Hunt. Karyu's eyes widened and she took a step back. He'd obviously woken up from her coma—which meant that whatever role he was going to play in her future was that much closer.

"You!"

Howell planted a hand over his chest, looking honestly confused. "Me? Me what?"

"You can't be here!"

He frowned. "Hey, I'm sorry you don't like us coming here but you seemed find about it a minute ago. Did I do something to make you mad?" He started to reach out for her.

The minute his hands touched her arms, Karyu panicked. "Stay _away_ from me!"

Baxter parted his lips to say something—perhaps another apology. Unfortunately, Karyu's knee collided with his crotch and his words came out as a protesting grunt. He clamped his hands over his crotch and fell to his knees, giving her a pain-filled, confused look of accusation.

"I...I'm sorry," Karyu gasped, honestly feeling bad about it. She couldn't stand those eyes looking up at her in pain. She panicked. She ran away without looking back, stumbling blindly through the forest without any conscious thought of where she was going.

* * *

"Crazy," Grunted Baxter as he struggled to his feet. "Na'vi chicks are crazy!"

But if that was true, why did this particular woman have so much influence? He'd been briefed on the situation in the Ikran village and by all accounts, Karyu Sully was at least stable enough to be next in line as clan leader. He'd heard bits and pieces concerning her stability and he'd of course heard some pretty strange things about her taking out an odd revenge on Phelps while he was out. If anything, he owed the girl some thanks. At least, that's what he thought until she put a knife to his throat, laughed at him and kneed him in the balls.

"Maybe I caught her at a bad time," he graciously excused. It helped that she was so damned pretty. He literally could have stood there staring at her if she hadn't been so...so...psycho. "It hasn't been my best month, either."

Maybe it was all just bad timing. With that thought in mind, he worried about her rushing off the way she had. Unfamiliar with Na'vi ways, Baxter was thinking only of a damsel in distress and he foolishly got to his feet and tried to follow her. He could have a talk with her about her kneeing him in the nuts after he was sure she was safe.

* * *

"_Sempu_! _Sempu, _I need to talk to you!"

Tom stopped talking with the military personnel and he looked at his daughter with concern he couldn't hide as she ran to him. He'd never seen Karyu look so scared or pale. The fact that she was using the Na'vi term for "Daddy" just amplified her distress. He reached out and caught her as she approached and he immediately held her close, more worried than he cared to admit.

"It's okay, just tell me what's wrong."

Tanhi approached with Kato and Savanna, while the humans took a respectful step back and watched curiously. Karyu looked at Tom with a confused, dreading expression and she tried to explain. "The man from my _Uniltaron_ was here! He came into the _loreyu_ grove and talked to me, but when I realized who he was I panicked and I kicked him and ran away!"

Tom's expression darkened. "Did he try to hurt you, Karyu?"

She shook her head. "No, he was just lost. He came with the other people from Hell's Gate and I was going to take him back but when I saw who he was, I freaked out."

"Wait," Kato said softly, "The comatose guy? He's in this group?"

"Sounds like you're talking about Howell," said one of the MP's. She looked at Karyu worriedly. "I hope he's all right?" She motioned to one of the other soldiers in her group. "Private, try to contact Howell."

"It's _my fault_!" Karyu suddenly blurted, grabbing her father's shirt and shaking it. "That green-eyed idiot is out there groaning on the ground because I panicked! I've got to go and get him!"

"Now, hold on a minute," Tom tried to say, but Karyu let go of him with a shove that sent him sprawling to the sand. He looked up at his mate accusingly, who stared after their daughter with wide eyes. "She gets _all_ of that from you, Tanhi."

Kato was already chasing after his sister and Savanna was bringing up the rear. The military personnel were preparing to do a search for the missing marine. Tom groaned and shook his head, certain that his children were going to drive him into an early grave.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Ayvitrayä Ramunong_** = Tree of Souls

**_Utral Aymokriyä_ **= Tree of Voices

**_Swizaw_** = Arrow

**_Mune'tsyal_** = Two wing

**_Tapirus/tapiri_ **= Small Tapir-like creatures. One of the few non-aggressive creatures on Pandora. Fond of grouping near Na'vi settlements for protection. You can see them in the scene where Grace first comes back to the Omaticaya village in the movie. One is grazing nearby upon her arrival.

**_Loreyu_** = "Beautiful Spiral"; known as Helicaradian to humans. a herbaceous zooplantae (planimal) that grows in a spiral leaf shape. When touched, it retracts into the ground for protection.


	15. Chapter 15

**"Tiger's hunt"**

Chapter 15: Easing the sting

* * *

Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. I hope everyone had a safe and happy Halloween. I just got the news that an old friend of mine took his own life over the Samhain holiday. It was a tragic shock and it has hit me hard. I don't know how this is going to affect my writing. I'm still reeling and this could either put me in a writing frenzy to distract myself or put me in a rut. I say this to warn people not to have high expectations of me while I'm coping with this.

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

Once he recovered enough to stand up right again, Baxter stumbled through the jungle in search of the girl. He remembered the name he'd been given for the chieftess' daughter and he started calling out for her, hoping he had her identity right.

"Uh, Karyu? Listen, I don't know what I did to upset you but I'm not here to hurt you, okay?"

There was—of course—no response from the vanished young woman. His friends would have laughed at him for trying to be so polite under such circumstances. After being kneed in the groin for no good reason, he had every right to be pissed off.

"Look, I think I've been a pretty good sport about this," Baxter called out, starting to lose his temper. "And you should know enough about Hells Gate personnel to understand I'm not an enemy. Now come on out!"

He feared he was getting further and further away from the village and his group. He checked his compass and he grumbled, guessing that his best bet was to simply turn due east and head that way. Surely, he'd at least run into the beach to follow that back to the village. He heard a faint rustling in the bushes and he checked his gun, hunkering down as smoothly and silently as he could. The object of his search came bounding through the ferns and he took a brief moment to admire the way her shiny black braids bounced around her shoulders.

"Green-eyes? Where'd you go?"

The unexpected nickname made it hard for him to stay mad at her. Baxter lowered his gun and straightened up. "Green-eyes, huh? I'm right here."

She looked him up and down with veiled relief and she started to approach him. "It isn't safe for you here. Come, I'll take you back—"

"Whoa there, crouching tiger," he backed up defensively, wary of letting her too close. "I don't need you going all kung-fu on my jewels again, got it? I'll come along at a _safe distance_, if that's all right by you."

She huffed indignantly. "That was an accident. I panicked."

"Yeah, I'll say." He was still puzzled over _why_ she panicked like that, so suddenly and abruptly. It happened after he removed his shades and she called him "Green Eyes", so he assumed his eye color must have spooked her. "Look, I know my eyes are a weird color, but I'm not a boogeyman, okay?"

"I _know_ that. It's just...you wouldn't understand. You're Baxter Howell, aren't you?"

He started to follow her and he paused again, surprised. "Uh, yeah. I don't know what you've heard about me but—"

"Karyu!" A young man came charging through the brush, followed closely by a girl that Baxter immediately identified as Savanna Thomas, due to her coloring and size. The male was very similar in appearance to Jake and Tom Sully. Baxter guessed he must be the male twin.

"We're all right," Karyu said to her brother, waving him away. "Howell and I were just talking."

"Well, you freaked _Sempul_ out good and proper," Kato said breathlessly, brushing some plant bits off his chest.

"He'll get over it," she sighed. She looked to Baxter again—who was still keeping wary distance from her. "Come on, I promise I won't kick you again."

Given how unpredictably she'd behaved so far, Baxter didn't quite believe her. "No offense, but I think I'll follow your brother and his pretty little friend." He smiled at Savanna.

Before the hybrid girl could answer, Kato stepped between her and the soldier. "She's taken."

"Quit acting like a viper wolf snarling for mating rights," snapped Karyu. "We're too far outside the village boundaries and you know this isn't a good time of year to be standing around in small numbers. Do you want a repeat of what happened to Savanna with the slinger?"

Some creature hooted from deeper in the forest and Baxter whirled around with his weapon ready. "I think she's got a good point, if my opinion holds any water."

"It doesn't," Kato scowled.

Baxter sighed, guessing the hostility was due to jealousy. "Hey, all I did was smile at her. I'm not trying to move in on your territory."

"Excuse me?" Savanna stepped forward with a scowl of her own.

"His 'territory'?" Karyu said, beating Savanna to the punch. She looked Baxter up and down and the beads tied into her bangs clinked against one another with her motions. "So what's your idea of a courtship; peeing on a woman's leg or just dragging her off to your cave?"

"It was just a metaphor," excused Howell.

Karyu put a hand on her hip and shook her hair back. The gesture should have seemed prissy but nothing about the slender huntress fit that description at all. "I know _exactly_ how you meant that comment and so does Savanna."

"Maybe you two were a little hasty," Kato supplied, siding with the other male. "He didn't mean anything by it."

"I wouldn't accuse us of being 'hasty'," Karyu shot back. "You're the one that wanted to go medieval on him just because he smiled at her."

"Uh, you kicked me in the balls," Baxter reminded her, shifting uncomfortably with the lingering ache. "I think you've got one up on him."

"Because you grabbed me!"

Kato gave Howell a less friendly look. "You grabbed her?"

"Only because she was freaking out," explained the marine hastily. He turned to Karyu again and raised his brows. "By the way, what _was_ that all about? Not counting the knife to the throat at the beginning, I thought we were getting along fine. Then you told me to take my shades off and you went bonkers."

"It's your face," she answered in a faltering voice, losing her muster. She avoided looking him in the eye.

Baxter self-consciously touched his face. "Wow. I've been rejected before but I've never had a girl take one look at my face and knee me in the balls. Do I look like a pervert or something?"

Kato snickered and Savanna tried to speak up on Karyu's behalf. "I don't think she meant it that way."

"She saw you in a vision," Kato added when he regained control of his mirth. "That's why she freaked when she saw your face. We visited you while you were in a coma but we never got the news that you woke up. "

That made even less sense to Baxter and he looked at Karyu, intrigued. The young woman was glaring at her twin, evidently unhappy with his decision to try and explain. "So you've been dreaming about me, huh?" He smirked at her. He didn't believe in psychic visions but he found it interesting that she thought she saw him in one. He began to wonder if Karyu's behavior could be blamed on a bad mushroom trip. Her pupils didn't look unusually dilated but it was hard to tell with Na'vi eyes—especially in the shade.

Karyu's yellow gaze fell on him and she stiffened, compressing her lips. "Don't flatter yourself, avatar. I saw other people in my vision, too. It doesn't mean anything."

"If it doesn't mean anything, why did you get so upset?" he pressed. "What did I do in this dream—"

"Vision," Kato and Karyu corrected in unison.

"—Vision, then," conceded the marine. "I must have done _something_ special to earn that warm welcome from you."

She parted her lips and appeared to struggle for words. She never got to answer, because a woman's voice called out from the direction the twins and Savanna had come from. Tanhi walked into view with Tom, two other hunters and a couple of military personnel flanking her. She took in the situation with a frown, her eyes settling on Karyu when she was satisfied that nobody was injured.

"Explain this, daughter."

Karyu shot one more accusing look at Howell and then complied in a deceptively cool tone. "I came back to find him before he got himself eaten or hurt. We were just about to return to the village, _Sa'nok_."

"Hey, I don't need a babysitter," Howell muttered, embarrassed. "I was doing fine until you came along and tried to re-adjust my package with your knee."

"You were lost," Karyu said succulently. "And the kicking was an accident."

Baxter quickly corrected her, worried that his fellow military personnel might report that he wasn't ready for fieldwork, after all. "I _wasn't_ lost, I just stopped in the bushes to answer the call of nature and I got a little turned around. I was just getting back on the right track when I ran into you and we _both _know what happened after that."

Tom hastened forward to remedy the situation. He took Baxter's hand and shook it. "Hi, I'm Tom Sully. Your people gave me a brief recap of what's happened at the colony since I last spoke with our friends there. Welcome back, and I apologize for my daughter's behavior." He gave Karyu a warning look and she rolled her eyes.

Howell shrugged. "I guess it's better than getting my throat cut…sort of. It was just a misunderstanding."

"That's gracious of you," Tom said. "Let's get this exchange finished, so your people can stay on schedule."

* * *

Karyu's gaze kept sliding to Howell while he and the other Hell's Gate personnel carried equipment, supplies and samples back and forth from the trailer to the two aircrafts further up the path. They used remote control rovers for the heavier things and carried the more delicate objects by hand and stretcher.

"I don't think the vision is the only thing bothering you," Kato muttered to her when he came up beside her and noticed the direction her attention kept going.

"What else would be bothering me?" she challenged, keeping her tone as bland as possible. She was actually wondering that, herself.

Kato looked at Baxter across the distance and he studied him for a moment before answering. "You got the answers you wanted from that military guy when you asked him about Howell. I don't think you're as worried about the vision as you let on."

"Just because one of his friends vouched for his integrity doesn't mean he's in the clear." Karyu glanced at her brother sidelong, determined not to let his assumptions bother her. "I just need a little more time to study him."

Kato smirked and leaned against a tree, crossing his arms over his chest. "'Study him', huh? What more do you think you can learn from him before they leave? They should be finishing up in about ten minutes and I don't think you'll find out much more about him by then."

Karyu narrowed her eyes in thought. Unfortunately, Kato was right. She wasn't going to get much more out of him in such a short amount of time. Even if she had a week to pick his mind, it probably wouldn't be enough for her to predict for certain whether his part in her future was good or bad. Still, she felt compelled to at least try to learn more about him and she told herself her brother's implications were wrong. Maybe she did feel a funny little jolt every time his eyes met hers, but that meant nothing. He had unusual eyes and such a pigment in Na'vi irises made for a mesmerizing effect.

She spotted Savanna coming up the path from the village and she smiled, getting an idea. Ordinarily, she trusted her brother to participate in any schemes she cooked up, but in this case she didn't want him involved. He was already making enough asinine assumptions about her reasons for wanting to study Howell. She walked away from her twin and intercepted Savanna, quickly formulating a way to solve her first problem before moving onto the second one.

* * *

"Wait…you want me to take Kato somewhere and make out with him?" Savanna arched an elegant brow and stared up at the taller girl. "What happened to 'making sure we behave ourselves'?"

Karyu shrugged. "Kato's an adult now and your injury is almost fully healed. I don't think I need to keep an eye on you anymore."

"Hmm." Savanna narrowed her hazel eyes suspiciously. "Is there a reason you're suggesting this, all the sudden? You aren't just giving us your blessings, you're outright telling me to jump his bones."

"Do whatever you want," Karyu said, spreading her hands innocently. "I just thought since everyone's distracted with the supply exchange, you two would want to take advantage. Nobody's likely to notice if you go off together for a while and you know my parents feel obligated to protect your virtue while you're our guest. Mother doesn't want any deflowering to happen on her watch, you know."

Predictably, the hybrid blushed. "I…there won't _be_ any 'deflowering' until I'm good and ready for it. Everybody thinks Kato and I have no self control!"

"Well, you don't have to worry about anyone following you now, if you slip away together for a while. I think you can handle yourselves." Karyu picked some dirt out from underneath one of her fingernails. "Anyway, I just thought I'd mention it and let you know I won't bother you."

Savanna hesitated for a moment and her eyes settled on Kato. He was leaning against the tree where his twin left him, watching the activity of the visitors and his parents. A different kind of heat rose within her as she watched him. Rays of sunlight came through the foliage to slant against his cyan-striped body like golden kisses. He was so handsome; her greedy desire won out over her suspicion and she looked at her friend again.

"You promise you won't tell anyone we've gone anywhere?"

Karyu nodded. "I promise. I'll give you at least twenty minutes."

"I thought you said we don't need monitoring anymore," protested Savanna in frustration.

"The supply exchange should be done by then. Mother and Father might start noticing your absence and go looking for you, if you stay away for too long."

Savanna winced. The last thing she wanted was for either of Kato's parents to catch them in the act. Twenty minutes was better than the time they got most of the time. Usually they were lucky to catch five minutes alone before someone came seeking them out.

"Okay, I get your point."

Karyu smirked. "You'd better hurry up, if you want to make the most of it."

* * *

When Savanna came up to him and softly suggested they find someplace quiet for a while, Kato's immediate response was to check on his sister to see where she was. Seeing that she was busy helping carry some things to one of the tilt rotors, he smiled and took Savanna's hand, making tracks as quickly as he could without being too conspicuous.

"No, let's go to the caves," he said when Savanna started to head into the forest. He put an arm around her waist and steered her toward the village and thus, the beach.

"But there's a bigger chance someone could walk in on us there," she protested. "Your parents know you love the caves and some of the village kids like to go there, too."

He cast a quick look around to be sure nobody was nearby and then gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "I'm not taking you in the jungle for that anymore, not after what happened the last time. When I feel like we can fool around without me losing complete awareness of my surroundings, it'll be different. I'll also feel better when you've had more survival practice."

She tried to look rueful but her smile spoiled it. "It's sweet that you're so protective of me. So which cave should we use?"

"There's one that has a smaller cave connecting to it through a tunnel in the back," he answered, his eyes caressing her admiringly. Just the thought of touching her intimately again was quickly putting him in a state of arousal. "Even if someone comes in there, they won't see us unless they find the back cave."

He drew her close and lowered his mouth to her ear to murmur into it. "I'm a little surprised. Usually I'm the one that initiates things. Not that I'm complaining or anything; I'm glad you came up with the idea."

"Actually, your sister came up with it," admitted Savanna with a little shiver of desire.

Kato pulled away with a frown. "_Karyu_? You mean to tell my that my cock-blocking _sister_ suggested we sneak away to fool around?"

"Yes, I thought that was a little weird too, but she says since you've passed your trials and I've healed, there's no reason for her to keep chaperoning us. It makes a certain kind of sense, if you think about it."

Kato looked back up the path at his sister, who was starting to help transfer goods. He thought Savanna was being naïve if she believed Karyu didn't have some ulterior motive for encouraging them. She was up to something and he guessed it had to do with Baxter Howell. Being blessedly free of rampaging sexual hormones, Karyu just didn't understand how he and Savanna felt and she had no remorse about tossing a wrench in the works whenever she could.

"Kato, are we going?"

He returned his attention to his girlfriend and her trusting, inviting expression made him forget all about his sister's scheming. He was confident that if she needed his help, Karyu would come to him later. Hopefully it was nothing that would get her hurt or in trouble.

* * *

Karyu watched her brother leave with Savanna and she silently congratulated herself. It was the perfect distraction. Savanna would give her the opportunity to put her plan into motion without her brother getting in the way or inadvertently screwing things up and the couple wouldn't have enough time to get carried away and mate.

Karyu stopped and frowned, nearly causing the human soldier behind her to run into her. What if twenty minutes was all her brother needed to mate with Savanna? She knew the actual act of intercourse typically lasted between five and ten minutes on average—provided the couple wasn't using methods to prolong it. What she wasn't sure about was how quickly a couple could get ready to do that final deed. If a pair of Na'vi didn't want to bother with _tsahaylu_ and just went for the physical act alone, she imagined they could get the ball rolling pretty fast.

The man behind her walked past her with an annoyed look and she gave a half-hearted shrug of apology to him. Her eyes went to Howell again, who was bent over a medical supply container that he'd just lifted out of his Samson. His tail swished as he worked and Karyu stared at it, remembering something she'd heard about Na'vi men and a technique of massaging their tails. Many of the women in Karyu's clan swore by it, alleging that it resulted in longer, more intense mating sessions. Obviously, such a method couldn't work on a human man but Karyu suspected avatar men were susceptible to it—though she wasn't about to ask her parents for confirmation of that theory.

Watching his tail inevitably drew her eyes to his ass, which was rather nicely framed in the camouflage pants he wore. Karyu raised her eyebrows and shook her head, disarmed by the unexpected direction of her thoughts. She'd admired the male form before, but on a clinical level—the same way she admired female beauty or a fine specimen of animal. With growing horror, she realized Kato might not be completely off base with his theories. She looked at other males nearby, especially focusing on the avatars and Na'vi hunters.

She spotted one of her clan mates whom she typically thought of as a nice example of male anatomy and she watched him silently, testing herself. She was a bit more conscious of the lean lines of his body, but her gaze inevitably drifted back to Baxter again.

She again told herself that the only reason she was so interested in him was because his eyes were an exotic color and she saw him in her spirit vision. She only noticed his ass because he was bent over and it was right there. She'd only been thinking of Na'vi tantra because she was worried she made a mistake sending her horny brother off with his horny girlfriend. That was all. Never mind that she saw a lot more ass from the males in her clan every day. Never mind that she usually made it a point not to think about or deeply discuss tale massage or other mating activities that couples got up to. It was purely a symptom of her distraction and it would all go away once she figured Howell out.

To prove it to herself, she firmed her resolve and got moving again. She approached Howell's aircraft just as he lifted the medical container and turned around. He stumbled to avoid running into her and she smirked as he discreetly lowered his burden over his crotch. He nodded at the open cargo hatch.

"Oh, hey. Just hand that up to the guys in the cargo bay and they'll put it where it needs to go."

"Of course." She gave him an innocent look before walking past him to hand over the protective canister of medicines. She felt his gaze on her and she glanced over his shoulder at him. His eyes weren't on her face; they were sweeping over her body in a lingering way. Her initial reaction was to bristle and prepare to call him out as a pervert, but she restrained herself and tried a different tactic. "See something you like?"

Howell's eyes shot away from her hips to her face and for about two seconds, he looked boyishly contrite over being caught. He got over it immediately and he gave her a dimpled smile, adjusting the supply container in his arms to balance it better. "Something wrong with that?"

Determined to trip him up, she maintained her composure and mimicked an action she saw other females take when signaling availability to a male. She curved her tale slightly to one side and batted her eyelashes at him. "Only if you can't handle it."

She succeeded in flustering him, at least a little. She saw his throat work as he swallowed and his jade eyes flitted over her as if he couldn't decide where to look next. Emboldened now that she had the upper hand, she decided to tease him a little more. She tossed her head a little to make her hair ornaments chime together and she gave him a coy grin. "No answer? Hmm, that's too bad."

Sadly for her, she didn't realize her father had come around from the other side of the tilt rotor and was listening to the last half of the exchange. Karyu was startled enough to gasp when Tom's voice spoke up.

"Karyu, can I have a word with you?"

She turned to look at her father and she felt her face go cold and then hot. "Um…_Sempul_."

"Don't you have things to do, Corporal?" Tom asked, his stern gaze settling on Howell.

Baxter seemed as startled as Karyu was. "Sure thing, Dr. Sully. We were just—"

"Socializing when you should be concentrating on your job," interrupted Tom. He turned his attention to his daughter again. "Karyu, a moment, please. Just leave the package by the ramp. Someone will load it up."

Howell only nodded and got back to work, ducking his head to shield his eyes from a ray of sun that came through the canopy. Karyu followed her father a short distance into the forest and she was glad to see that her mother was in a deep conversation with another huntress. At least Tanhi hadn't seen her little act.

Tom didn't give her a chance to say anything first. As soon as they were out of other people's hearing range, he rounded on her. "When did this start?"

She flicked her ears in confusion and frowned at him. "What do you mean?"

"How long have you been receptive, Karyu?"

She always thought she had no shame but now she was blushing as hard as Savanna usually did. "I'm not receptive."

"You could have fooled me." Tom sighed and propped his sunglasses on his forehead. "Listen Karyu, it's nothing to be embarrassed about. If you're starting to feel the need for a mate you _know_ you can talk to us about it."

"I know that," she assured him.

He placed his hands on her shoulders and gazed into her eyes. "And you know you don't have to rush anything, right? I understand you saw this marine in your vision and I respect what a powerful effect it's had on you to see him awake and in the flesh today. Believe me, if I had any idea this guy was awake and heading here I would have said something to prepare you."

"_Sempul_, you don't have to worry about that. I was surprised to see him and I reacted badly at first, but I've got my head straight now."

Tom shook his head. "I don't think that's true, actually. I'm worried that you're so wound up about your vision it's impairing your judgment."

She sighed and shut her eyes. "You don't understand. I'm trying to figure him out, okay? Yes, it _bothers_ me that he showed up in my _Uniltaron_ vision and I don't know why. It bothers me that I don't know if he's going to be a friend or enemy in the end and if he's going to be the latter, I'd rather start hating him now."

"And you figure the way to do that is to give him heat signals and 'come hither' looks?" Tom asked dryly. "I think you've got interrogation and courtship techniques confused."

"It was an _act_! I was trying to keep him off-balance, so that he'd reveal more about himself. When it comes to men, it seems the best way to do that is with sex appeal."

Tom's eyebrows shot up and he opened his mouth to argue. Karyu crossed her arms over her chest and shot him a challenging look. His mouth curved into a grin. "I guess that's a fair enough assessment. Believe me, little fighter, you've probably done more than a fair job of putting that guy off-balance. Your erratic behavior since his arrival today has _everyone_ scratching their heads."

"See? I'm just that good." She didn't mention that most of her behavior wasn't an act at all, but an honest case of shaken composure.

Tom just watched her for a minute and then he stepped away. "You're _sure_ you aren't feeling any unusual anxiety or tension?"

She translated that to mean tension of the sexual kind and she almost looked away, remembering some of the thoughts that went through her mind just minutes ago. She kept her composure and shook her head. "Nothing like that. Hey, you don't worry this much over Kato's hormones."

"That's because I've had time to get used to his going wild," Tom answered without hesitation. "So has he."

"That makes sense," she agreed. She hoped her hormones really weren't waking up and that her interest in Howell was just a passing thing. She heard the tilt rotor blades start up and she swore beneath her breath. "They're leaving already?"

"They have to," Tom reminded her, "They're on a schedule, you know."

It was on the tip of her tongue to blurt out that they could stay the night in the territory, instead of flying back in the dark. There was no way they could make it back to Hell's Gate before sunset and air travel at night was risky even with a group. Tom was a little too curious about her behavior though and if her plan worked, the Hell's Gate teams would have no choice but to stay the night anyhow.

"I'd better wave goodbye," she said, taking off running. She ignored her father's bemused look and left him behind, mentally reviewing the parts of a Samson aircraft. They were probably just warming up the engines. If she made it in time, she could still pull it off. She leaped over a knee-high mushroom and pushed aside vines as she went, dodging the thorny and poisonous variety of plant specimens scattered throughout the vegetation. She was panting lightly when she made it back to the landing clearing—not so much form exertion as anxiety.

"No!" Karyu watched helplessly as the two Samsons slowly ascended. Short of climbing a tree and leaping onto one of them in plain sight, there was no way she could sabotage a fuel line to make them stay overnight now. Her people were already leaving, going back to their daily routines.

With nobody nearby and the noise from the choppers dominating the sound waves, Karyu felt safe to vent her frustration aloud. "Dammit! Ugh..._dammit_! Shit, shit, shit!"

Again, Karyu failed to notice her father coming up behind her until he put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed gently. She lapsed into silence and swallowed, trying to think up an excuse for being so upset over the humans and avatars leaving.

Tom rubbed her shoulders soothingly and spoke before she could. "Maybe you should have a cup of nectar with your dinner tonight. It might stabilize your nerves."

"I'm not nervous," she insisted.

Tom stopped rubbing her shoulders and he gave her a light pat. "All right. You know best."

She fell into step with him and she looked up at him uncomfortably. Tom wasn't looking at her; he watched the path straight ahead and he seemed casual and relaxed. She knew he didn't believe her for a second but he was never the sort to drag an argument out. "Dad?"

"Hmm?"

"Maybe I _will_ have some moonshine tonight."

He nodded and put a supportive arm around her shoulders. "I'll have a cup with you."

She relaxed a little. "I'm sorry for pushing you down earlier. I was in a rush."

"That's okay. I'm used to being pushed around by petite females; just ask your mother."

Karyu grinned.

* * *

Baxter reported to Ellis the next day, giving him an account of how the exchange mission went. He didn't mean to get emotionally invested in the retelling of it, but he was still baffled by the experience. Karyu's unpredictable behavior toward him put him in a state of curiosity and interest that he knew wasn't healthy.

Dating was something he knew he should put on the back burner until he recovered from his ordeal and the lingering ache of his breakup with Jill. Hell, the neurotic little Na'vi princess shouldn't even _be_ on his list of potential girlfriends. He didn't even know if Karyu was at the age of consent and even if the Na'vi didn't have rules against adults consorting with teens, the military did. He could face a court martial for fooling around with a minor, even if she wasn't a citizen of the colony. Therefore, it was with some personal surprise that he found himself obsessing over the encounter. His report started out professional but as he recounted the event with Karyu, he started to go into "buddy mode", forgetting about rank and protocol in his frustration.

"So then, the crazy chick kicked me in the balls and took off running!" Baxter spread his hands and gave his commanding officer a "What-The-Fuck" expression.

Ellis frowned at him. "Did you say this woman's name was—"

"But it gets better," interrupted Baxter. "When we were loading and off-loading the SA-2's, she started flirting with me! Now, maybe I'm not clear on how Na'vi women operate but I'm pretty sure asking me if I like what I see and giving me bedroom eyes over her shoulder was _some_ kind of hint. Or maybe she was just messing with my head. I'm starting to think that's what women live for."

Ellis waited patiently until he finished speaking. "Are you done, Corporal?"

Baxter winced and stood straight again. "Yes sir, Master Sergeant."

"Good. Sit down."

Baxter took a seat on the other side of the desk and waited tensely for his friend and superior to speak again. When he did, his words confused the already disoriented corporal. "Did you say this girl was Karyu Sully?"

Baxter nodded. "That's right, Top. Why?"

Ellis tapped his fingertips on his desk thoughtfully. "I'll be damned. That girl came to me a week before you woke up, asking all sorts of questions about you. She claimed she wanted to know more about everyone that had a run-in with Lt. Phelps while he was alive. Her excuse was that since she played a role in his death, she couldn't be too careful of people that might have been his 'friend'."

Baxter's eyebrows furrowed. "I hope you told her that schmuck was no friend of mine."

"I did. I thought it was an odd excuse, though. Karyu and her brother are known for being exceptionally bright and crafty, like a pair of foxes. She should have known you were never on friendly terms with Phelps. I considered asking her father if he knew why she was so interested in you but I didn't know where to begin."

Baxter snapped his fingers. "They said she saw me in some vision. Although, that doesn't make much more sense than the excuse she gave you."

"A vision?" Ellis studied Howell severely. "The Na'vi take those very seriously, Howler. Maybe to you and I it's all just mumbo-jumbo or delusions brought on by toxins but the natives swear by them. If she thinks she saw you in one of her spirit visions, it's no _wonder_ she's been so determined to learn more about you."

Howell wasn't quite sure how to feel about that and for once, he was subdued. He could have made a crack about being stalked by a hot Na'vi woman but he honestly, the whole thing was just too strange for him to joke about and it kept getting stranger by the minute.

Ellis observed his friend's ambiguity and he folded his hands atop his desk. "Have you had lunch yet?"

Baxter shook his head. "No. I haven't been able to think of food. Things are just too damned weird right now. I've got another physical scheduled later today and I'm just trying not to think about the 'turn your head and cough' part."

Darren smirked. "I can relate. Let's put all this aside for a half hour and get some food, all right?"

Howell nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I could eat. Let's raid the cafeteria."

* * *

It was funny how a misunderstanding and a fight could result in something good. Even after all this time, everyone involved in the street brawl that occurred years ago were still good friends. They still joined each other for their meal breaks between work hours, sharing events of their day with each other. Sebastian was no exception and Lee called out to him and Katherine when he spotted them searching for a place to sit with their lunch. The couple smiled and joined their mixed colleagues at the table, with Katherine taking a seat beside Ramona and Sebastian sliding in next to Baxter.

"How are you adjusting, Corporal Howell?" Katherine eyed him with concern as she opened her bottle of energy drink and set her eating utensils on the table.

Baxter put down the sandwich he was eating and nodded, swallowing his food before answering. "Pretty good, all things considered."

"It's got to be jarring to wake up and see us all years older," Harris guessed with a sympathetic smile. "Much less with kids."

"Yeah, you were the 'baby' the last time I checked." Baxter grinned at Harris.

Harris shrugged. "Now I've got a ten year old of my own. A lot of things change."

Howell sighed. "That's true. Now I'm just trying to catch up."

"You'll get the hang of it, Sweetie," Ramona encouraged, reaching across the table to pat his hand. "We'll help you out. This place is pretty boring and _that_ hasn't changed while you were away. Trust me, you didn't really miss out on all that much."

Baxter playfully winked at her. "Looks like your lady has a thing for younger guys, Lee."

Lee rolled his eyes, too used to his lover's flirtatious nature to rise to the bait. "She has a thing for _all_ guys—especially avatars. Don't flatter yourself."

"Hey, I was behaving myself," protested the zoologist. "And I always go home with you at the end of the day—in your _human_ body, I might add."

Lee kissed her on the cheek and patted her knee. "Of course, babe. I'm a lucky man."

Baxter chuckled at the couple before turning his attention back to Sebastian. "So, I saw your daughter yesterday."

Sebastian looked up from the tray of food he was seasoning and he smiled at Baxter. "I imagined you would, considering where your assignment was taking you. Did my little girl seem in good health, Baxter?"

"Yeah, she seemed to be getting along all right. That's one beautiful girl you two had together."

Katherine and Sebastian shared a proud grin before the botanist asked a question of her own. "How were the twins? Did you see them too?"

Baxter glanced at Ellis, who was carefully concentrating reading the ingredients on the back of his juice box. "Yeah, I met them…briefly. The male…uh, what's his name, Kato? He's really protective of your daughter."

"Isn't he now?" Sebastian smirked dryly, as if he only tolerated the young man because he knew Kato wouldn't allow anyone else to lay a finger on Savanna.

"He seems crazy about her," Baxter went on, unconsciously defending the twin in question. "All I did was smile at Savanna and I thought Kato was going to try to skin me."

"I'm not so certain that's a good thing," Katherine remarked with an uncertain frown. "There _is_ such a thing as being _too_ jealous."

Baxter winced and he hastily tried to salvage the situation. "Hey in his defense, I kind of flirt without realizing I'm doing it…like Mona. I probably put out a vibe and after what I heard about that slinger getting her, the guy's got an excuse to guard her like that."

"I agree," Sebastian said with a nod, surprising everyone. "I'd much prefer our daughter to be with an overly protective partner than one who takes her for granted. It's good that Kato treasures her so."

"Man, I wish I had your way with words," Baxter chuckled, shaking his head. He sprinkled some pepper on his native vegetable mixture and stirred it in. "I hope they use you as a spokesperson when we need diplomacy with the natives."

"I doubt the indigenous would be impressed," replied Sebastian modestly, "they generally care more about how we act on our promises than how eloquently we give them."

Nobody disagreed with that and they decided to exchange small talk for the rest of the meal. Baxter tried not to feel alienated; these were his old friends, after all. It was no good, though. They were on a whole different level than him now. There lives had moved on while his remained unchanged in stasis. The world had changed as well. He was now caught in a sort of limbo, unable to catch up with them but not quite able to relate fully with the people his age.

Baxter forced a smile when Harris told a joke and he tried not to look as lonely as he felt.

* * *

A couple of weeks passed and the time came for Tsu'tey, Emazu and two other eligible young hunters to undergo _Iknimaya_. Emazu and the other initiates didn't quite hide their resentment over Tsu'tey being included in this year's task. By tradition, he should have had another year at least before he was granted the privilege, but the council made it clear that exceptions sometimes had to be made. Tsu'tey wasn't the first Omaticaya to attempt a banshee capture early, and he probably wouldn't be the last. His situation demanded adult responsibilities and therefore, adult status.

If Emazu succeeded, he would be initiated as an adult and Norm could pass down full leadership of the clan to him. Norm wasn't sure how he felt about that. The young man had come a long way since Jake relinquished his position to him, but a part of Norm still clung to the slim hope that Jake and Neytiri would come back and reclaim their positions for a few more years. He had to be practical, though. Jake was doing what was best for the clan and though Emazu was often an unpleasant person, nobody could question his devotion or bravery. Like Tommy, he was a natural warrior and Jake was right to choose someone like him as a successor.

Norm tried to see the bright side of it all. If Tsu'tey pulled through, he would no longer be a "child mate" for Grace. The clan was polite about it but Norm overheard whispers now and then, speculations over whether Tsu'tey was mature enough to be the mate and father that Grace and her child needed. By now, everyone knew about her condition but most people thought she went into heat with Tsu'tey after Tommy's death. Only a few people knew Tsu'tey wasn't the baby's father—surprising, since Emazu was one of the first outside the family to hear the truth. Norm was thankful that he had the decency to keep quiet about it.

Unlike some of his clan mates, Norm had total faith in Tsu'tey. Gentle-natured as he was, he was Jake and Neytiri's son and they were both skilled warriors. Norm hoped E'quath relayed the news to them. Because of the risk of someone hacking into the frequency to listen in, he didn't dare tell E'quath to ask them to meet up at the mountains to be there for their son. Instead, he told the Guardian _Olo'eyktan_ that Tsu'tey and Emazu would be going for their ikrans in the morning and he trusted him to pass the message along to Neytiri and Jake. He didn't want anyone figuring out they were staying close to the Tree of Souls and he certainly didn't want Tsu'tey's _Iknimaya_ interrupted by a manhunt.

* * *

Tsu'tey closed his eyes as his mate applied the symbolic _Iknimaya_ paints to his face. He reached deep within himself for calm, thinking of his brother and how easily this would have come to him. He thought of his niece or nephew, growing inside of Grace. He thought of how it had felt when Gracie gave him a real kiss for the first time, and how wonderful it would be for her to kiss him that way each night. True, they weren't exactly a normal couple but he didn't mind.

"You're very quiet," Grace murmured as she finished painting his face. She dipped her hands into the bowl of water to clean them and she watched him with soft eyes. The sun was just beginning to crest on the horizon, its rays casting the dim gray skies with golden light. "Are you nervous?"

Tsu'tey shook his head. "No. Well, yes, but I was just thinking about some things."

Grace finished rinsing her hands off and she wiped them on her thighs before taking a seat on the exposed tree root beside him. "What were you thinking about?"

He shrugged and lowered his gaze. "Our future. The baby. I want to be a good mate and father, Gracie. If anything, those goals are going to help me through this."

She combed her fingers through his hair—which was fashioned into multiple tight little braids and decorated with colorful plant fibers and beads for the trial. "I know you'll do fine, Tsu'tey. You're different from the others. You aren't doing this just for yourself or for social status. You're doing it for _us_ and that makes it worth a lot more."

Tsu'tey put his arms around her and drew her close. "I'm not so noble." He sighed and pulled away to look into her eyes. "I have a confession to make. I'm kind of hoping that if I do well with this, you'll kiss me again the way you did that night in the Guardian village."

She stared at him and he felt his face go hot. "I…I didn't mean you _have_ to. I don't want you to feel pressured or anything; it's just that I enjoyed it so much and I'd like to experience it again some day."

Her lips curved into a tender smile of adoration. She cupped his face in her hands and spoke in a low, soft voice. "Tsu'tey, you make it sound like a chore. It isn't. I feel I should be as honest with you as you've been with me. I enjoyed it too."

He started to smile in relief. "Really? Because I thought you only did it out of—"

He was going to say "pity" but her mouth covered his before the word could come out. For Tsu'tey, it felt like Pandora tilted on its axis as her tongue delicately quested in his mouth. It brushed against his almost inquisitively and he responded, holding her tighter against him. The kiss seemed to go on and on, growing more heated by the second until Tsu'tey started to pull her into his lap without realizing it.

"Wait," Grace breathed, coming to her senses first. She was flushed and breathless, glancing around to be sure nobody was nearby.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, mortified with himself. He wasn't even sure what he intended to do with her if he'd succeeded in pulling her into his lap. "I got carried away."

"It's okay," she assured him. "You have needs, like everyone else. I…have needs too."

He worked that admission over in his mind, trying not to let his hopes rise. He shouldn't be thinking this way in the first place. He'd mated with Grace to protect her and he had sworn he would never take advantage of her or pressure her. "What are you trying to say to me?"

She hesitated, looking down at the morning shadows on the mossy ground. She was of an equal height to Tsu'tey but at that moment, she seemed shorter, somehow…smaller. He disliked the vulnerable vibe she was putting off and he placed his hands on her shoulders, rubbing gently. "Whatever it is, you can tell me. We're partners now, right?"

Grace smiled and bit her lower lip, nodding. "Yes…partners. I _should_ share my thoughts with you; especially this one." She raised her eyes to regard him and she took a soft, deep breath. She traced his features with her fingertips as she spoke again, lingering on the shape of his mouth. "I want you to promise me you'll get through this safely, Tsu'tey. I want to come with and see for myself."

"Gracie, no," he objected, shaking his head. "It's too dangerous. The baby—"

"I'm not going to be wrestling with an ikran," she interrupted, quietly but firmly. "I'm just coming to observe and support my mate while he captures his."

"But the climb is hard," he reminded her. "Why do you think we have to train so hard at building our endurance? Half of the challenge is making it to the nesting grounds! I know pregnant women usually stay active until they get heavy but…this is…it's Tommy's baby."

She clucked her tongue and sighed, stroking his cheeks. "You know I would never do anything to risk this child. You can't ask me to stay here and wait, though. I have the right to come with and support you, Tsu'tey—especially with Emazu there."

Tsu'tey's expression darkened as he realized Grace was afraid that Emazu would get it into his head to try and distract him or sabotage his efforts. "He won't try anything with your parents there, even if the thought crosses his mind. He might hate me for mating with you and being 'tainted' but he respects your parents."

"I'm not worried about Emazu trying anything," she admitted, surprising him. "He and I had a talk before you and I mated and I really think he's letting it go. He hasn't bothered you since then, has he?"

"No," agreed Tsu'tey with a puzzled frown. "He hasn't said two words to me. He practically ignores me. I just thought he was trying to be decent because I lost my brother."

"He knows I will never be with him and I made him promise to leave you alone," Grace explained. "But even so, he's _still_ an influence on you. He teased you all through our growing years and when he's around, your self-confidence suffers. I want to be there to support you. I want to make sure you succeed and come home safely on your own ikran."

He stammered uncertainly, flustered by the sincerity and concern in her voice.

She cupped the back of his head to draw it forward, pressing her forehead against his as she gazed into his eyes. "You're always looking out for me. Let me do the same for you, for once. Tommy would want it that way. If I start getting too tired, I'll find a safe place to rest and I'll wait for someone to come back for me. Just let me try, Tsu'tey."

"I…this isn't fair," he sighed lamely. He never _could_ say no to Gracie.

She smiled and kissed him briefly, her lips lingering just long enough to make his body tingle. "We'll celebrate when you've been named a hunter of the People. I'll give you more than the kisses you like."

Tsu'tey blinked, his mouth going slack. "Uh…you will?"

She ran her palms over his chest briefly and she nodded, lowering her gaze again as a blush rose in her cheeks. "I'm not saying I'm ready to actually mate, but there are things we can do together besides kissing and _tsahaylu_. You'll see."

His blood sang in his veins and he had to force himself to calm down. "You aren't obligated to do any of that."

"You don't have to remind me every time we kiss or touch," Grace reminded him with a long-suffering sigh. She smiled a bit sadly and stroked his hair. "I'm always going to miss your brother. I'm always going to love him. That doesn't mean I don't want to love you and have a real family with you, Tsu'tey. Tommy wants us to be happy and even if it takes some time, I think we should let ourselves try to be."

Tsu'tey's heart ached with both love and sorrow. He knew that she was right. He knew that Tommy was watching over them and he would want them to live their lives and be happy, instead of dwelling on the past. He drew Grace into his arms and sighed against her hair. "I promise I'm going to give it everything I've got, when we reach the nesting grounds. Just please, do me a favor and don't strain yourself. I can't concentrate if I'm worried about you and the baby."

Grace nodded. "I think I can do that."

* * *

As she gathered her own gear from her personal belongings rack by the hammock she was sharing with Tsu'tey, Grace wondered what had possessed her. She hardly knew anything about sex, save for the one glorious encounter she'd had with Tommy before his death. True, she'd heard other women talk before but up until she began to feel her own sexual stirrings, she paid no attention to it. On a scholarly level, Savanna Thomas offered her more information on the subject than anyone but it was still just words. For all intents and purposes, Grace was still very new to sex.

So why in the name of Eywa did she offer sexual intimacy as incentive for Tsu'tey to do well with _Iknimaya_?

After a moment's thought, she admitted to herself that her womanly desires were still very much in place. Depression had staved them off for a while but now that her grief was fading to a bearable level, she found her urges returning again, unwelcome. She admired Tsu'tey when he wasn't looking, covertly letting her gaze travel his body in appreciation.

"Tommy wants us to be together," she reminded herself in a whisper. At least, that was the impression he gave her when he visited her in a vision a couple of nights ago. He couldn't stay for long but he told her to let herself love Tsu'tey, if she thought she could.

"Or maybe I'm just crazy," Grace grumbled, shaking her head. She was afraid to tell anyone about Tommy's occasional visits. Her father would probably think she was suffering delusions and her mother would want the elders to look at her. Mo'at would understand but she was back at the Tree of Souls now. Tsu'tey was the one person in the clan Grace felt she could tell, but she didn't want to mention Tommy's encouragement until she was absolutely sure she was ready to go further in the relationship.

Of course, there was still the issue of inexperience to deal with. She _did_ want to try doing more than kissing and linking with Tsu'tey but she didn't know how much they could do without mating. She remembered some of the things she and Tommy got up to before they mated and she flushed. Touching Tsu'tey _that_ way could very well lead to a loss of control. Maybe there were other ways to pleasure him without actually touching…that area.

She was so absorbed in thoughts of familiarizing herself more intimately with his body that she almost failed to notice the _Iknimaya_ group on the ground getting ready to leave. She heard Emazu call out for the other initiates to keep up and she looked down to see that her parents were ushering everyone hastily. With a huff of irritation, Grace realized that they were deliberately trying to leave before she could join them. The urgent way Tsu'tey encouraged everyone to move suggested he was partly to blame.

"You won't get rid of me _that_ easily," Grace muttered.

She nimbly sprinted to the trunk entrance and made her way down the inner column, dodging other Omaticaya in passing. She raced to the direhorse meadow and claimed one of the mares. She was a little winded when she caught up with the group but she smiled smugly at Tsu'tey and her parents when they turned to see her join the other riders.

"You must have forgotten I was coming," Grace said casually as they glanced uncomfortably at each other. "That's okay. Everyone makes mistakes."

* * *

They didn't travel far before Emazu dropped back to speak with Grace. Tsu'tey was engaged in quiet conversation with Norm and Grace had purposely fallen behind a bit so that she could rub the aching spot on her lower back without calling attention to herself. She braced herself for some arrogant comment about her choice in a mate, but Emazu surprised her.

"You are being a brat."

Grace stared openly at him, wide-eyed. "Excuse me?"

Emazu glanced down at her stomach—which was beginning to expand with her condition. "You put yourself and your child at risk. You should wait at Hometree with your sister."

She glared at him. "Don't you _dare_ try to tell me what to do. I have the right to be at my mate's side."

"You are a distraction," countered Emazu. "His warrior skills are poor enough without you drawing his attention. It was childish of you to come."

"There's nothing 'childish' about wanting to be sure Tsu'tey gets through this alive."

Emazu gave her an arrogant smirk. "And what will you do if he begins to fail? Attack his ikran? Your parents will not let him come to serious harm. You should have trusted them."

She huffed with annoyance and prepared to argue further, but she had to admit he made a decent point. She couldn't even blame it on sexism, because she knew good and well that if she weren't pregnant, she would be participating in this trial as well and nobody would have objected. She saw herself through his unblinking gaze and she blushed, embarrassed. Maybe she _was_ acting a bit like a brat and maybe it wasn't fair of her to insist on coming along in her condition. Still, she couldn't just wait at home—not after losing Tommy.

"I can't lose Tsu'tey too," she said before she could stop herself. The words pained her and she swallowed hard and fought against tears. She seemed to spend most of her time crying and she hated being a slave to her emotions.

Emazu's stern visage softened the slightest bit and he gave her a bare nod. "You will not lose him." With that said, he nudged his mount and galloped back up to the front of the group.

Grace stared after him, surprised by the promise in his tone. Unless she was mistaken, Emazu had just vowed to watch out for Tsu'tey for her.

* * *

Tsu'tey was just reaching for the vine to join the others in climbing when an arrow whistled through the air and landed at his feet. He jumped back and grabbed Grace instinctively, pulling her down with him behind a thick bush for cover. Ni'nat also ducked for cover behind the bush while Norm, Emazu and the others hopped back down from their perches to get into defensive formation. Tsu'tey stood back up and prepared his bow, but then he saw something tied to the shaft of the arrow and he stared with a frown. Norm paused and looked as well, also noticing the object tied to the projectile.

It only took a few heartbeats of examination for Tsu'tey to recognize his mother's weaving. "It's okay," he said to the others as he relaxed and approached the arrow. He pulled it out of the ground and freed the object from it, holding it up for Norm to see. Everyone was familiar with the headgear worn by hunters to shield their eyes while flying. "It's a wind visor. Mother's work."

Norm took the headband from Tsu'tey and examined it. He handed it back and sighed, looking around with an expression of exasperation. "Okay Jake…you scared the hell out of us. Where are you?"

"Right up here."

Everyone looked directly up with surprise. Jake Sully's face peered over the edge of the first floating landmass above them, where they had been preparing to climb to in the first place. Neytiri's head emerged a second later to stare down at them as well. She smiled at her son with a more dignified, solemn expression than her mate.

"I'm not even going to _ask_ how you managed to shoot an arrow down from there without any of us seeing you," grumbled Norm. "Did it occur to you that you could have hit your son?"

Jake jumped down into a tree and then swung down from the branches to land next to Tsu'tey. "There's no way I would have shot my kid and everybody knows it." He ruffled Tsu'tey's hair before giving Emazu a nod of greeting. "Well, you're _Olo'eyktan_, Emazu. Do you object to us coming along?"

Emazu was visibly flustered. "_Toruk Makto_, you honor us."

Jake's eyebrows went up. "A simple 'yes' or 'no' would have been fine, Emazu. We're exiles, remember?" Neytiri came down and went to his side and Jake took her hand absently, as if it was second nature for him to do so.

Emazu shook his head. "You are not truly exiles. The People will never turn you away. It is only a ruse to trick the enemy."

"They aren't the enemy," corrected Jake patiently. He shrugged. "At least not yet. So Tsu'tey, how do you like the headband your mother made for you?"

"I love it," answered Tsu'tey enthusiastically. He wanted to hug his mother but something told him it wasn't appropriate at such a solemn moment. Perhaps after he succeeded, he could exchange a loving embrace with his parents.

"Well, put it on," Jake urged, nodding at the visor.

Tsu'tey glanced at his mother uncertainly. "Shouldn't I wait until after I've tamed my ikran?"

Neytiri reached out and laid her hands over his. "It will serve you well on your first flight. Put it on, _'Itan_. I did not craft this with the belief that you would not succeed."

Tsu'tey smiled at her, his confidence soaring. He put the headband on and adjusted the protective lenses so that they were flipped up until he needed them. Jake grinned and gave him the "thumbs-up" sign before calling out to his ikran. Neytiri did the same and they didn't miss Tsu'tey's look of disappointment as they began to mount up.

"We'll meet you at the top," Jake explained.

"Cheaters," accused Norm resentfully.

Jake laughed. "Hey, we get plenty of exercise every day. You could use some though, Spellman. Better get a move on."

Norm glanced down at his lanky body. "You can't be serious. I'm not fat."

"Didn't say you were." Jake winked at Ni'nat, who chuckled. "But you're getting too bony. Put some tone in those muscles, nerd."

Norm grumbled and motioned for the young people in his group to begin climbing. "Keep an eye out for predators and try to stay together, everybody. Jake, I guess we'll meet you at the nesting area."

Neytiri had already climbed onto her banshee and she murmured to it soothingly before taking off. Jake started to follow suit but he stopped at the last minute and immediately hopped back down.

"Whoa, little lady…what the hell are _you_ doing here and where do you think you're going?"

Grace stopped in the process of reaching for a vine and she gave Jake a sheepish look. "I'm here to support your son…who happens to be my _mate_. Is that wrong?"

Jake shot an incredulous look at Norm and Ni'nat. The couple looked decidedly uncomfortable. "You allowed this?"

"Um, Dad," Tsu'tey interjected, coming to their defense, "Grace insisted and she would be doing this too if it weren't for her situation."

"It's her situation that worries me," Jake reminded, crossing his arms over his chest. "Doing a little hunting is one thing but this climb is _brutal_. Norm, I can't believe you went along with this."

"Don't you think I objected?" Norm challenged, ignoring his charges; who had paused to watch the drama below them. "Short of tying her up hand and foot, there was no way to keep her from coming."

"The Norm I know would have done that if he had to," Jake sighed. "But I guess if she was that determined you'd rather have her with your group than tailing you in secret and getting hurt."

"I'm standing right here," Grace grumbled, glaring at the two men. "You can both stop patronizing me. I'm not that fragile."

Jake smirked at her. "Karyu's been talking to you, hasn't she? You almost sounded like her. Well, sorry kiddo. I'm not letting you make that climb when you're carrying my grandkid. Come on over here and climb up. You can ride with me to the top."

Grace began to object but Tsu'tey quickly ushered her over to his father and the waiting banshee, relieved. "Please, go with him. This way you can be there to cheer me on without putting your body through too much strain."

She gazed at him silently for a moment and then she nodded. "Okay. Just be careful, Tsu'tey."

He smiled and squeezed her hands. "I will. We'll see you soon, Gracie."

She hesitated a moment longer before turning away and going to Jake's side. He vaulted up onto his ikran's back and offered his hand to her. She took it and climbed up behind him, embracing him securely around the waist. Jake gave the group a brief salute before taking off to join Neytiri, who had begun to circle above when she realized he wasn't with her.

"Now I can relax a little," Tsu'tey sighed, grateful to his father for taking Grace with him.

Norm patted him on the shoulder. "Me too. Let's get going."

* * *

Emazu claimed his ikran with cunning and speed that impressed everyone. He established _tsahaylu_ almost as soon as he leaped up between its shoulders. Tsu'tey noticed Jake's approving look as the young chieftain took off on his first flight with nary a scratch for his troubles. It made him self-conscious and worried. There was no way he could compete with that.

Jake noticed Tsu'tey's uncertain look and he smiled at him, guessing what was troubling him. He turned Tsu'tey to face him as Norm announced that it was his turn to go. "You can do this, son. Just stay focused and don't worry about beating anyone's record." He squeezed his shoulders before releasing him and stepping back to let Neytiri have her say.

"You have heart," Neytiri encouraged, smiling at him. "There is more to claiming an ikran than aggression. Believe in yourself."

Tsu'tey took a deep breath and nodded. He checked his banshee catcher before turning to Grace and taking her hands. "Wish me luck."

Grace gave him one of those smiles that made men weak in the knees and she put her arms around his neck. She drew his head down and pressed her forehead against his, shutting her eyes. "You'll make the trip home on the back of your ikran, Tsu'tey. I know you will."

"And you'll be riding with me," he promised. He gently disengaged from her embrace and started to follow Norm.

"Hold up," Jake insisted. "I know we're not even supposed to be here, but Neytiri and I should be the ones guiding him through this."

Norm didn't argue with him. He just smiled and nodded. "I was hoping you'd say that. We'll just follow behind and leave it to you, then."

"It is always best for a parent to guide a son or daughter through this, if they can," Ni'nat said. She stepped aside to allow Neytiri past. "It is good that you came."

Emazu was just circling back around to come back, wisely choosing not to fly too far from his companions alone. As he came in for a landing, Tsu'tey passed beneath the waterfall and stuck close to the wall, inching along on the ledge carefully. He slipped a little when he was halfway across and his mother quickly steadied him. He glanced down and abruptly wished that he hadn't. The distance between his narrow perch and the ground below was dizzying and even though he had been trained to use the forest vegetation to break his fall, the thought of tumbling that distance made his stomach twist.

"Do not think about it," advised Neytiri when she noticed his hesitation and expression. "Look ahead and block out all else, Tsu'tey. Eywa is with you."

Tsu'tey did his best to take his mother's advice and have faith that the Great Mother was watching over him. Neytiri's presence close to his back was calming and Jake's was energizing. Between the two of them, his parents were inspiring Tsu'tey just by being there for him. Tsu'tey almost slipped again when he heard his brother's voice in his mind.

_"I'm right here with you, little brother. Let's show 'em how a Sully does it."_

Tsu'tey smiled.

* * *

Neytiri clutched at Jake's weapon harness unconsciously, her fingers curling into the straps. Tsu'tey seemed so confident up until one of the banshees accepted his challenge. Now that he was in the confrontation, he seemed uncertain and his reactions were suffering because of it. Norm and Ni'nat were behind them with Grace and the others, watching with equal concern as Tsu'tey struggled to avoid the snapping jaws of his opponent. The beast pitted against him was an impressive one, not quite as large as Emazu's but fast, young and toned.

"You've got to be more aggressive, Tsu'tey," Jake hollered. "Get off the defensive and start giving him the smack-down! You've got to show him who's stronger."

Tsu'tey dove and rolled away as the ikran's tail whipped around in an attempt to hit him. The animal followed up with a swipe of one of its foretalons and Tsu'tey cursed as it carved a crescent gash over his ribcage. Neytiri and Grace both cried out and Norm had to hold his daughter back to keep her from rushing to Tsu'tey's side.

"Use the _meresh'ti cau'pla_, Tsu'tey!" Neytiri pushed past Jake and crouched low on a rock formation close to her embattled son. Tsu'tey's struggle was even more harrowing than Jake's had been, years ago when he tamed his first ikran. She had already lost one child and it took all of her willpower to stop herself from attacking the animal to protect Tsu'tey.

He tried to do as she said but he missed and he was forced to draw the bola back and try again. Jake came up beside Neytiri and he put his hands on her shoulders, possibly sensing how close she was to losing her composure. He shouted out to the young man even as he tried to comfort his mate.

"Come on, Tsu'tey! Move your ass! Don't think about it, just do it!"

Neytiri was about to argue that thinking was a critical part of _Iknimaya_, but the hoots and shouts of encouragement from the rest of the initiates distracted her. Even Emazu was hollering encouragement now, having apparently forgotten his rivalry with Tsu'tey in the adrenaline rush. Neytiri focused her attention on her son again and she winced at the sight of the bright blood slashing across his torso. To his credit, the young man hardly seemed to notice the injury. Tsu'tey had a look of renewed, stubborn determination on his face.

With a bellowing shout, Tsu'tey leaped through the air. Jake blurted a startled oath and shouted for the boy to use his bola, but Tsu'tey evidently decided on a more direct tactic. Soon he had his legs wrapped around the long, sinuous neck of the ikran and he was winding his banshee catcher around the creature's snout by hand.

"Oh well….whatever works for you kid," Jake muttered.

"The bond, Tsu'tey," Neytiri reminded as the banshee thrashed and bucked. "Hurry!"

Tsu'tey hastened to comply and for a moment, it was like stepping back in time and watching Jake doing this again. The tactic he was using now was so similar to his father's it was almost jarring. Neytiri would have expected the more aggressive older son to use such a method, but not gentle Tsu'tey. She heard him grunting complaints and she could have sworn he was arguing with someone.

"What does it _look_ like I'm doing! I've got his neck…ah…crap…I'm trying!"

Jake heard the one-sided conversation too and he leaned closer to Neytiri with furrowed brows. "Who the hell is he talking to?"

She shook her head. "He may be talking to us." It was entirely possible, since everyone was shouting advice at him. Still, she got the distinct feeling that he was talking to someone right next to him.

Jake smirked proudly and gave a nod in Tsu'tey's direction as the young man started attaching his queue to the ikran's antenna. "Remind you of anyone?"

"Yes," agreed Neytiri, sparing a brief smile at her mate. "You…and Tommy. He would have done it this way, I think. He was so much like you."

Jake sobered and regarded their younger son with sudden suspicion. "Hey, I think you're right about that. This isn't what I expected Tsu'tey to do at all. It's almost like he's—"

"I'm going, I'm going!" Tsu'tey straightened up as the bond he'd formed with the animal kicked in and it staggered to its feet. He placed his feet where he'd been taught to and he readied himself, reaching up to adjust his new wind visors over his eyes. He was panting with exertion and adrenaline and he gave his family and Grace an exhilarated, terrified smile before directing his banshee to the cliff side.

"_Spoon_!"

Jake's eyebrows shot up and Neytiri watched with confused ignorance as their son took off. Neytiri didn't bother asking what—if anything—her son's shout meant. She gave her mate one proud, worried look before running to the edge and shouting for her banshee. Jake did the same and the two of them took off to join Tsu'tey.

* * *

"There, I shouted your battle-cry," Tsu'tey yelled over the wind. "Are you happy now? They're all going to think I'm crazy!" Tsu'tey's heart was thundering in his chest as he shouted at his phantom companion and tried to get used to steering his banshee.

Tommy's voice laughed. _"The battle-cry isn't what might make them wonder about your sanity, Tsmukan. I never said you should talk back when I was helping you out."_

"It was reflexive," excused Tsu'tey. "How many people get their brother's ghost coaching them during _Iknimaya_?"

_"Probably not very many," _Tommy answered dryly. _"How are you feeling? Do you think you've got it under control now?"_

Tsu'tey nodded. "I think so." He heard his mother's call from somewhere behind him and he twisted to look over his shoulder. Both of his parents were closing in on him, probably intending to give him some lessons and guard him until he returned to the others. "Tommy, have you ever visited Mom and Dad?"

_"Yeah, in their dreams. Sempul is hardest to communicate with."_

Tsu'tey wasn't surprised to hear that. Their father had never been a spiritually sensitive sort—though his time with the Na'vi had opened his mind quite a bit, according to Neytiri. "Then I should be able to tell them about this without freaking them out."

There seemed to be a shrug in Tommy's voice when he answered. _"That's up to you. I think under the circumstances, nobody would think much of you talking to yourself."_

Tsu'tey managed a smile. "Thanks for helping me through that, Tommy. I admit I froze up for a minute back there."

_"You're my brother. Besides, I need you to watch over Gracie and our baby. I wouldn't trust anyone else to do it."_

Tsu'tey sighed. Soon his parents would be too close for him to continue speaking with his brother's spirit without raising questions. "Tommy, I need to tell you while I have the chance. I love Gracie. I mean I love her the way you do. I'm attracted to her."

_"Yeah, I know. Don't feel bad. I…don't mind you two having a real relationship, Tsu'tey."_

Tsu'tey banked to the east and sighed. "That's really big of you, Tommy. I wish…I wish you were still here, so you could be with her the way you should have been."

_"I know, little brother. That's why I'm okay with you and Grace being together. I know you'll cherish her as much as I do, so don't be afraid to act on your feelings."_

Tsu'tey found Tommy's encouragement a little bewildering. "You aren't jealous at all?"

_"Of course I am," _scoffed the ghost, _"but what can I do? I'm dead and she's alive. I can't expect her to live her life single and raise our son or daughter alone. I can't expect you to be abstinent for the rest of your lives together, either. Just don't worry about me, okay?"_

To Tsu'tey, it sounded suspiciously like a goodbye. "You aren't going away, are you?"

Tommy hesitated. _"I'll be keeping an eye on everyone but I can't hang around watching the living all the time. It wears me out and it's too depressing. When I leave here, I'll be joining our ancestors in rest for a while but don't worry; I'm never far away."_

Tsu'tey swallowed. So, Tommy was wearing himself out trying to take care of him and Gracie. That was just like him. "You should say goodbye to Gracie, then."

_"I've already had this talk with her,"_ explained Tommy. _"If I try to speak with her more right now, I'm afraid I'll break. I'm exhausted and it's kind of upsetting."_

"I'm sorry," Tsu'tey said sincerely. Jake hollered a greeting to him and he forced a smile at him. He couldn't say anything more to his brother's spirit without his parents overhearing; they were too close.

Tommy evidently decided he couldn't hang around any longer, anyhow. _"Just remember what I said, Tsu'tey. If you and Grace aren't happy, I won't be happy. I think you've got everything handled for now, so I'm going to go. 'Till next time, little brother."_

Tsu'tey shut his eyes briefly. "Goodbye for now, Tommy." He only murmured the words to avoid any more funny looks from his parents, but his brother's presence was already gone.

* * *

Grace Augustine stood beside Tommy Sully as he watched his family from a distance. Tsu'tey and his parents had returned from the brief flight and Grace embraced the young man, congratulating him with pride lighting her beautiful features.

Tommy smiled and heaved a deep sigh. _"Maybe now, they can move on."_

Grace watched him thoughtfully before placing a blue, five-fingered hand on his shoulder in a matronly gesture of comfort. _"You did the right thing. Now the hard part is letting go yourself."_

Tommy nodded, his emotions surfacing as he thought of his unborn child and what it would have been like to hold it some day. _"Will it stop hurting soon?"_

Grace frowned in sympathy. _"In time. What people don't realize is the dead grieve too."_

_"Yeah._" He took another deep breath and reminded himself that his mate and brother were better off this way. He stumbled a little and shook his head to clear it. _"I'm worn out again."_

"You spent too much time socializing with your brother. Come on, kid. It's time to rest for a while."

Tommy gave his family one last, lingering glance before leaving for the spirit world with Dr. Augustine.

* * *

"Pilot, what's the ETA?" West looked out the window and tried to determine where they were. The clouds and mist obscured the view and flying through this area could be treacherous. The C-21 Dragon ship he rode in provided awesome firepower against anything that might be foolish enough to attack them, but it was rather bulky for navigating the Hallelujah mountains.

"Should be five minutes, General." The pilot reached overhead to adjust some switches. "Sir, what's the plan if we get a visual on the targets?"

"The plan is negotiation," answered West. "No shooting. I took this aircraft for defense, not a blood bath. I'm going to try to cut a deal with Sully and your orders are to standby until I say otherwise."

Beside him, Commissioner Archer was also peering out the window. She had come along for diplomatic reasons, to help procure a smooth exchange if Sully agreed to hear them out. "How can you be sure Corporal Sully and his mate will be here, General?"

"According to my sources, Jake Sully's remaining son is supposed to be going for his banshee today. They'll be here. We just have to make it in time to intercept."

Archer nodded in acceptance. "And you give your word that there will be _no_ violence?"

"That depends on Sully, Commissioner. Bear it in mind that you'll be putting yourself in some danger by going down with me to negotiate, if we convince him to listen to our terms. There's a possibility that you and I could make attractive hostages to use as bargaining chips. If Sully and his companions get hostile with us, there could be a conflict. I'm hoping I've got him pegged right and that won't happen, though."

Archer looked out the window again. "Let's hope your instincts are correct then, General. There's been more than enough bloodshed since our kind came to this moon."

* * *

"Mr. Selfridge, you have a superluminal call."

Parker looked up at the orderly with a frown. "What the hell would anyone be doing calling me from Earth?" They had been keeping him under medical observation since his breakdown and he spent most of his time in a comfy yet sterile little hospital room. Maybe his employers were contacting him to tell him he was fired and exiled to Pandora for the rest of his natural life. Why they would spend so much money on a personal call to tell him he's fired was beyond him, though.

The orderly shrugged. "It's none of my affair, Sir. I'm just here to escort you to the superluminal transmitter in this building."

Parker shook his head and sighed. "Whatever. Do me a favor and get me a cup of coffee on the way back."

"Yes Sir."

Parker got off the bed and went with the burly man, traversing the corridors of the medical building and passing through security doors separating the different sectors. They bypassed the lab wing and Parker peered through the small, reinforced window on the heavy metal door, wondering what the science department was up to these days. He saw a female avatar cross the hallway inside and she was wearing a lab coat. Figuring she must be one of the operatives permanently trapped in her avatar body, he shook his head. What kind of idiot would give up their humanity like that, besides Jake Sully?

"Sir?"

Parker looked up at the taller man escorting him, realizing he'd stopped to stare. "Don't get your boxers in a bunch. I'm coming."

The orderly's expression remained neutral. By now, they were all used to Selfridge's attitude. They eventually made it into the communications room and the orderly directed him to a private booth, where he could use the superluminal communication unit without anyone overhearing. Parker sat down and tapped the touch-screen to activate it.

"Parker Selfridge here. What's this about?"

A familiar, aged face appeared on the screen. "Hello, Administrator. How is your health these days?"

Selfridge scowled. "Let's drop the pleasantries and get down to business, Stone. What are you contacting me for?"

"The UN made a mistake and the RDA department is going to fix it."

"The RDA was disassembled," reminded Parker. "I might have had a nervous breakdown but I'm not out of it."

"By all appearances, yes," agreed Stone. "The citizens unanimously demanded it after that damning broadcast. Politics are complex, though. It would have been foolish to ignore public opinion and leave the company untouched and in control, but you must remember that the RDA _owned_ half the world's military and government branches. It's not that easy to get rid of a massive global power, Mr. Selfridge."

Parker stared blankly at the blinking light on the transmitter box next to the touch screen. "So you're saying the RDA is still in the seat of power?"

"Not exactly. The UN is in charge, but they couldn't banish us entirely. We still have a department and we're working covertly."

"Doing what, exactly?" Selfridge wouldn't have believed it if he didn't know first-hand how crafty the corporation could be.

"Earth economy is in an even sorrier state than you remember," answered Stone. "When I returned home, the cost of living was up by twice as much as it was before I left. People that used to be well off are impoverished now and the medications and cures being sent down from Pandora aren't doing much for starvation and pollution sickness."

"Yeah, that smog is a real bitch," Parker sneered. He almost remarked that leaving a few trees standing there and there might have done some good, but he refrained. The last thing he wanted to do was sound like a tree-hugger. Lately he found himself thinking more and more like a hippie and that bothered him.

"There are purifying facilities to remove pollutants from the air," continued Stone calmly, "but building and running these facilities is costly. Some of the surviving plant samples transported here from Pandora may prove useful for detoxification in the future, but we're still years away from cultivating them. The cleanest energy source available is unobtanium, but thanks to the peace treaty, we're running a bit short on that."

Selfridge began to get a sinking feeling of where this conversation was heading. "What about the synthetics and the Mars harvests? I thought the UN had it all figured out."

"It's true that the minerals from Mars and the synthetically produced materials are _almost_ as good as unobtanium, but the generation process is too slow and Mars doesn't have as much to harvest as they thought. We're struggling to keep up with global demands and it's a losing battle, Selfridge. Unobtanium is still needed here and the minute supplies the Na'vi allow the UN to harvest isn't enough. Once they've used what they need for the colony, Earth barely gets scraps."

Parker scratched his head. "So what do you want me to do about that? The natives would sooner shoot me than negotiate with me and in case you forgot, I'm wearing a pair of white jumpers now."

Stone smiled in his oily manner. "That's why you're particularly valuable. They think you're broken but I can see that you aren't. You've got the experience and the wit to help your home planet and your old department, Selfridge. We need someone to observe and report the goings-on there while we extend control further. We have operatives working for us already and there are more due to arrive on incoming ISV's."

Selfridge realized something, then. "That harvesting team...the one they've got locked up to stand trial...they're involved, aren't they?"

"That's right. It's a shame that didn't work out better. They were supposed to supply us with some emergency materials until the first step is complete. It seems they got reckless."

"You _think_? They shot Jake Sully's kid," Parker snapped. "Do you have any _idea_ what they could have started?"

Stone sobered and gave him a measuring look through the screen. "And Corporal Sully got them back pretty good, from what I understand. He murdered two good operatives and he's still on the loose. Are you turning into a sympathizer, Selfridge?"

Parker calmed himself down and shook his head. "No. I'm just being realistic. Do I have to remind you about what happened to send me home the first time?"

"Of course not," answered the other man. "There's still some speculation over how much of that was exaggerated, but given that there were other witnesses to confirm your story, caution is understandable. Jake Sully needs to be brought in and held indefinitely or disposed of. The man is too dangerous to our operation."

"You want to execute him?" Even Parker couldn't get on board with that.

"We want him out of the way," corrected Stone. "I'd personally rather see him behind bars than dead, but there are others who feel differently. He caused a lot of grief here on Earth, Selfridge. He damaged the company, cost hundreds of jobs and further damaged an already broken economy. Are you that surprised to hear that some people want him dead?"

Selfridge shrugged. "When you put it that way, no. So are you going to keep flushing money down the toilet on a long-winded call or are you going to tell me what exactly you want from me? I've got a wall to stare at."

"We just need you to be another pair of eyes for us," answered Stone. "To do that most efficiently, you need to recover your mental state...but not _too_ perfectly, you understand. We'd like you to maintain the appearance of a fragile state but you need to be able to move around and resume your duties, understand?"

Parker snorted. "Not a problem." He wouldn't need to _pretend_ to be psychologically fragile. Five nights out of seven, he woke up screaming. "What do I get out of this?"

"An early ticket home, if you play your cards right," answered Stone. "Plus a substantial raise in salary. You could retire comfortably when this is over."

Parker sucked his teeth in thought. "Hmm, interesting. So you want me to help sabotage UNEC from within so you can set up a new resource exchange, right? You plan on breaking the treaty?"

"No, actually." Stone smiled. "The treaty with the great clans on Australis will remain intact and we have no use for destroying UNEC. All we really need is time to set up a separate operation—on another continent."

"But there's a clause," reminded Selfridge. "You've got to negotiate with the clans on any other continent before you start harvesting there, too. Those peons at Hell's Gate made sure to plug that loophole."

"We understand that. Trust me, we have it all worked out. There won't be a need for negotiations but there _is_ a need to assign people we can trust to help carry this plan out. If this works, the RDA will be back in business and everyone will be better off for it."

"How are you going to do this without negotiating or breaking the treaty?" demanded Parker with a frown.

"All in due time, Mr. Selfridge. For now, all I need from you is a 'yes' or 'no'. Are you in or out?"

Parker looked down at the jumper that identified him as a psychosis patient. His mind swirled with possibilities and he had to struggle to keep a neutral expression. "I'm in."

"Wonderful," enthused Stone with a smile. "I knew you could be counted on."

"Good thing for you," Parker observed. "You'd be up shit creek by telling me all this if I couldn't be."

Stone smirked. "Oh, I wasn't worried about that possibility, Mr. Selfridge. I _did_ prepare for it, after all."

Parker felt a cold settle around his heart and his thoughts went to the orderly that had escorted him there. Not that it was uncommon for them to employ strongly built men to help with mentally unstable patients but there was something in the man's stance that Selfridge hadn't noticed until now—because he had no reason to. The guy was a covert operative, no doubt. He probably had instructions to dispose of him if he tried to tell anyone about Stone's proposal.

Selfridge didn't bother asking for confirmation of his suspicion. "It's going to be kind of hard to keep it quiet with all those people standing trial for illegal mining and attacking the Sully kid." Parker gave a smirk of his own.

"They don't know who employed them to do it," assured Stone. "The only man who knew directly who was employing them was killed by Corporal Sully. The rest couldn't tell UNEC if they wanted to."

"Sneaky," approved Parker. "So what's going to happen if they manage to round up Sully? You know UNEC's going to protect him."

Stone shrugged. "That isn't up to me. We've got agents on the inside and if it's decided that Sully needs to die, they'll take care of it regardless of what the UN wants." He revealed a hint of disquiet at the notion. "It would be a shame and a waste, in my opinion."

Parker refrained from grimacing, remembering that Stone used to have more than a casual interest in Jake Sully. "Uh, yeah. That would be too bad. Is there anything else?"

"I'll require a digital signature from you, stating that you agree to our contract. After that, you can resume staring at your wall for the day, if you like."

"Let's get it done, then." Parker waited for the other man to upload the contract file and he picked up the stylus connected to the monitor. He read over it carefully before he dutifully signed his name on the virtual document and wrote the date in. When he was finished, he tapped the return button to send it back. "There. Presto."

Stone's face appeared on the monitor again after he received the file and examined it. He gave Parker another oily smile. "That concludes our business today, Administrator. Good to have you on board."

Parker nodded and smiled without humor. "Sure. I'll do my part." The communication ended and Parker scowled. "Fucker. I'll do my part, all right."

He got out of the chair and opened the booth. The orderly was standing against the wall, watching him with opaque brown eyes. Parker refused to be intimidated and he eyed the bigger man dryly. "Just an old friend checking in on my health."

The orderly nodded. "I'll take you back to your room now, Mr. Selfridge." Something in his pocket beeped and he produced a flat, palm-sized electronic device. He looked at the glowing screen on the object and nodded in satisfaction. He glanced at Parker again before turning the device off and putting it away. He smiled at Selfridge, his mannerism growing warm. "Let's get that coffee you wanted, Sir. I'm sure your friend his happy to hear you're feeling better."

Parker knew the man had just been given some kind of message pertaining to the decision he'd just made. He was sure that if he had turned Stone down, he'd be getting escorted to his death right now instead of going for coffee.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Iknimaya_** = Perhaps the most dangerous step young Na'vi must take to become hunters, in which they must capture and bond with a wild mountain banshee.

**_Atokirina_** = Seed of the great tree; sacred to the Na'vi

**_'Itan_** = Son

**_Meresh'ti cau'pla _**= Banshee catcher, or "nothing to see"; a bola so-named because the technique used for capturing an ikran involves flicking the catcher in a way that causes it to wrap around an ikran's snout and eyes, temporarily blinding and muzzling it to give the hunter a chance to bond with it.

**_Tsmukan _**= Brother


	16. Chapter 16

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 16: Surrender

* * *

_**Author's note: EDIT: My apologies for failing to edit in the chapter breaks before uploading this chapter when I first published it. The site doesn't handle them the way it used to and it requires extra work, which slipped my mind. I've corrected the issue now. See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. I'd like to express my thanks to everyone that offered their sympathies for the loss of my friend. This chapter is dedicated to the memory of "Drac" Kelley.**_

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

"Are you sure you wouldn't rather ride with one of us?" Jake eyed Norm and Ni'nat doubtfully. The skies were overcast and it would take longer to traverse the jungle on direhorses. The storm brewing in the distance was likely to catch up to them before they made it back to Hometree.

"We're sure," Norm answered after glancing at his mate. "I think it would be good for the new hunters to be led home by their chieftain."

"I'm not _Olo'eyktan_ anymore," reminded Jake with a dry smirk.

Norm gave a nod in the direction of Tsu'tey, Emazu and the others. "Tell that to _them_. They still look up to you. It isn't going to be easy for Emazu to fill your shoes, Jake. Even _he_ doesn't feel like a real leader yet."

Jake frowned and turned to look at the young man. "He'll get used to it. He has to; it's in his blood. I'll help him."

Norm nodded in approval. "Then you ride with them to the village. Ni'nat and I will catch up and if it starts raining too hard, we can find shelter somewhere."

"What about Grace?" Neytiri asked, pointing out the young woman. She was chatting softly with Tsu'tey and the others, smiling with pride as she watched him. "Will she return with you or ride with us?"

"She should ride with you," answered Ni'nat. "The journey will go faster and you may reach home before the storm. I would not want our daughter to get ill from weather exposure."

Jake didn't want her to get a cold either and he nodded in understanding. Perhaps they were all being paranoid, but Gracie's situation wasn't exactly common. "We'll get her back safe at Hometree before the first drop hits the ground," he promised. "Neytiri and I can't stay for long after—"

Jake paused and tilted his head, flicking his ears. The others looked faintly puzzled, until they picked up on the sound that Jake's keen hearing caught first. "Gunships," Norm announced, eyes going wide. "We'd better get moving!"

"Now, hold on a second," Jake cautioned, "let's not send the kids into a panic, all right? We don't know if it's an enemy ship making that sound or not. For all we know, the Hell's Gate kids came to see how Tsu'tey's _Iknimaya _went and to congratulate him."

"Whoever it is, we should not remain out in the open," Ni'nat insisted.

Jake's ears flicked as he listened to the tiltrotor blades and tried to determine which direction it was coming from. "Let's get the kids and move behind the waterfall. If this comes to violence, I'll do something to distract them while you get the others to safety."

* * *

"Maybe they've already come and gone," Archer pondered as the Dragon circled around the floating islands. They had already checked the top of the range and startled about fifty banshees away in the process. Since their instruments weren't working properly in the flux vortex, they couldn't rely on motion detection or satellite images to help in their search.

"If they heard us coming, they've either gone into the forest or taken cover somewhere in the mountains," West announced with narrowed eyes. "They're not going to assume a fully armed UNEC Dragon ship is here for a chat. I get the feeling they're here somewhere."

"Then why did you choose to bring this monster?" Archer asked him, one brow lifted. "Added security notwithstanding, this vehicle may actually hinder our purpose."

West glanced at her but he held his tongue. She wasn't wrong. He had wanted a small crew to maintain during this mission, so that he could keep a better eye out on all of them. Going out in one ship with minimal personnel seemed like the best way to do that, but the necessary aircraft for his plan wasn't likely to inspire feelings of trust in Jake Sully. If he was there as suspected, he had a group of young people to look out for too. The general unfastened his safety belt and went into the cockpit to turn on the speaker system.

"Make three sweeps of this area and then go up a click," ordered West to the pilot and co-pilot. "I'm going to try and reason with our target. No matter what happens you do _not_ shoot unless I give the order, understood?"

"Yes, General," answered the pilot with a nod.

* * *

"This is General West. I'm not here for a conflict. I'm here to negotiate an agreement. To prove we don't mean any harm, I'll meet up with you somewhere of your choosing, unarmed with a diplomatic escort. I've ordered my men to stand down. Corporal Sully, I believe it's in your best interest to speak with us and hear our terms. Together we can work something out that will benefit everyone. Nobody needs to get hurt."

Jake looked at Neytiri and then at Norm, crouched down beside him in the shallow depression under the waterfall. The kids were huddled together in the back. Neytiri was shaking her head, watching him with dread-filled eyes. Norm looked uncertain.

"Jake, you cannot surrender," Neytiri said urgently, squeezing his bicep. "The Sky People lie when it suites them! You know this."

"I used to be one of them," he reminded her grimly.

"No longer," she argued. "You are Omaticaya now and they will treat you the way they have always treated Eywa's children!"

"She's got a good point, Jake." Norm peered through the narrow break in the waterfall at the gunship circling in the distance. "UNEC is Earth governed and a lot of their people used to be with the RDA, too. You're probably just another 'savage' to them, now. You know Earth's history when it comes to making deals with the indigenous."

"Sully, can you hear me? We could put an end to this right now. From one military man to another, I give you my word that nobody will try to take you by force. I just want to talk to you."

Jake listened to West's reasoning and he sighed. "Norm, I appreciate what you're saying and Neytiri, you've got every right to suspect these people. The truth is, I'm tired of running away. I'm not the only one affected by my actions, either. I'm tired of leaving my kids to worry if we're still alive. I'm tired of waking up in cold sweats, wondering if the next bullet is going to kill my mate. Savanna Thomas is in hiding because her parents are afraid of people from UNEC taking too much of an interest in her background. If I cooperate with this investigation, she may be able to go home again."

"Those are pretty big 'ifs', Jake," Norm said grimly. "Maybe life on the run isn't ideal but you could be setting yourself up for execution or life in prison, if you cooperate with these people. How do you think your family will cope with that?"

Jake looked at his son and the young woman that was carrying his other son's child in her womb. He shut his eyes and grimaced. "I think I'm just going to have to take the risk, Norm. I've got a gut feeling I can trust this guy West, at least enough to keep his men in line while we negotiate."

"But what about afterwards?" Norm demanded. "Maybe you _can_ trust General West but his authority only goes so far. Once he relinquishes custody of you, chances are he isn't going to have much say in how you're treated."

"I've already thought of that," answered Jake. "But there's still an investigation going on. As long as there's a case file open, I'll be safe. If it takes risking execution to keep my family from getting anymore caught up in this, that's fine."

"Jake, I cannot let you take the risk." Neytiri pleaded with her eyes and behind her, Tsu'tey was giving Jake a worried, suspicious look. He must have seen Jake's intentions in his expression because he pulled away from Grace and shook his head, preparing to approach.

"You all stay here," Jake demanded firmly, gently disengaging from Neytiri's grasp. "I've got to at least hear this guy out. If he's telling the truth, this is just a negotiation and I won't be obligated to go with him when its finished."

"Dad, no—"

"Trust me, Tsu'tey," interrupted Jake with a stern look. "This is _my_ decision and I've decided I want to at least check out my options, instead of your mother and I living like fugitives for the rest of our lives. You and Sylwanin deserve better from your parents and that baby Gracie's carrying should have at least one of us helping to raise it."

Neytiri wouldn't let go of his arm as Jake attempted to move out from behind the waterfall and get the aircraft's attention. He paused and gave her a pained smile, taking a moment to trace her features with his fingertips.

"Neytiri, only a coward would keep living this way. You've got to let me go."

"You are not a coward," she insisted. "You avenged our son! I will not let them take you!"

Jake cupped her face and kissed her trembling lips. "And as far as I'm concerned, I was justified for what I did. I knew there would be fallout though. That's why I didn't want you making any kill-shots, beautiful. I'm the only one they can arrest for 'murder' here and I'm going to make sure you go home with our son, all right?"

She shook her head. "No, it is _not_ all right! You are my mate."

"And I'll still be your mate even if I'm behind bars for a while," he assured her, forcing another little smile. "But one day they'll catch us. They've got the resources to keep up this manhunt until we're old and feeble, if they want to. I've thought long and hard about this and I'd rather give myself up than see you in chains."

"Uh, technically they don't use chains anymore," Norm reminded uncomfortably.

Jake gave him an annoyed look. "It was a metaphor. Cuffs, chains, whatever. The point is that eventually our bodies are going to fail us and we'll trip up. When that happens they'll take us and they won't have to negotiate our cooperation, got it?"

Norm nodded reluctantly and there were no more arguments forthcoming from him. Tsu'tey still shook his head but he had no further verbal arguments to offer. His eyes glittered suspiciously and he looked away, trying to compose himself. General West's amplified voice bounced off the drifting mountainsides as he again tried to coax Jake out of hiding. Jake kissed his mate once more and then he walked over to Tsu'tey.

"Listen to me," Jake urged the young man, who refused to look at him. "Tsu'tey, look at me."

The young hunter took a deep breath and obeyed. The unshed tears in his eyes were like a knife twisting in Jake's heart and he hugged Tsu'tey impulsively. "When Grace has that baby and you hold it for the first time, you'll understand better. I'm doing this for my family, Tsu'tey. I know I can count on you to hold it together while I'm gone. Maybe they'll just give me probation."

Tsu'tey snorted in an almost Tommy-like manner. "Probation for killing two UNEC military officers? Come on, _Sempul_. I'm not that gullible."

"Stranger things have happened," Jake insisted. "They started the hostilities and any clan leader would have done the same as me, if they had the opportunity. The point is, we aren't going to know what my options are until I've listened to what West has to say. If I don't like his terms then I'll walk away and no harm is done."

"What if they will not _let_ you walk away?" Emazu asked, having overheard some of it. He glared in the direction of the sounds the aircraft was making. "This man could be setting a trap for you, _Toruk Makto_."

Jake shrugged. "Yeah, he could be. I don't think he is, though."

"Why not?"

Jake was losing patience, partly because he didn't want to spend all day arguing with them and partly because their doubts were beginning to make him lose confidence. He took a step closer to Emazu and stared into his eyes. "Do you have _any_ idea what that gunship is capable of, kid? Standard tactical missiles fired from that thing could blow the side of this mountain off. If West wanted to flush us out he could start blasting away and eventually, we'd be forced to show ourselves or we'd get caught in the explosions. The man doesn't have to circle around shouting peace offerings. There's a whole _hell_ of a lot more that West and the military could have done to bring me in and none of it would have been pretty."

"They already shot your mate once," reminded Emazu, refusing to back down.

"They weren't aiming to hit us," Jake assured him. "The bullet ricocheted and hit Neytiri in the leg. Believe me, they had the chance for an open shot against me and they didn't take it. I used to be military and I trust this guy to at least keep part of his word."

"Your trust could be misplaced," warned Emazu. "You could be sacrificing yourself for nothing."

Jake saw the Dragon fly past on the left and he looked at it through the gap between the waterfall and the rocks. "This is what being a leader means, Emazu. Compromise. You do what you have to in order to protect your clan and family. Sometimes that means taking big risks so that your people can get to safety."

Emazu frowned and lowered his eyes. "The way Tommy did for his hunting party."

Jake nodded and laid a hand over his shoulder. "That's right. You'd be surprise how easy the choice is, when you have people counting on you to keep them safe. Being a leader is about more than throwing your weight around and intimidation. You've got it in you, Emazu. If you didn't, you wouldn't be _Olo'eyktan_. Just keep the clan safe. Focus on that and you won't go wrong."

Emazu nodded and looked Jake in the eye again. "I will do my best."

Jake patted him once more before turning to his son again. Gracie now stood beside Tsu'tey and she had one arm around his waist supportively. Jake smiled at her, glad she was so willingly available to comfort his son. Their relationship didn't have an ideal start but it seemed they were growing to sincerely love each other, which was a bonus. "Keep him out of trouble, Gracie."

"I'm not the one that needs to be watched over," Tsu'tey argued. "You get into more trouble than I do, Father."

Jake chuckled. "I can't argue with that. But try to stop worrying so much. Sometimes you've just got to have faith that everything will work out."

Tsu'tey looked as though he wanted to argue with that, but it was against his nature to be too disrespectful of either of his parents. He put a hand on Jake's arm and swallowed. "I hope you're right about this, _Sempul_." His eyes went to Neytiri, who seemed too pale. "I'll take care of _Sa'nok_. Just don't get killed."

"Wasn't planning on it," promised Jake. He turned to face Neytiri again and he took her hands in his. "You know I'm right. I've got to do this."

Her mouth pressed into a hard line of distress and she stared at him uncertainly. "If this man tries to harm you, I will kill him."

"I knew you'd say something like that."

* * *

"There...he's right down there." West pointed at the ledge where a familiar avatar stood, waving his arms to get their attention. He must have come out while they were circling around the other side of the mountain. His mate came up behind him and it looked like the two of them were arguing.

"Take us in closer and drop the ladders down," ordered West. "The commissioner might need some help climbing down."

"I can handle myself," Archer insisted.

West shrugged. "It's your call. Pilot, take us in."

The pilot complied and the crew in the cabin prepared to drop the ladders over the side. On the ledge below, Neytiri had her bow ready and she an arrow trained and ready on the gunship. It would have been amusing if her eyes weren't so fiercely determined. The look on her face said that if the humans tried anything funny, she would so some damage, one way or another. One couldn't dispute that the huntress meant business and it was impossible not to see her as a potential threat. West noticed the way the copilot's hand hovered over the weapon control panel and he gave the young man a grim, warning look and a shake of his head.

"The first person that engages in hostile activity without my expressed permission is going to face court martial for insubordination. Clear?"

The co-pilot drew his hand away hastily. "Crystal, General."

Satisfied that his orders would be followed, West returned his attention to the Na'vi figures on the mountain. Jake and Neytiri had climbed to a plateau closer to the top of the landmass, where there was room for West and Archer to climb down from the aircraft. The couple still appeared to be arguing and West thought he understood why when Jake tried to steer Neytiri back toward the ledge and she pushed him away angrily. Jake's woman refused to leave his side, no matter how much he begged her to.

Another man might have thought of ways to use Neytiri against Jake and force his cooperation, but West had no interest in manipulation or other underhanded tactics. He was there to make sure a fair compromise was worked out and to do what he could to keep Sully alive and healthy.

* * *

"Well now it's too late," Jake snapped peevishly, jerking his chin at the two humans climbing down from the massive gunship. "You better hope my instincts about West aren't wrong, because if anything happens to you—"

"That is how I feel about you!" Neytiri yelled, equally frustrated. "You cannot ask me to go, my Jake. You would not do the same!"

He looked at her helplessly for a moment before shaking his head in defeat and readying his own bow. They kept the weapons trained on the gunship as West and his female companion eased their way down onto the plateau. After helping the woman in the suit get her footing, West spoke over his transmitter and waved the Dragonship away. There was a moment's hesitation before the aircraft turned around and flew off, leaving the group to speak in private without the threat hovering over their heads.

West adjusted his cap and checked his exopack before approaching Jake and Neytiri. "They're unarmed," Jake assured Neytiri. "Lower your weapon."

"I don't trust them."

Jake gave her a look that was half exasperated and half loving. "Neytiri, if they wanted to shoot us they could have done it from the safety of their gunship. Just trust me."

She gave the humans one more mistrustful glance before following his lead and lowering her bow. "You know the mind of humans better then I do."

"I'll take that as a compliment." He took her hand once it was free and he held it with reassuring pressure. He studied West as the other man approached. There wasn't anything remarkable about him that Jake could see. He looked to be in his fifties, with stern brown eyes and white-streaked blond hair. Though he was probably close to retirement age, he kept himself in good shape and Jake imagined he wouldn't be easy to best in a fight—Na'vi strength advantages or no. He still couldn't shake the feeling that he knew him from somewhere.

"General," greeted Jake with a nod of respect. "Is it just a coincidence that you showed up here or do I need to search for a mole?"

"Sully," answered West with a nod of his own. He nodded at Neytiri next. "Ma'am. To answer the question, we've had people monitoring the frequencies. When I got the news that your son was coming here for his banshee, I decided not to pass up the opportunity to negotiate the terms of your surrender."

"I knew it," Jake smirked. "I _knew_ someone would hack into the transmissions."

"I've got a job to do and it was a means to an end," answered West. He gestured at the dark-haired, copper-skinned woman beside him. "This is Commissioner Archer. She represents the Cherokee nation back on Earth and she's here for diplomatic relations on Pandora. I brought her along as a witness to this discussion."

Jake nodded at the woman before raising his eyebrows at West. "What, did you think bringing along an tribal representative from Earth would make me a little more agreeable?"

"Not exactly," answered West, "Miss Archer insisted on coming."

"Consider me a babysitter of sorts," the woman said calmly. Her eyes settled on Jake and Neytiri evenly before going to West again. "I'm here as a liaison, to be sure the negotiations are fair and credible."

Jake examined her for a moment before turning to West again. "I think I like her. So why don't you tell me what your people want from me and I'll tell you whether to go to hell or not."

West didn't appear to take offense. "We want you to testify in court against the people that conducted illegal mining and played a part in your oldest son's demise. In return for your cooperation, arrangements will be made to ensure that you receive fair and lenient treatment."

"And what is 'fair' to Sky People?" Neytiri asked warily.

"For starters, any possibility of execution is waved," answered the general. "I can't guarantee a pardon. He _did_ kill two officers, instead of allowing our people to bring them in and deal with their punishment."

"So you're saying I'm probably going to have to do some time," guessed Jake.

"Until we can procure a better arrangement," agreed Archer before West could respond. "We can't go any further with it until we have your cooperation, Mr. Sully. You aren't likely to be charged with murder if you and your mate testify, along with your other son and anyone else who might have witnessed the event with your oldest son."

Jake instinctively moved in front of Neytiri. "I don't want my family involved in this. In fact, you won't get any cooperation out of me unless you can give me a binding guarantee that Neytiri goes free."

West and Archer looked at each other. "She's a key witness."

"But she didn't kill anyone," Jake insisted. "Your people had to have compared arrows in this investigation. All of Neytiri's shots were aimed to wound, not kill."

West nodded. "It's been confirmed that the first death occurred by grenade, the second and third by bullets. There was a positive ID on your fingerprints so your mate is more or less in the clear—except that she assisted you."

"She goes free or I don't come with you," Jake said firmly.

"My Jake—"

"No. I'm not letting you get thrown in prison, Neytiri. It would kill you." He squeezed her hand again and watched the humans narrowly. "Understand? Either my mate gets a full pardon or there's no deal."

West considered the proposal, his gaze flicking between Jake and Neytiri thoughtfully. "I think that can be arranged, but we still need her testimony in court, along with everyone else that was there when this started. All sides need to be represented, Sully. If not, it's going to be harder to procure your freedom."

Jake frowned at him. "_My_ freedom? Are you saying you want to get me pardoned?"

"Considering your circumstances, it might be possible," answered West. Beside him, Archer nodded in agreement. "But for that to happen, a case in your favor needs to be built."

"Your presence at the trial will demonstrate that you're willing to work with Earth authorities to resolve this matter, instead of implying guilt on your part."

"I'll look pretty guilty in a prison uniform and cuffs," Jake remarked dryly.

"You won't be wearing any restraints in court," explained Archer. "Honestly, you aren't going to be the typical prisoner, Mr. Sully."

"So what am I, a VIP guest?" Jake chuckled.

"Something like that, yes," answered Archer. "You're the clan leader that united the Na'vi on this continent and allegedly set the wildlife of Pandora against the RDA. To put it bluntly, UNEC would be foolish to allow anything to happen to you while in their custody. It would cause an uproar, and not just with the natives on this world. You inspired a lot of people on Earth and you're somewhat of a celebrity there."

Jake was a bit surprised—not by the fame, but by the news that he was supposedly admired by the citizens of Earth. "People really care that much about what happened here?"

"What went on here when the RDA was in charge largely affected Earth," said Archer. "People were furious to learn that the company was withholding valuable medicine and using tax dollars to commit atrocities against the natives. Not everyone on Earth supports attempted genocide, Mr. Sully. Of course, there are some who would see you dead for damaging the economy further by bringing down the RDA, but they seem to be the minority."

Jake grinned. "There's always someone pissed off at me somewhere."

"The important thing is, you've got more people supporting you than you realize," West told him. "What's it going to be, Corporal Sully? With your cooperation, we could bring this to a satisfying end for everyone. You could get your life back to normal."

"You can't promise that," Jake said with certainty, putting an arm around Neytiri's waist.

West nodded compliantly. "That's true. I _can't_ guarantee anything, but I can promise you our people are going to do whatever it takes to make sure you get a fair shake. This is your only chance to clear your name and end this without anymore bloodshed, Sully. There's only so much we can do without your help and I'd rather not spend the rest of my life and yours trying to hunt you down and bring you in by force."

"If you keep behaving like a criminal, that's how you'll be seen," added Archer softly.

Jake eyed the woman thoughtfully. Her dark eyes were intense and calmly sincere. He looked sidelong at his mate and thought of how much their kids needed at least _one of_ them close by. Sylwanin had seven years to go before she could even begin training for the rites of adulthood and she was going to need her mother when she started to become a woman.

"If I agree to this—"

"Jake, no!"

Jake gently shushed Neytiri, brushing his first two fingers over her lips. "Commissioner Archer is right. I've known this was coming and so did you, Neytiri. This is no kind of life for us to live and we've talked about this before. You have to trust me, okay?"

The barely veiled agony in her golden eyes made his heart clench, and her breath had quickened with anxiety. Jake's heart clenched and he took one of her hands and lifted it to his mouth to kiss the fingers. "Please let me do this. I've got to stop running and face up to this."

"You acted as a father avenging his son," Neytiri protested, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "The Sky People have no right to condemn you!"

"Maybe not, but the longer I live like a fugitive, the more I'm implying I'm guilty of something. I was hoping I could put this off until after Grace has the baby, but the sooner I get started clearing my name, the better. You understand why I've got to at least try, don't you?"

She parted her lips and hesitated. He was sure she was going to say that no, she didn't understand and she wouldn't allow him to surrender his freedom. Instead, she lowered her eyes and nodded, her shapely lips pulling into an unhappy frown. When she spoke, she used the Na'vi tongue and kept her voice low. West and Archer waited in respectful, polite silence. "How can you be sure you can trust them, my Jake?"

She raised her eyes again and gave West and Archer a mistrustful look. "How can you know they will not kill you as soon as you climb into their flying machine, or put you to death in front of their people as an example?"

"If they plan an official execution, they have to go through a legal process first," Jake tried to explain. He looked at West with a frown of his own, again wondering why he felt like he knew the man from somewhere other than Pandora. "My instincts tell me I can trust the General. Don't ask me why, but I have a gut feeling. Besides, West hasn't been anything but truthful with the People so far."

"That we know of," Neytiri sighed. Her expression softened and she traced Jake's features with her fingertips. "But you have been wanting this, I know. When the madness of grief faded, you chose this path and I know I cannot change your mind. If your heart says this is best, then I must support you. But Jake, I cannot bear the thought of losing you."

He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her briefly on the lips. "I'm going to be around for a long time and even if I've got to do it from a prison cell, I plan to be there for our family. What I need from you now is your trust and strength."

She closed her eyes and nodded. "Very well, my Jake. I will try."

He gave her a strained smile and released her, speaking English again as he regarded the waiting UNEC operatives. "If I agree to this, you've got to let my family visit me whenever they want and you've got to guarantee their safety when they do. I don't care if it takes a whole damned regiment; I've got to be able to see my little girl so she knows she still has a father."

"You have my word," West replied without hesitation. "Your family will have full clearance to come and go as they choose. I already took that into consideration and made arrangements."

Jake cocked his head to the side. "Sounds like you've got it all worked out. What will you do if I change my mind and decide not to come with you?"

"I didn't come here today to drag you in by force," answered West smoothly. "The purpose of this meeting is for negotiation and if a deal can't be made, I'll let you go. Next time I'll have no choice but to bring you in, with or without your consent."

Jake couldn't stand it anymore. "Why are you working so hard to help me, General? Not that I don't appreciate it, but I'm pretty sure you're not obligated to take such a personal interest in this."

West favored him with a rare smirk. "So you really don't remember."

Jake felt like he was on the verge of solving a mystery. "Remember _what_?"

"I owe you one, Sully." West glanced at the sky before adjusting his exopack a little bit. "Think back to the Venezuela conflict. You might remember finding a wounded Army Sergeant stuck in the middle of a firefight."

Jake tried to cast his memory back to those hellish days in Venezuela. Most of the events were a blur to him, with a few key moments standing out clearer than others. One such moment was when he felt the impact of the bullet piercing his spine. He'd been carrying someone flung over his shoulders, trying to get them to safety. He frowned in concentration and peered at West, the sense of familiarity growing stronger.

"There was a guy with a leg injury," Jake murmured, trying to recall details. "His people thought he was dead or something and they had to retreat. My regiment was part of the reinforcements that came to help and we got there first. There were bullets flying everywhere and I saw the guy moving, trying to crawl to cover."

West nodded. "That's right. You ran out into the hot zone to collect that soldier, even though your superior was yelling at you to stay under cover."

Jake felt a chill go up his spine. He hadn't had the chance to pay much attention to details but he did remember the man he helped was around ten years his senior. "It was you, wasn't it? I haven't thought about that day since…well, I try not to think of it much at all, to be honest."

"It was me," confessed the general. "You got me out of the line of fire but you took a bullet in the back in the process. I passed out from blood loss and when I came too, they told me the name of the marine that saved my ass. The last I heard about you was that you were crippled and living on vet benefits. Imagine my surprise when you showed up on that broadcast and ousted the RDA to the whole world."

Jake was floored. "Why didn't you ever say anything before?"

"I assumed you either didn't remember me or wanted to put the past behind you," answered West. "Venezuela was hell and I wasn't going to bring it up. My purpose here is to keep security tight and maintain peace, but I have the opportunity to repay you for helping me and that's what I intend to do."

"You don't owe me anything," Jake insisted. "It wasn't your fault that bullet hit me."

"Even so, you saved my life. If I can help give you back yours, I will."

"You really know this man from before you came here?" Neytiri asked in Na'vi.

Jake looked into West's eyes and nodded. "Yes. I remember him now. I spent so many years trying to forget that day and thinking back to it is always hard, but West was there. He couldn't know so much about it if it wasn't him and I remember his eyes. That was about the only feature I got a look at when I grabbed him and ran for it."

Neytiri looked at West again and her expression of doubt softened into faint hope. "Then you may be right, Jake."

He managed a smile for her. "I know I am." Turning his attention back to the humans, he gave a nod. "I'm ready to go with you. Let's get it over with."

* * *

She desperately wanted to go with him. Jake ordinarily wasn't bossy with her but this time, he barked an order in her face that left Neytiri too stunned to do anything but comply. The determined set of his jaw and the intensity in his eyes when he she tried to follow him to the hovering Dragon ship reminded her that Jake spent the better part of his life on Pandora as a clan leader, and it showed in his stance. She read the hidden message in his eyes when he told her not to make one more step to follow him and she understood why he was so adamantly against her riding with them to the UNEC base.

Jake didn't want her available to the humans. No matter what he said before, he didn't completely trust them yet and he was playing it cautious, keeping Neytiri out of their reach until he was sure they were sincere about their promises. He was only doing what any good mate would do; ensuring there was no danger to his family before proceeding.

The leader in her agreed with him, knowing that if the _Tawtute_ intended deceit, they could use her as a hostage to force Jake's cooperation. The mother and mate in her couldn't as easily accept Jake's rejection when she tried to board with him and she argued until he lost patience and put on his "drill Sergeant" guise. With great reluctance and a sickening ache in her chest and stomach, Neytiri backed off. She watched her beloved toruk rider go with the small humans to the ladder dropped down from the massive gunship. They didn't try to restrain him; he was free to change his mind at the last minute if he chose. Jake looked over his shoulder at Neytiri just as he reached the ladder and he gave her a solemn nod and a crooked little smile of encouragement, silently promising that everything was going to be all right. Satisfied, he climbed up and his two human companions went up after him.

Neytiri waited until her mate was almost to the top of the ladder before she turned away to look for the best place to call her ikran to her. She stayed out visual range of the gunship, wisely avoiding making a potential target of herself. Her ikran joined her beneath a large, concealing tree and he waited while Neytiri watched the human vessel carry her mate away. She placed a hand over her stomach and leaned against her mount's side, feeling an attack of nausea.

"Great Mother, please let my mate be right. Please don't take him from me."

* * *

Norm told the younger hunters to continue on to the village without them but they each refused, insisting on waiting with them to find out what would become of their former _Olo'eyktan_. Grace held Tsu'tey's hand in a vain effort to comfort him while the young man stood stiffly, waiting under a razorpalm tree for any sign of his parents. They had agreed to meet up with them here when they finished hearing what West had to say, but there were no guarantees. So far, there had been no sounds of gunfire or explosives, so the party could at least assume there wasn't a conflict.

"What if they surrendered?" suggested the huntress in the group of young people.

"They would not," answered Emazu sternly, crossing his arms over his chest. "Not without speaking to Normspellman and Tsu'tey first, at least."

"He's right," agreed Tsu'tey in a tense voice. "My parents wouldn't go with those people without saying goodbye first and leaving some kind of instructions. They must still be negotiating."

"Look, it's leaving," said the hunter beside Emazu, pointing up at the sky through the canopy. Indeed, the Dragon ship was flying away.

Grace looked at Tsu'tey hopefully. "Your parents should be meeting up with us soon, then. Like you said, they wouldn't leave without telling us and if the Dragon is going away without a fight, something must have gotten worked out."

Tsu'tey nodded and swallowed, keeping his attention divided between the path leading to the foot of the mountains and the sky. The direhorses snorted and danced restlessly, disturbed by the sound of the aircraft's rotors. Some of the animals had already left to return home but Norm and Ni'nat had the foresight to tether three of them by their leads, in case anyone failed _Iknimaya_ and needed to ride back on the ground with them. Ni'nat soothed the animals quickly and Emazu had to calm his new banshee.

The minutes ticked by and Tsu'tey mouthed prayers to Eywa and various gods from Earth as he waited for some sign of his parents. He heard his mother's call and the cry of her ikran eventually and he shared a relieved smile with Grace before hurrying to the clearing by the footpath. His relief was short lived. Neytiri landed by herself and there was no smile on her lips as she hopped off of her ikran and approached. Her eyes were opaque and determined, her mouth was set in a hard line and her stance was brittle—as if the wrong touch could make her shatter into a billion pieces.

Tsu'tey released Gracie's hand and hastened over the remaining distance to his mother. "_Sa'nok_? Where is Dad? Why isn't he with you?"

"He went with the _Tawtute_ in their Dragon," answered the _Tsahik_ softly. "He did it for us, son. Come. We must return home and decide what to do next."

Tsu'tey cast an alarmed look at the aircraft in the far distance—little more than a dot on the horizon now. He shook his head and started toward his ikran. "We have to follow! We've got to—"

"No," interrupted Neytiri, cutting him off bodily before he could get to his mount. "We will not follow."

"But Mother—"

"Listen to me," Neytiri said, her eyes sweeping everyone to indicate that they should all pay attention, "Jake does not wish to put anyone in danger. This was his choice. He will call us through the transmitter when he makes it safely to UNEC. Only when he tells us it is safe can we plan to go to him, Tsu'tey. Do not dishonor him by putting yourself at risk."

Tsu'tey struggled with his emotions, thinking only of how awful it would be to lose his father. He started to move past his mother, intending to disobey her for the first time since he was a toddler. Emazu blocked his path.

"Stand aside," Tsu'tey demanded. "_Olo'eyktan_ or not, you have no right to keep me from following my _Sempul_." His hands curled into fists and uncommon rage began to boil inside of him.

"Your mother wishes you not to follow him and she is still _Tsahik_," Emazu said evenly, not budging. "You will do as she says and return to Hometree with the rest of us."

Beyond the end of his tether, Tsu'tey shoved the taller male without even thinking about it and he tried to move past him. He distantly heard Grace call his name imploringly but his eyes and thoughts were fixed on the distant aircraft, taking his father away—perhaps forever. He had lost his brother and he hadn't done enough to try and save him. He couldn't make the same mistake with his _Sempu_.

He barely made it two steps before strong arms caught him and restrained him. Tsu'tey reacted out of instinct and tossed his head back, guessing his assailant's face was there. His hunch was right and he heard a male voice blurt a surprised protest as the back of his skull collided with his attacker's nose. The hold on him loosened momentarily, but Tsu'tey didn't break free of the restraint for long. The other male was determined to stop him and now someone else was lending their efforts into restraining him as well.

"Let me go!" Tsu'tey yelled, struggling valiantly against his two captors.

"My purpose it to protect my clan," grunted Emazu stubbornly, "that means you, even if I don't like you!"

An older male's face appeared before Tsu'tey's eyes and he was so enraged, he didn't recognize it until Dr. Spellman spoke in paternal tones. "Let it go, Tsu'tey. This isn't going to help anyone and your family needs that infinite patience of yours more than ever, now."

Tsu'tey's struggles lessened and the haze of anxiety crippling his reason began to fade. He saw his mother watching him with concern. He saw Grace wringing her hands anxiously and her mother was rubbing her shoulder soothingly. He looked at Norm again, breathing heavily as he tried to calm down. He wasn't used to getting this worked up. Tsu'tey was usually the one trying to calm other people down.

"Trust your father," Norm advised softly, seeing that he was settling down. "Jake knows what he's doing. I really think he's doing the right thing, Tsu'tey."

"But you're the one who's always worried about UNEC trying something," protested Tsu'tey, still struggling a little against Emazu and Norm's hold on him. "How can you tell me to just leave it?"

Norm sighed and lowered his gaze. "It's true, I'm always warning everyone not to trust people from Earth too deeply. After seeing what corporate and military people from my home world are capable of, I'm always worried. Maybe I'm like Chicken Little, yelling about the sky falling all the time. That doesn't mean every single soldier or suit is going to be corrupted."

Their hold slowly relaxed on him as Tsu'tey stopped struggling and the young man rubbed his wrist, wincing. Norm had a stronger grip than he realized. "Then what happens now? I'm supposed to just wait and see if they kill my father or not?"

Norm shook his head. "You know, I'm always calling your Dad a moron but the truth is, he isn't. His instincts aren't usually wrong and when it comes to military, he _knows_ what he's talking about. If he trusts General West then I'm inclined to trust him too. That doesn't mean other people at UNEC are clean but at least we know someone powerful is on his side."

Tsu'tey shut his eyes and drew a shuddering breath. "Do you really think it's going to be okay, Uncle Norm?"

Norm patted his arm. "You know I won't make promises I can't keep, but I'm positive we'll hear from your Dad by tonight. As far as everything being all right, I can't see the future. I think things are going to get better and I think West is going to try and help, but I'm not a mind reader either."

"You really aren't good at pep talks," sighed Tsu'tey.

Norm smiled. "No, I've always been a little too negative for that. Sorry."

Tsu'tey turned to Emazu and he winced when he saw the blood dripping from the young chieftain's nose. Emazu was wiping at it awkwardly, looking a bit disoriented. Tsu'tey pushed back the swell of inappropriate pride that tried to engulf him. Bloodying his clan leader's nose when the man was just trying to help him really wasn't something to be proud of. With a little start, he realized that Emazu really _had_ tried to help him. He recalled the other man's words and he stood there blinking at him stupidly.

"You are not as poor a fighter as I guessed," Emazu conceded between sniffs, looking at Tsu'tey with a bit of amazement.

"I'm sorry," Tsu'tey said, feeling a rush of guilt that stamped out any joy he might have felt over the other male's misfortune.

"Pinch the bridge of your nose between your thumb and forefinger," Norm directed. "It's not broken, but there's going to be some bruising. Don't tilt your head back until the bleeding stops."

Emazu nodded and complied, wincing a little at the pressure.

"We should go," Neytiri urged. "Jake will be calling Norm's transmitter and I want to make it home in time to answer."

"Don't worry, I have it with me." Norm opened one of the little pouches on his harness and produced the compact piece of communication technology. "I pretty much keep one on me all the time."

Neytiri relaxed. "Thank you."

Norm shrugged. "Don't thank me for being too paranoid to go without one. Neytiri, do you have any idea how they knew we were here? Was it just a coincidence or did they find some way to track you and Jake?"

Neytiri's eyes went to the transmitter in Norm's hands. "They used _that_. They listened in and they knew Tsu'tey was taming his ikran today. They came hoping we would be here to watch over our son."

Norm's expression froze for a second. "Oh...oh, of course. Jake knew they might try something like that. I...we should get going."

Tsu'tey's worry over Jake was temporarily lessened by concern for Norm. "Is everything all right, Uncle Norm?"

Norm took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah, I'm just thinking too hard. Let's get everyone mounted up. Even though I've got the transmitter on me I don't want to wait too long to get back home."

Tsu'tey reached out for his mother. "_Sa'nu_?"

Neytiri came into his arms and she shut her eyes as he held her. "I don't feel like flying back," she confessed.

Tsu'tey understood. His stomach was churning from the anxiety and he thought he might throw up if he tried going back airborne. "I don't want to fly right now either. My ikran will follow us, won't he?"

"Yes, have no fear," Ni'nat soothed. "You and your mother can ride double on the spare _pa'li_ we have. Grace can ride with me."

"I like that idea," agreed Tsu'tey.

He separated from Neytiri long enough to go to his ikran and pat the beast on the neck. He murmured affectionately to the animal, admiring him before giving him leave to fly. Neytiri was already mounted on the third horse and she offered a hand down to Tsu'tey when he went to join her. He took it and climbed up behind her, glancing over at his mate as he did so. Grace was already on Ni'nat's horse with her and Norm was speaking to Emazu and the other two initiates.

"Lean on me if you're tired, _Sa'nu_," offered Tsu'tey softly. He could feel the stress radiating from his mother and thought Neytiri didn't speak a word of complaint, he knew she was hanging on by a thread. Norm was right; his family needed him to hold it together.

* * *

Once the ikran riders took to the air and they began the journey back to Hometree, Norm fell behind and struggled with his own feelings of guilt. Jake was on his way to prison partly because of him. Norm knew Jake's concerns over frequency tapping were valid. He had stupidly thought that it would be safe enough to mention Tsu'tey in his brief conversation with E'quath. By saying that Jake's son would be amongst the group of potential hunters, Norm had inadvertently tipped off UNEC as to where they'd be most likely to find Jake and Neytiri.

His friend could be heading to his death because of Norm's carelessness. No amount of attempted pep talks or faith in Jake's cunning could erase the very real threat. Now all Norm could do was pray that Jake's judgment was right. If his slip-up cost his friend's life, he'd never forgive himself.

Norm kept his brooding thoughts to himself, abiding by the same advice he'd given to Tsu'tey. Self-blame and what-ifs weren't going to help anyone right now.

* * *

Neytiri was more than happy to be with her daughter again, without having to keep an eye on the sky or an ear listening for chopper blades. Sylwanin was so obviously delighted to see her coming into the village with the others, the little girl tripped on her own feet in her haste to run to her. Neytiri knelt down and gathered her daughter close as Sylwanin ran into her arms. She fought tears of mingled joy and sadness as she rocked the little girl and inhaled her fresh scent.

"Where's _Sempu_?"

Neytiri grimaced in pain at the question and she held the girl at arm's length. "Sylwanin, your _Sempul_ cannot be with us right now."

Sylwanin paled. "He...is he okay?"

Neytiri quickly tried to correct the situation, realizing she had just given her daughter the mistaken impression that Jake was dead. "Yes, little one. He is alive and unharmed. He's gone with the humans from UNEC, to testify against the people that took Tommy's life. He may be a prisoner for many years but General West has promised to keep him safe."

The news didn't help Sylwanin's mood. She began to cry. "So I can't see him again?"

Tsu'tey came up behind Neytiri and upon hearing his sister say that, he bent down and looked her in the eye. "Don't panic. As soon as they make it to the base, Father is going to call us on the transmitter. He's going to be fine and we'll be allowed to visit him, okay?"

"But he's going to be a prisoner forever?"

Neytiri stepped in and she stroked her daughter's hair. "Men like your father are never truly prisoners. It could be many years before he can return to the village and live with us but your _Sempul_ is always free inside, where it counts. We must be brave for him, Sylwanin."

The child sniffed and nodded, hugging her mother around the neck. Neytiri embraced her and she looked up at Tsu'tey, who had straightened back up with a sigh. She nodded at him and mouthed her thanks for his part in helping her deal with this.

* * *

People stared at Jake as he walked through the compound under guard, between Archer and West. They hadn't cuffed him or otherwise restrained him in any way, so he could just imagine the thoughts going through people's heads. He passed a few kids on the street on the way to the containment facility and he waved at them and winked as they stared. To them, he must look like some wild Na'vi chieftain visiting on some diplomatic mission. A little girl shyly waved back and the boy next to her grinned. Jake chuckled, feeling his spirits pick up. A man scowled at him and he favored him with a wave and a grin too.

"Don't get too cocky," warned West in an undertone as they crossed the pathway leading into the detainment center. "Some people don't have a charitable opinion of you. It's not smart to provoke them."

Jake shrugged. "What do they expect to see? A broken fugitive? It's like Miss Archer says; it's all in the attitude."

"That isn't _exactly_ what I said," amended the Commissioner, "but I suppose you have the gist of it."

Jake chuckled and waved at another curious citizen. "I feel like a movie star."

West shook his head but a hint of a smile curved one corner of his mouth. "Once we get your file work done you can contact your family and make your arrangements for their visits. There might be a few kinks to work out but I think we can put together a satisfactory arrangement."

Jake sobered and nodded. "Please tell me Selfridge isn't going to be involved in any of this."

West and Archer glanced at each other. "Parker Selfridge is currently on vacation. Whether he'll get involved in this process later on isn't up to either of us."

Jake sighed. "Great."

Archer looked up at him with a tiny smirk. "If it's any comfort Mr. Sully, I think he wants even less to do with you than you do with him."

Jake smirked back. "Let's keep it that way."

* * *

True to his word, Jake contacted them through Norm's frequency as soon as he was allowed to. He spoke with everyone in his family to assure them that he was safe and unharmed and then he shared a three-way communication with Norm and Neytiri to decide what the best course of action would be. Everyone in Tommy's hunting party on that fateful day was going to need to testify in a human court at UNEC headquarters. The party guilty of illegal mining activities were going to have their say as well, but by the sounds of it there was already enough evidence against them to render any pleas of innocence moot.

Because Jake was still considered a citizen of Earth, he was at least partially subject to UNEC laws. Apparently, someone wanted to accuse him of treason—though his actions against the RDA couldn't be interpreted as direct actions against official Earth government. The situation was quite complex.

When Norm asked what would have happened if Jake had been born and raised Na'vi, Jake told him that he still would have needed to testify that his actions weren't committed with the intent of breaking the peace treaty, but as the evidence showed the humans were guilty of aggression first, he likely would have been released afterwards. As it stood, his actions were under question not as a Na'vi man avenging his son, but as a citizen of Earth and a former soldier.

It wasn't even about Na'vi laws versus Earth laws; it was about a registered citizen and former marine breaking his vows to his government and taking the law into his own hand. At least, those were the charges being brought up against Jake. Norm thought they were bogus and the only reason Jake stood accused of them was because of the damage he did to the RDA. Otherwise, UNEC would have rounded up everyone at Hell's Gate and put _them_ on trial for defection and treason as well.

Norm could practically smell the stench of greed and revenge as he discussed the issue with Jake and Neytiri. It made him feel sick and he truly hoped that Jake was under close guard...for his own safety.

* * *

A couple of days later, the news of Jake's surrender made it to the Ikran village and Tom began to make arrangements. First, he had to explain what was going on to his family.

"They did _what_?" Karyu was clearly outraged and beside her, Kato looked stunned. Savanna listened with a frown of worry but kept her thoughts to herself.

Tom kept his tone calm and even. "Lower your voice. There's no need to advertise this to the whole village."

"But...they _can't_ arrest Uncle Jake," protested Kato.

Tom's patience was beginning to wane. "They can and they did. You keep forgetting where he and I both came from and besides, nobody has free rein to go around killing any human that pisses them off, understand?" His gaze immediately fell on his daughter and Karyu spread her hands.

"I don't know why you're looking at _me_. I never killed anyone."

Tom heaved a sigh and looked at his mate. "I think I'm going to leave the rest up to you while I make plans for our trip to Hell's Gate."

"We're going to Hell's Gate?" Karyu perked to attention.

"We have to. Savanna's parents want her to come home, now that UNEC isn't sending so many people back and forth for the investigation. With Jake in their custody they don't have reason to keep tabs on Hell's Gate."

Karyu looked at her friend and Savanna drooped. Kato put an arm around the hybrid, treating her as a treasure he didn't want to share. Karyu also put an arm around Savanna and she gazed at Tom and Tanhi expectantly.

"Kato and I are adults now."

Tom gave a nod of acquiescence. "Yes, that's true."

"So we can stay at Hell's Gate with Savanna as long as we want," finished Karyu with confidence.

"You have duties to your people," reminded Tanhi sternly, her eyes on the young huntress. "You will be leader of this clan some day, daughter. You have lessons to learn in how to serve your brothers and sisters best."

"Yes, but I can learn some of them just as well at Hell's Gate," insisted Karyu with a challenging look at her mother. "You say patience is important. Being around a bunch of intolerant jerks can help me learn that in a big way, Mother."

"What are you talking about?" Tanhi frowned.

"She means some of the people at home," sighed Savanna with a good-natured little smile at the female twin. "Most of the humans and avatars on base aren't as polite as your people, _Olo'eyktan_."

Having never witnessed the depth of prejudice Savanna was treated to at home, Tanhi looked doubtful. She turned to her mate for answers. "Is this youthful exaggeration or truth, Tom?"

Tom looked at the teens and grimaced. "Truth, I'm afraid. Tanhi, I know the kids can make mountains out of molehills sometimes but they aren't lying about the harassment Savanna goes through. The kids at Hell's Gate aren't as polite as the ones here."

"Where are their parents?" demanded the chieftess, gesturing toward Savanna. "Why do they not punish these spiteful children for their behavior?"

Tom cleared his throat and leaned closer to whisper something for Tanhi's ears only. "Are we forgetting we used to have issues with Kato courting Savanna ourselves?"

Tanhi stared at him like he sprouted a second head. "Who is this 'we' you refer to? You are only one man and I don't remember you ever saying—"

Tom chortled a laugh before he could stop himself and he waved the kids away as he regained control of himself. When they reluctantly left him alone with his mate, he explained his meaning to her. "I was talking about you, Star. You weren't very happy about the possibility of Kato mating with Savanna, not long ago. Have you forgotten?"

Tanhi flushed a little and lowered her eyes. She shrugged her slim shoulders. "I was thinking as a Na'vi mother, wanting what I thought was best for our son. Then I remembered I fell in love with Dreamwalker and had offspring with him. I changed my mind."

Tom smiled and he caressed the graceful line of her spine. "Will you feel that way if our daughter doesn't choose a Na'vi man as her mate?"

Tanhi stiffened. "She must be more selective."

Tom dropped his hand and frowned at her. "Why?"

Tanhi looked up at him with troubled yellow eyes and she worried her pouty lower lip with her teeth. "Tradition has been broken so much, my Tom. I am responsible for much of it. Kato's choice in mates does no real harm to the clan, but Karyu...she must bring us back to our roots."

Tom took a step back and stared at her. "Just when I think you're opening your mind, you say things like that."

"Like what?" demanded the chieftess. "Our daughter must do what is best for her people! How is that a bad thing?"

"Because it puts her needs on the back burner," answered Tom readily, angry for Karyu's sake. "Because she's got as much right to be with whomever she loves as anyone else in this clan!"

"And what will that do to our people, Tom?" Tanhi gestured at the path leading into the village, where the kids had gone. "What happens when too much _Tawtute_ influence destroys our way of life?"

Tom hesitated and took a deep breath. "Am I destroying your way of life, Tanhi?"

She appeared flustered. "N-no."

"But I'm wearing human clothes," reminded Tom as he plucked at the t-shirt covering his chest. "I've got my trailer sitting outside the village, full of human technology. I've saved the lives of Ikran people stricken with diseases that Na'vi medicine couldn't heal. Our own son wouldn't be here now, if it weren't for _Tawtute_ influence. Have you considered _any_ of that, Tanhi?"

"This is different," she insisted. "Some things must go back to the way they were!"

Tom compressed his lips and turned away. "I knew you had trust issues when it comes to humans, but I told myself you weren't a bigot. You talk about how shameful the prejudice against Savanna is but in the end, you _still_ have a purist agenda."

She took offense at his comment, understanding well enough what it meant. "I have an obligation to my people."

Tom turned to face her again. He stared into her eyes and shook his head. "You have an obligation to _our daughter_. When we brought our children into this world, we swore to do whatever it takes to keep them healthy, happy and safe. That means supporting _both_ their choices in mates. Karyu may not pick someone we approve of but that's not going to change what sort of leader she'll become some day. If she's meant to be a great chieftess then she's going to do so, whether she's mated to a Na'vi, avatar, human or _teylu_."

Lacking the feel for Earth humor, Tanhi failed to detect the facetiousness in the final sentence. "If our daughter mates with a _teylu_ then you can be certain she is not fit in the mind to be _Olo'eyktan_."

Tom's angry expression softened, despite his efforts to remain offended. "That was just sarcasm. My point is that as her mother, the only thing you should really care about when it comes to her choice of mates is whether he's good to her or not. I understand how important the clan's culture is but _you_ need to understand that Karyu isn't going to jeopardize that, no matter who she ends up with. In case you haven't noticed, she's exactly like you when it comes to devotion to her people."

Tanhi deflated and looked toward the path leading into the village. "Yes. I know. She is very much like me at her age. That worries me."

Feeling like he was getting somewhere, Tom approached her and laid gentle hands on her shoulders. "Why?"

Tanhi looked up at the evening sky, her eyes reflecting the fading orange glow of the sunset. "Because I was very rebellious."

"Gee, I'm shocked."

Tanhi poked him, frowning with annoyance. "Your sarcasm is misplaced. I was sure I knew everything, Tom. I did not listen to my elders, did not respect the advice of the _Tsahik_. I made many mistakes because I thought I needed no guidance. Karyu must do better than that."

Tom refused to allow his sympathy for his mate overcome his concern for his daughter's future. "You managed to do all right. Look at you now, Tanhi. Look at how your people look up to you. Everyone makes mistakes and everyone needs the chance to grow. You can't expect Karyu to meet expectations you couldn't meet yourself. It isn't reasonable or fair. At any rate, she hasn't chosen a mate yet so there's no sense in worrying about who she's going to end up with."

"Then why did you mention it?"

Tom thought of the way Karyu acted around Baxter Howell the other day. "Because someday sooner or later, she's going to become a woman in every sense of the word and she'll be seeking out the mate that suits her best. If her choice is influenced by fear of your disapproval, she could make the _wrong_ choice for herself. I know it doesn't happen often but do you really want your daughter trying to form a life bond with an incompatible man, just to please you and the council? I hear it's really unpleasant when _tsahaylu_ goes wrong."

Tanhi rubbed her arms and frowned. "I...do not want that for her."

Tom stepped closer to her and put his arms around her. "Just loosen the reins a little. You know that beneath all of her bluster and sarcasm, Karyu is as devoted to this clan as can be. She may not get along with most of them but she really does love her people. Trust her to balance what's best for her with what's best for the tribe. She's smart enough to find a way."

She leaned into his embrace and nodded with a sigh, offering no further arguments. Tom was a little surprised by his victory, but he could tell she was tired. Had she been at full strength, they could have argued about this for hours. Tanhi worked too hard for her people at times—just like he worked too hard on his research. The upheavals that kept happening with their kin to the southwest didn't help ease the strain, either. Tom slipped his fingers under her chin and tilted her head back for a kiss.

"We aren't going to be traveling until morning," he murmured against her lips. "Why don't you join me in the trailer tonight?"

She relaxed against him and reciprocated the soft kisses. "Yes. I would like that, my Tom."

* * *

"My daughter is coming home today."

Baxter paused his dribbling of the basketball and beside him, Harris paused his actions as well. "Yeah? How long has she been away now, a couple of months?" She hadn't been on base when he woke from his coma so he knew it had to be longer than a month.

"More than that," answered the computer tech with a sigh. "It's been almost four now. We sent her away as soon as we found out that UNEC was conducting the investigation."

Howell empathized. If he had a daughter as unique as Savanna, he wouldn't want to take the risk of the wrong people getting too interested in her either—no matter how small that risk might be. "I'll bet she's missed you."

"I'm sure she has," agreed Sebastian. "But I honestly think she's growing to enjoy life with the Na'vi more than life here with us. They may not all welcome her with open arms but they aren't deliberately cruel to her, the way the people her age here are."

"Poor kid," sighed Harris. "Sometimes I think humans just have assholism ingrained in them."

Sebastian raised his eyebrows. "'_Assholism'_? Is that even a word?"

"Let's make it one," Baxter suggested with a grin. "I think it describes the way some people think it's okay to be prejudiced dickwads."

"Afflicted with acute assholism," pondered Sebastian thoughtfully, scratching his chin. "It _does_ sound appropriate, doesn't it?"

Harris laughed. "I think so. When is Savanna supposed to get here?"

"Anytime within the next hour, actually." Sebastian checked his watch. "Kath is decorating the house to welcome her back. She's even more excited than I am."

"I never would have thought of your wife as the sort to do something like that," confessed Howell. "Katherine always seems so professional and grounded."

"She's missed her daughter." Sebastian shrugged. "Motherhood softened her up a bit. I'm fortunate being a father didn't turn me into a complete bloody fool."

Baxter grinned. "How do you know it didn't?"

"Touché."

"Well, let's get the game going again," suggested Harris. "I've only got an hour before I go back on duty."

* * *

"I'll bet I can find my parents working in the lab building," Savanna guessed once the twins' family got settled into the avatar cabin. "I'm going to head that way."

"We'll come with you," offered Kato. "There's something I want to ask your father about anyhow."

Savanna looked up at him suspiciously as he and Karyu joined her. "What could you have to ask my Dad about?"

Kato shrugged evasively, ignoring the curious looks he was getting from his girlfriend and sister. "It's nothing major. Just something between men."

Karyu rolled her eyes. "Could you be any more patronizing?"

"How is it any more patronizing for me to want a guy to guy talk than for you and the girls to go off together and gossip about men or sex or whatever you talk about?"

Savanna smiled and lowered her eyes. "He has a pretty good point. We don't ever invite the boys when we have our 'girl talk'."

Karyu wanted to argue with that, but she had nothing. She snorted and gave her brother a rueful look. "You win this round."

"Go me."

Karyu thumped him with her fingers. "Don't get smug." She saw her father poke his head out of the main entrance to the cabin and she waved at him and hollered that they were going to track down Sav's parents. He nodded and went back inside.

The three teenagers walked through the compound, passing by all of the avatar exercise yards and the native garden. Karyu noticed that there were some human-sized hurtles on the obstacle course and she wondered when they decided to put those out. It made sense, though. Even if they had to wear their exopacks to do it, why shouldn't the human operatives get some outdoor exercise with their avatar associates?

It must be awful to be cooped up indoors or stuck under that big dome in an artificial environment. They had done their best to make the bio-dome a nice place to live, planting trees imported from the few places on Earth they still grew, as well as Pandoran plant life that could adapt to and thrive in the bio-dome's atmosphere. There were parks, a stream winding through the outer edges and a clear view of the sky through the dome. According to what she'd heard about the state Earth was in, the bio-dome was probably a nicer place for the humans to live than their home planet.

Still, the carefully landscaped parks couldn't compare to the wild landscape of Pandora. It was really no wonder so many of the humans preferred to go outside under the open sky to get their sunshine and exercise. In fact, there were a few of the human soldiers out now, running the obstacle course alongside a couple of the avatar operatives. Karyu had no way of telling which of those avatars were being controlled by a human in a pod, which were permanent transfer subjects and which were offspring of permanent avatars.

Her heart did a little flip when she glanced at one of the male avatars because for a moment, she thought his eyes flashed green. Karyu blinked and realized it was just a trick of the sunlight. The man wasn't Howell—he didn't even look like him. His hair was simply styled in a similar manner. He was shirtless, in a pair of track pants. She took a moment to observe the play of muscles in his torso as he ran and she had to admit that avatar males were put together nicely. Not that Na'vi males weren't, but there was something about the thicker, more defined muscles in an avatar's chest, abs, arms and shoulders that drew her attention. With a bit of annoyance, Karyu realized that she was probably going to end up sharing her mother's weakness for avatar men.

"Are you going to at least give me a hint about what you want to speak with Papa about?"

Karyu took her attention away from the exercising Hell's Gate residents and she smirked when she saw the way Sav was giving her brother doe eyes. Predictably, Kato visibly weakened in response and he looked as though he might tell her what she wanted to know, but he firmed his jaw at the last minute and shook his head.

"Maybe I'll tell you later. This is something I really want to say to him in private."

Now Karyu was curious as well. She watched her brother suspiciously, running different scenarios and possibilities through her head. Her first thought was that he and Savanna had mated and Kato wanted to come clean about it, but she thought if that were the case, Sav would know about it. He caught her peering at him and he raised his eyebrows, silently asking her what her problem was.

"Whatever you're up to, we'll figure it out eventually," promised Karyu.

"I'm not up to something. Damn, can't a guy have a private talk with another guy without some girl thinking we're trying to take over the world?"

"Usually when two men get together to 'discuss' something, it involves some woman's future," observed Karyu shrewdly.

There it was: a barely perceptible flinch and a slight shrinking of the pupils. Savanna didn't seem to notice it but Karyu knew her twin like she knew herself. She was on the right track. She heard the sound of male laughter and the thump of a basketball bouncing against the pavement but she paid no attention to it.

"Just what are you planning for our little Savanna, brother of mine?"

Savanna looked at him with interest. "Is she right? Is there something you want to say to my father about me, Kato?"

He gave her a disarming smile—the sort that usually made Savanna go fluttery and gooey. Karyu silently willed her friend not to fall for it but alas, the hybrid's expression went from suspicious to adoring and enamored in two seconds flat.

"You know I'd tell you if it had anything to do with you," Kato assured her. He leaned over to give her a brief kiss on the mouth.

Savanna gave in, rewarding him with a sweet, giddy little smile. "Okay. I guess it's only fair that men have their private talks too."

"Except these men are a whole generation apart in age, they have nothing in common, one of them is your father and the other is your boyfriend." Karyu arched a brow. "Don't you find it just a _little_ suspicious that my brother wants to talk to the man alone?"

"Mind your own business, nosey," grumbled Kato warningly. "I don't give you the third degree every time you take off to chat with my girlfriend, but all logic and self-preservation says I should."

Savanna giggled and looped an arm through Karyu's. "She doesn't talk bad about you...much."

"Don't lie," Karyu said dryly. "I talk bad about him all the time; but it's nothing I don't already say to his face."

Kato parted his lips for a comeback but he stopped suddenly and pointed at the outdoor basketball court. "Hey, there's your Dad, Savanna. I didn't know he played basketball."

The young women looked to see Sebastian having what appeared to be a grand time, shooting hoops with two bigger avatars. His shorter height didn't seem to be putting him at much of a disadvantage, but then he kept himself in better shape than people expected of a computer whiz. He and one of the other avatars both wore sleeveless shirts in the mid-day heat.

"Hey, isn't that Corporal Howell?" Savanna gestured at the avatar on Sebastian's left, who had just scored a basket. He was bare-chested and he wore a pair of green cargo shorts and black tennis shoes. A pair of shades covered his eyes, but there was no mistaking the attractive bone structure of his face. His ID tags hung around his neck on a ball chain, flashing in the sun and drawing Karyu's eyes to his chest.

"Um..." Karyu forgot what she was going to say. She was mesmerized by the way the metal tags bounced against his pecs with his motions. The way the pecs themselves flexed and relaxed as he caught the ball and dribbled it was pretty fascinating too. The sparkle of perspiration on his skin certainly added a nice sheen, highlighting the muscle definition in his naked torso. Yes, avatar men had nice physiques and now that she saw more of his body, she concluded that Baxter Howell was a top-ranking specimen of manhood. His stripe and spot pattern was pleasing to the eye as well, complimenting the angles and curves of his body.

"Sis? Is the sun getting to you?" Kato put a concerned hand on her shoulder, thinking the hotter climate and lack of shade was making her sick.

Karyu gave a little start and her face burned with humiliation. Eywa, she'd practically ravished the man with her gaze! "I'm fine. I was just trying to figure out who that other man is with them. Harris, isn't it?"

"Yes, that's Sergeant Harris," confirmed Savanna. "Let's go talk to them. Papa! I'm here!" She jogged over to the basketball court, waving enthusiastically. The three men stopped their game and Sebastian smiled broadly at her and held his arms out. He stopped just as she was about to embrace her, though.

"Wait, I'm all sweaty," Sebastian said reluctantly. "I wouldn't want to soil your clothes, sweetheart."

Savanna waved it away. "I don't care about that! I haven't seen you in a month." She hugged him tight despite his weak protests and Sebastian laughed and returned the embrace, lifting her a little in his enthusiasm.

"God I've missed you," he confessed, kissing her on the cheek before setting her back on her feet. "But where are my manners? Hello Kato and Karyu. How have you both been?"

Karyu forced a smile, trying to keep her eyes _off_ Howell—who was regarding her with a smile of recognition and irony. "Hi Mr. Thomas. We've been okay, I guess. It's our family in Omaticaya territory that are having a hard time."

Sebastian's smile faded and he sighed. "Yes, we've all heard the news. It's a terrible shame and everyone is hoping for the best. However, if Corporal Sully feels this is the best course of action, we shouldn't criticize it. Will they allow your family visitation or are they going to restrict that to only his mate and children?"

"They're still working that out," answered Kato, "but father says he thinks they'll let us visit, since he's Uncle Jake's brother and all."

"Well, let's hope you don't run into any issues. It's bad enough that he has to spend time in prison at all." Sebastian gestured at his companions. "You both remember Sergeant Harris and Corporal Howell, don't you?"

"Of course." Karyu favored Harris with a little smile. "Hi Mr. Harris."

Her gaze went to Baxter, who had propped his shades on his head to regard her with his vivid green eyes. She stiffened, feeling a familiar sense of panic. She gave him a curt nod and acknowledged him almost derisively. "Avatar."

Baxter's eyebrows went up and the poor man looked understandably confused. "Uh...right. Well guys, I'm going to go hit the showers. See you later." He gave her one last puzzled look before walking away.

Karyu watched him and her eyes swept over his strong shoulders and back. Her head was filled with unwanted images of him naked in a small tiled space with water spraying all over him. The others were watching her with expressions ranging from concerned to confused. She wiped at her forehead and quickly thought up an escape plan. "I need to eat something. It was good seeing you again, Mr. Thomas. Bye."

With that said, she turned back in the direction of the gardens and walked away as fast as she could without outright running. When she turned down the path and got out of sight, she breathed a sigh of relief and she took a moment to lean against the side of the avatar recreation building. She covered her eyes with a hand and took a few steadying breaths.

The question in her mind formed on her lips unbidden and she whispered it to no one, more shaken by her thoughts and reactions than she cared to admit. "What the hell was _that?_"

* * *

Kato stared after his retreating sister until she was out of sight. He saw the look on her face and he knew it very well. He smirked, guessing that soon he'd have his opportunity to say: "_I told you so_."

"Excuse me, did I miss something?" Harris asked, breaking the silence. "What did Bax do to make her so hostile?"

"Yes, she did seem unreasonably angry with him," agreed Sebastian with a frown. He looked at Kato. "I can't imagine Corporal Howell deliberately being rude to a lady. Did he make some social error with your sister when he visited your village on his last assignment?"

Kato shook his head, fighting his smile with difficulty. "No, he didn't do anything wrong. I don't think anger is Karyu's problem."

"Then what is it?" Harris pressed.

Savanna intervened before Kato could say anything else. "It's the heat. It's a lot warmer here this time of year than it is at the eastern seashore. Plus, we've all been traveling since before the sun came up. I'm sure Karyu just needs rest. She probably didn't mean anything by it."

Kato looked at his girlfriend and she gave him a warning expression that told him he'd better keep his mouth shut and agree with her excuse. He shrugged. "Yeah, that's got to be it. Mr. Thomas, can I talk to you alone for a few minutes? I know your daughter just got in but I promise it won't take long."

Sebastian looked between Kato and Savanna. "Well, I do need to clean up before going home. Savanna, why don't you go to the unit and wait for us? Your mother should be there and I know she's anxious to see you again."

Savanna perked up. "Okay Papa. We'll see you in a while. I can get my bags from the avatar cabin later." She squeezed Kato's hand chastely, gave her father a kiss on the cheek and took off.

"I'd better go home and get cleaned up too," Harris announced, taking his queue. "Maybe I'll see you around, Kato."

Kato waved at him. "See you later."

Once they were alone, Sebastian started walking toward the recreation building and he motioned to Kato. "So walk with me and tell me what's on your mind, Kato."

The young man fell into step beside Sebastian and even though the avatar was smaller than him, Kato swallowed nervously. Size wasn't always a measure of strength or skill and he'd seen how accurate Sebastian was with a gun. Besides that, he had the feeling that nobody was ever comfortable around a girlfriend's watchful father. Something about that paternal protectiveness made even the most civilized men intimidating.

"I want your blessing." There, he said it.

Sebastian's footsteps slowed and he frowned up at him. "Beg pardon?"

Kato swore inwardly. He'd assumed the other man would know what he was talking about. He had to stop doing that. People weren't mind readers. "I mean with Savanna. Some day soon, I want to ask her to be my mate. I know it's the polite thing to do to ask the father's blessing first, so that's what I'm doing."

Sebastian stopped walking and stared at him as if suspecting a joke. "Young man, if this is your idea of a prank—"

"It isn't," Kato hastily corrected. "I mean it. I love your daughter and I want to do what's right. I know I can be reckless and I'm not always as respectful to you as I should be, but I'm learning how to be more responsible. Human culture puts a lot of importance in communication between the father of a woman and her potential mate, doesn't it?"

Sebastian compressed his lips briefly and then politely covered his mouth with his hand, coughing softly into it. "Er...in a bygone era, it _was_ customary in many Earth cultures for a young woman's suitor to ask permission of her father before requesting her hand in marriage. That practice went out of style before my great-great-great-great grandfather was born, however. These days, a parent's approval of a union generally isn't necessary...mores the pity."

"Oh." Kato wasn't sure how to proceed, now. He'd based his knowledge on old movies he watched on his father's computer or with his friends when he visited Hell's Gate. "But you're old fashioned, aren't you?"

Sebastian shrugged. "Some would accuse me of it, yes. I'm not primitive, however. As much as I hate it, I know very well that my daughter has every right to choose who she marries...or in your case, who she mates with. Once she's eighteen, her mother and I have no say in what she does with her life."

"Does that mean you approve or disapprove?" Kato was getting frustrated.

Sebastian looked him up and down quietly for a moment before answering. "I suspect that if my daughter agrees to it, you'll become her mate whether I approve or not."

Kato lowered his eyes and shrugged. "You aren't wrong about that, Sir. Like I said, I love her."

"So you say," sighed the older man. "Well, far be it from me to tell anyone what they feel. The truth is, I don't like you as my daughter's boyfriend."

Kato felt like he'd been punched in the face. He struggled not to show how much the comment hurt him and he nodded. "I...that's your right."

Sebastian smiled then, his eyes warming on the hunter. "However, I _do_ like you as a person, Kato." When Kato looked at him with surprised confusion, he explained further. "If fortune smiles on you, someday you'll learn this simple truth about fatherhood: no father _ever_ 'likes' his daughter's love interest. Not until he's proven himself to be everything she ever dreamed and more, understand?"

"I think so."

"That doesn't mean I dislike who you are," Sebastian went on, patting him solicitously on the arm. "It just means that until the day you show me you're sincere, I can't help but see you as a potential threat to Savanna's happiness. The fact that you came to me asking for my approval makes me believe that when that day comes, I'll be happy to welcome you as my son-in-law."

Kato breathed more easily and his knees felt weak. "You have _no idea_ what a relief it is to hear that," he admitted candidly. "For a minute I thought you just hated me and were going to tell me to get out of Savanna's life."

Sebastian chuckled. "I must admit, I did intend to give you a little fright. I'm being completely honest with you, though. I think as you are now, you're too wild and inexperienced to make a good husband—er...mate—for my daughter. How soon do you intend to carry this through?"

"Oh, I was going to wait," assured Kato. "I know she needs to finish school and I've got my own education to finish, even though I don't go to a classroom to learn like she does. I want to _ask_ her soon but I know we need to wait until we're older before we commit. I just wanted to see how you felt about it before I ask her."

"Is my blessing really so important to you, Kato?" Sebastian continued walking and the younger man walked with him. "What about Katherine? Don't you care if she approves?"

"I'm going to ask her too. I just wanted to ask you first because I've seen how protective my Dad can be of Karyu and I thought you might be the same way about Savanna. If one of you were going to shoot me I think you'd do it first, sir."

Sebastian's lips twitched and this time, he failed to cover his mouth and hide his amusement behind a cough. "I...see. You don't know my wife very well, then." He laughed heartily then, shaking his head. "Well, why don't you busy yourself in the recreation room while I shower and then we can join the ladies together at my home."

Kato was relieved to have it over with. "All right."

* * *

Karyu found that her mother was missing when she returned to the cabin. Tom was there alone and he was finishing up with rolling his personal belongings up into the protective hide he kept them in. He looked up at her from his position on the floor when she came in and he frowned when he saw the anxious look on her face.

"Karyu, is everything okay?"

No, everything _wasn't_ okay and she needed a woman to talk to. She needed her mother. "Where is _Sa'nok_?"

Tom nodded in greeting at one of the avatar operatives that passed him on the way to her bunk to retire her remote body for the evening. "Your mother is getting our tent ready, just outside the perimeter. She doesn't want to spend the night sleeping in the cabin. We're going to make a vegetable stew for dinner if you're hungry."

Despite her excuse from earlier, the last thing on Karyu's mind was food. "I'll have some but I think Kato might spend the night at the Thomas' house."

Tom didn't say anything about that—possibly because Kato had spent the night there before. "Well, it looks like it will be just us three...unless you'd rather spend the night at Savanna's place too?"

"We're staying the weekend, right?"

When Tom nodded, Karyu decided to let her brother have Sav to himself for the night. "I'll wait. I don't sleep well in human beds and couches, anyway. I might take a bath in here before I join you and mother." She usually slept in a cot inside the avatar cabin when she visited, but tonight she thought having nothing but a mat between her body and the firm earth might help clear her head and reconnect with Eywa.

Tom regarded her suspiciously. "Is everything all right? You haven't even mentioned Dustin. I expected at least one of you to go looking for him by now."

"I'll look for him tomorrow. I'm just tired." Karyu reconsidered her plan to talk to her mother about the unwelcome thoughts and desires raging through her. Confessing them to Tanhi might lead to questions about who those feelings were aimed at. She wasn't even sure what they meant yet and she knew her mother hoped for her to choose someone from the clan as her mate someday.

Tom nodded. "Remember what I said. You can talk to me about anything, all right?"

She felt a guilty blush threaten and she walked past him as casually as she could before he could see the traitorous flush spreading over her cheeks. "I know that, _Sempul_. I'm sure I'll feel better after a bath and supper."

* * *

"How does he _always_ know?" fumed the young woman as she watched the tub fill with cool water. Her fingers worked the smaller braids in her hair free with practiced efficiency as she waited. She never took her baths hot when she enjoyed the plumbing at Hell's Gate. Used to bathing in cool springs and cave pools, it felt strange to sit and stew in hot water. She sat on the edge of the tub and dipped her hand into the rising water, testing the temperature.

"Dad has some kind of spider sense, like a comic book hero," she grumbled, "only instead of detecting danger, he detects my issues. That's just great. My Dad can read me like a book. Who wants _that_?"

She kept muttering to herself about the problem even though there was an odd sense of comfort in knowing her father was so in tune with her. She winced as she untwined a tangled braid and she almost welcomed the pain in her scalp. If only it weren't so embarrassing to talk to him about what she was dealing with. She couldn't talk to her mother...not without risking a lecture on how it was her duty to choose her mate wisely.

"What _am_ I dealing with? I don't even know for sure! Maybe it's just because of the vision." However, she had begun to notice other males. Not as much as she noticed Baxter but she definitely had more appreciation for the male form than before.

Her thoughts inevitably caused her mind to paint pictures of the particular male in question and her focus strayed. That body...he was as sleek and deft as a viper-wolf, yet as strong as a—

—She then realized that the water level was much too high and the little emergency drain under the faucet was taking in too much liquid too fast. With a little gasp of alarm, Karyu hastily pushed both "hot" and "cold" buttons to the "off" setting and clicked the plug lift to let some of the water drain. Grimacing at the waste, she sighed. Well, it wasn't like she used plumbing every day and it wasn't like Hell's Gate didn't use filtered rainwater for non-drinking plumbing. The sky would refill what she wasted, sooner or later.

Karyu removed her bow, weapon harness, necklace and all trinkets before loosening and tugging down her loincloth. She shook her hair back from her small breasts and combed her fingers through the loose strands before kicking her loincloth garment away. She balanced on one foot to delicately hover a leg over the water and drop her toes in to test it. Satisfied with the temperature, she climbed into the tub and scooted her bottom down, so that she could lay her head back and pickle for a while.

The lodge light hanging down from the ceiling was a soft, muted yellow but it was still too bright to suit her. She shut her eyes and tried to clear her mind, allowing her muscles to relax as much as possible. The image of Baxter Howell kept floating into her thoughts like an insidious pest; refusing to let her forget how nice his body was underneath the layers of clothes he usually wore.

She opened her eyes again and glared up at the ceiling with annoyance. Even in nothing but shorts and a pair of shoes, he'd _still_ been wearing more than the average Na'vi. The sight of the male body was no stranger to her and she'd seen photos of fully nude human men before. The sight of Howell in shorts shouldn't be driving her to distraction like this.

Karyu cleared her throat, forced the image out of her head and lifted her right leg out of the water, straightening it up and watching the droplets roll down the cyan-striped skin. She wiggled her toes and bent her knee again, dropping the leg back down. She reached for the soap and sniffed it curiously before deciding it was acceptable to use. She ducked under the water and scrubbed her hair a bit before emerging again. She grabbed the jar of plant extracts she had brought for this purpose and she scooped out some of the creamy substance with her fingers before setting it back down again. She worked the native shampoo through her hair thoroughly, scrubbing her scalp as she went.

Her stupid brain went back to thoughts of Baxter Howell, of course. Somehow, she began to imagine what it would be like if it were _his _fingers kneading her scalp and working the extracts through her hair. She closed her eyes and tried to think of something else. After ducking under again to rinse her hair out, she began to lather her body with the soap. When her slick hands glided over her breasts, she again caught a flash of inappropriate fantasy. She imagined that her slim, graceful little hands were replaced by a pair of big and masculine ones...possibly rougher in texture but gentle nonetheless. She could feel his breath against her ear and hear his voice murmuring seductive things to her.

"Keep thinking of me, Karyu. The more you think of it, the more you're going to want it and sooner or later, you'll want to ride me until you break my fucking pelvis."

Karyu's eyes popped open and she swore vilely, the words tumbling out in a jumble of confused lust and annoyance. "Goddammit-all-to-hell-and-back-again!"

She took another deep breath and began to scrub, trying to wash away the memory of a dimpled smile, toned abs, strong shoulders and of course, beautiful green eyes.

* * *

He flashes that smile at her, his eyes lighting up with friendly warmth. The sun shines down on him from above, slanting through the canopy. He holds a hand out to her invitingly, daring her to come with him.

"Come on. I promise I won't get us lost."

She looks around in confusion. "Where are we?"

"Don't you know? Just outside your village. About where you kicked me in the balls when I met you."

She ducks her head and fights a smile. "Oh, there."

"Are you coming?" He smiles engagingly at her.

She blinks and meets his eyes with her own. "Not yet. Can you change that for me?" She places her hand in his larger one and returns his teasing smile.

He chuckles and pulls her closer. "I'd really like to try. You aren't going to hit me again, are you?"

She rises on her tiptoes and rubs his bare shoulders possessively. She catches his lower lip in her teeth and gently tugs, making playful growling sounds.

"That depends on whether you're a good boy or not, Baxter."

He growls in response and puts his arms around her slender frame, lifting her against his body. "So you want me to take you right here? Isn't there some kind of paint I've got to put on or something?"

She tilts her head back, displaying the graceful column of her throat. One leg lifts and bends and she rubs a silky-smooth inner thigh against his hip. A breeze has wafted through the jungle, making her braids flutter and causing the beads to clink charmingly.

"You're already an adult. You don't need to be painted for this. I just want you to give it to me, Howler."

His breath quickens and he begins to lower her to the ground. "Whatever you say. God, you're so sexy." He kisses her plush lips hard as he lays her down and starts removing their clothing.

_"Howell, can you hear me?"_

He kisses her throat hungrily and slides his palm along her thigh. "So soft," he groans. "I hear you, baby."

_"You're needed."_

"Yeah, I'm going to give it to you." He struggles with the puny barrier of her loincloth, finding it unreasonably difficult to remove. "Not long now."

She nibbles his ear and he pauses, eyes rolling with pleasure. Her teasing actions change suddenly and he winces as the pressure on his ear becomes painful. "Ow. That's a little rough, kitten."

_"I'm not your kitten. You seriously need a woman, Bax."_

* * *

Harsh reality flooded back to him at that moment when he realized the voice was in no way feminine. It was very masculine, in fact. He wasn't feeling Karyu Sully's little white teeth nibbling his ear; he was feeling someone's thumb and finger pinching the lobe hard enough to hurt. His eyes popped open and he looked up at Ellis.

"What the _hell_, man?" Baxter gathered the covers around him and sat bolt upright, rudely jarred from his fantasy. "What are you doing in my room?"

Darren cocked his head and gave him a semi-concerned look. "I've heard you howl before but the shrieking is new. It's morning. You were supposed to be in group by 07:30 hours and your alarm's going off."

Baxter scrubbed at his eyes and kept his spare pillow over his lap, all too aware of the boner he was sporting. "What time is it now?"

"08:03 hours," answered Ellis. "You're still a heavy sleeper, Howell. I got security to let me in so I could check on you."

Baxter was properly mortified. Ellis had informed him that his privacy depended on his ability to function properly. He'd made it clear that as his friend and commanding officer, he would be keeping a close eye on him until he felt he was fully recovered. To make matters worse, he came in checking on him while Baxter was in the middle of a wet dream starring a girl that was quite possibly still a minor.

"Was I talking in my sleep?"

_~Oh god, please say no.~_

Ellis nodded. "Yes, a little. I think you need to get out more, Bax."

Howell plopped back into a prone position and rolled, groaning into the pillow. "Top, I can explain that."

"There's nothing to explain." Ellis sounded somewhat amused. "Jesus, give yourself a break, Howell. You're a twenty year old man trying to adjust after being in a coma for seventeen years. You've got your needs and images of women in magazines and videos can only do so much to fulfill that. I know you're still getting over Jill but maybe it's time for you to start getting some female company...even if it's just platonic."

"What, are you a shrink now?" Baxter's tone was a lot more casual than he felt. His heart was pounding and he was just glad he hadn't blurted Karyu's name in front of Darren.

"No, but I can tell you're lonely," answered the other man without hesitation.

Baxter looked at him and he tried to deny it. He ended up lowering his eyes and sighing. "I can't relate to anyone these days. It feels like everyone's either light years ahead of me or too far behind. Who knew things could change so much in seventeen years, eh?"

"I know." Darren patted him on the shoulder before getting off the edge of the bed and standing up. "I know you'll just whine and bitch if I try to give you some time off—"

"Damned straight."

"Let me finish. What I'm going to do instead is assign you to bodyguard duty for Dr. Patel and General Chacón. They're going to be attending Jake Sully's trials as character witnesses on his behalf."

"I thought it was _Lieutenant_ Chacón," puzzled Baxter.

"That's what she wants us to call her," agreed Ellis," but officially she's our general. I don't think I need to tell you how important the safety of her and Dr. Patel are to this base, Howler. I want to assign you to the guard team because I trust you, but if you don't think you're up for it you need to let me know now."

Baxter slapped the other man's offered hand. "You _know_ I'm up for it...though I'm not sure Mama Trudy needs anyone's protection."

Ellis smiled. "That's what I wanted to hear. It's too late for your therapy so you might as well sleep in. I'll leave you in peace until I get further details."

"I'm awake now," Baxter covered a yawn. "All I need is a cold shower and I'll be ready for anything you need me to do."

"I suppose I could use a little help with the rounds, for now," agreed Ellis.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Tawtute_** = Sky People

**_Teylu_ **= Beetle grub


	17. Chapter 17

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 17: Impulse

* * *

_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. WARNING: this chapter contains a (hetrosexual) graphic sexual scene (end of chapter). There will never be any detailed same-sex romantic scenes in this fanfiction, so those who have an aversion to such things have no need to panic. **_

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

The twins convinced Tom and Tanhi to stay after the weekend. Since they couldn't order Karyu and Kato to return to the village with them, they chose to agree with their suggestion and stay through the week. It was difficult for them both to adjust to their children having adult status, but at least Tanhi had _some_ authority over them as their chieftess. Poor Tom was utterly powerless and it was a rude awakening to know they didn't have to obey him any longer.

"I may need you to abuse your leadership status for me some time," Tom informed his mate Sunday evening as they lay down to prepare for sleep together.

Tanhi threw a leg over his thighs and kissed his bare chest before laying her cheek against it. "Why?"

"Because I've got no authority over our son and daughter anymore," he answered with a sigh. "It just hit me for the first time. I can't make them do a thing, even if I think it'll save their lives."

Tanhi caressed the stripes on his torso with her fingertips and she smiled faintly. "I may grant your favor, if you please me enough."

Tom grinned and looked down his chest at the crown of her head. Her lips were caressing his clavicle and her hands were exploring him all over. His body began to respond of its own accord and he was happy to comply with her demands. "Some might call this sexual harassment."

Her tongue traced a nipple, making it pebble. "What would you call it?"

He ran his tongue over his teeth and purred. "I'd call it an offer I can't refuse."

Tanhi chuckled low in her throat as he urged her on top of him and the couple temporarily forgot their concerns in the pleasure of one another.

* * *

The next day at school, Dustin decided to tell Andrew that he'd come out to his parents. He waited until lunchtime and once they got seated at a table that was still empty, he confessed.

"You did _what_?" Andrew hissed the question and dropped his fork, shooting a look around to be sure nobody in the cafeteria overheard Dustin's soft admission. "Are you crazy?"

"No, I'm not crazy," corrected the darker boy patiently. "What I _am_ is tired of hiding it. Aren't you? Don't you wish we wouldn't have to be so careful in public?"

"There's a good reason for that," argued the blond in a wary undertone. "In case you haven't noticed, we have some pretty intolerant jerks in this school. Hell, some of the adults aren't much better than our classmates!"

"I only told my parents," reasoned Dustin, understanding his boyfriend's concerns. "They aren't going to broadcast it all over the colony. Ma said it's up to you and I if and when we come out of the closet openly."

"Well, you can come out all you want." Andrew opened his bottle of juice and glanced at Dustin with pensive blue eyes. "I'm staying right here in that closet."

Dustin found the comment hurtful. "I understand your not wanting to 'come out' right now, but don't you think when we're older—"

"No. Humanity's come a long way but we've still got homophobes and racists infecting our numbers and _some _of them are fucking dangerous."

"I'm not going to hide for the rest of my life," Dustin murmured, holding the other teen's gaze with his own. "You shouldn't have to either. We're not hurting anybody."

Andrew forked up a bite of lasagna and smirked before putting it in his mouth and chewing. "Yeah? Try telling _them_ that. You can't reason with bigots and bullies, Dusty. The only thing they understand is an ass whooping."

"So you're suggesting we just beat up everyone that has homophobic issues?" Dustin raised his eyebrows. "How would that help, exactly?"

"I'm not saying it would," answered the other boy with a shrug, "but they won't listen to reason and all some of them understand is violence. We either lay low or we spend our lives fighting off attackers, either verbally or physically. You told your parents not to tell mine, right?"

Dustin sighed. "Yes, but I really didn't need to. They aren't the gossiping sort and as far as they're concerned, it's your business when and if you tell Joyce and Allen."

"'Joyce and Allen'," repeated Andrew dryly. "You sound all grown-up, calling my folks by their first names."

"That's what they told me to call them," reminded Dustin. "I really don't think you have anything to worry about if you decide to tell them the truth."

"That's your opinion," muttered Andrew. "Have you told Savanna yet?"

"No. She hasn't been around for me to tell. I plan to talk to her about it later today after school."

"Better make sure she keeps it to herself," Andrew warned.

Dustin huffed in annoyance. "Do you want to just end this now? If it's that horrible to you, there's no point in keeping it up."

Andy stopped eating and gave him a pained look. "I didn't say that. Look, you dropped this bomb on me and I'm trying to deal with it, okay? I'm not as adaptable as you are. I need time to get used to things, remember?"

Dustin thought back to their first kiss—which Andrew initiated. It was unexpected and it happened while they were in the middle of playing a video game. "Yeah, telling me you thought I was a girl wasn't that smooth."

Andrew shrugged and a rare, faint blush darkened his cheeks. "So I panicked. But that's just proof that I need more time to adjust than you do. Don't take it the wrong way, man."

Dustin considered him quietly for a moment and he sighed, deciding he wasn't willing to give up their relationship over Andy's very reasonable fear of violent homophobes. "I'm not going to pressure you. You're right; if there's one thing I've learned, it's that you need to do things at your own pace."

"Good, now can we stop talking about this before someone eavesdrops?" Andrew cast another nervous look around.

"All right," sighed Dustin. He spotted Savanna in line for a tray and he perked up, calling out to her. She turned at the sound of his voice and she smiled brightly, waving at he and Andrew. Dustin pointed to the chair next to him to indicate that he was saving it for her and she nodded.

"I wonder what it's like, living in the wilds with a Na'vi tribe," Andrew pondered as he also waved at the girl. "Think she's changed much?"

Dustin was about to answer when one of the avatar girls from the volleyball team stopped on her way past Savanna to dump her food tray over her head. Dustin and Andrew both stood up and yelled in protest, while Savanna wiped bits of lasagna and sauce from her face with a shocked expression. The girl responsible gave the hybrid a superior look and put her hand on her hip, looking around with a grin while her peers—both avatar and human—laughed.

"Oops. I didn't see the little nothing there." She smirked, confident that her greater height would deter any retaliation that a human might have received in her place.

Sheri came to Savanna's defense. She stepped between Sav and the aggressor, standing an inch or so taller than the other avatar girl. "Leave her alone, Amy." She looked around for a teacher or guard.

"Oh look; Sheri plain and tall has something to say to me." Amy sneered, marring the beauty of her admittedly attractive features. "Would any of your other misfit friends like to chime in?"

Savanna ushered her friend out of the way. "Don't worry, Sheri. I've got this."

Amy gave Savanna a nasty smile as the smaller girl stepped up. "You can't throw me in the trash like you did Doug that day, you little freak."

"Maybe not, but I've learned some other things," Savanna assured her. "Back off before I have to show you."

Back at the table, Dustin and Andrew were trying to decide how to intervene. The former was desperately searching the cafeteria for an adult and the latter was looking at the door thoughtfully. There were a couple of human cafeteria workers but one was a little old lady and the other was a young man that looked too scared of getting hurt to try and intervene. There _were_ security guards in the building to deal with any potential student violence, but they hadn't made their rounds to the cafeteria yet.

"I should go suit up," Andrew suggested out the corner of his mouth. "I can't break up a cat-fight between those girls in my human body but maybe in my avatar—"

"By the time you linked and made it back here, it would be too late to stop anything," interrupted Dustin. "We're better off running to find some help."

"You're right," agreed Andrew. "You're smaller...go dodge past the crowd while I try to talk some sense into that bitch."

"Calling her a bitch won't help," Dustin warned, even as he started to go. "Just keep it friendly, Andy."

"I can't make any promises." Andrew was glaring at Amy—who was getting in Savanna's face in an attempt to intimidate her.

Dustin was about to stress the importance of not provoking a girl that could easily pick him up and toss him through a window, when the first act of aggression happened. Amy shoved Savanna, making her stumble backwards into a human boy. The hybrid quickly caught her balance and steadied the boy before turning her attention to her attacker.

It happened too fast for anyone to say for sure how she did it. Savanna lunged at the taller girl and within seconds, she had her bent over in a headlock. She didn't stop there. Amy yelled and grunted, her arms flailing in confusion as Savanna dragged her over to the food counter. People dodged out of the way with wide eyes as the hybrid grabbed the base of Amy's queue with her free hand and pulled cruelly, making the other girl cry out in pain. Keeping a tight hold on the braid and the sensitive neural tendrils inside of it, Savanna released the headlock and clutched the back of her opponent's neck, slamming her face down into the hot lasagna tray on the buffet line.

"_Kawng swirä_! Does it taste good? How do _you_ like it?" Savanna was yelling at the top of her lungs, her face flushed with anger as she gave her captive a piece of her mind in both English and Na'vi. Amy struggled but the hybrid's strategic hold on her was made stronger with her rage.

Dustin stopped in his tracks and stared with wide eyes, hardly recognizing his friend. Andrew stood stunned as well and the rest of the students were equally taken aback. The normally gentle, patient and non-confrontational Savanna Thomas had finally been pushed over the edge, it seemed. Evidently, shoving her opponent's face in hot Italian food wasn't enough for the hybrid. Savanna yanked Amy back savagely by the queue and threw her to the floor, scattering a group of human students. She was upon the other girl before she could recover and she grabbed hold of her queue again with one hand and began punching her in the face with the other.

"Uh, Dusty...I think Sav's changed a little more than you thought," Andrew remarked.

The school guards chose that moment to come in through the doors and naturally, what they saw was Savanna Thomas beating the hell out of some helpless avatar girl. Dustin saw them and he tried to explain what happened, but they pushed through the crowd and ignored him, intent on breaking up the fight. The avatar guard did most of the work and his human companion radioed it in before lending his efforts. Eventually, they pried Savanna off of her beaten victim and the avatar man restrained her and talked to her until she calmed down. When she came back to her senses, Savanna broke down and started crying as hard as the other girl.

Dustin, Andrew and Sheri tried to go to their friend but the human guard warned them to stay back. While the avatar tried to calm down Savanna, the human started seeing to Amy's injuries. They helped the girls to their feet and escorted them out of the cafeteria while the other students and the cafeteria workers looked on.

* * *

"Oh dear god...what _else_ could go wrong?" Sebastian ended the call and shut his eyes with a sigh. One of his co-workers looked at him curiously and asked what was wrong. He chose not to give details and he fabricated that one of the transmitters was going wonky and he had to go and see to it. He powered down his computer and left after that, ignoring any further looks of interest he got on his way out.

His first stop was the lab wing. He greeted people hastily in passing, not stopping to talk to anyone. He swiped his keycard to gain access to the restricted area and he made a beeline for Katherine's lab. The botanist was peering into a microscope when Sebastian walked through her door unannounced.

"We have to talk," he said when his wife looked up from her work with a confused frown.

* * *

Savanna kept her eyes lowered and she struggled against tears as her father paced in front of her. They brought her home after picking her up from the school and she now sat on the couch beside her mother, awaiting what was sure to be a restriction sentence that would stick until she was eighteen and out of the house.

"That girl is going to need sutures in her lip and she's suffering second-degree burns," Sebastian informed her with carefully controlled calm.

"The lasagna wasn't that hot," protested Savanna impulsively, looking up at him with disbelief.

Sebastian glanced at Katherine before leaning over a little to pin his daughter with his gaze. "You shoved her face in an active hot-plate and held it there, my dear. The food wasn't what caused the burns—the contact of her face on the heated metal did."

Savanna took a trembling breath and lowered her eyes again. She threaded her fingers together in her lap, wincing at the pain in her bruised and swollen knuckles. She didn't ask for any relief, deciding she didn't deserve any. "I'm sorry, Papa. I know you're disappointed in me."

Sebastian went to one knee before her and encouraged her to look at him. "Just tell us what happened, Savanna. What drove you to get so violent with this girl?"

"Dustin can tell you—"

"We're asking _you_," Katherine said sternly. "We'll ask your friends for their account after we've heard your side of the story. We know they're going to stick up for you and I want the truth, young lady."

Savanna's breath hitched and she tried to control her emotions. "She was picking on me and she wouldn't leave me alone."

Katherine and Sebastian exchanged pained looks, but they didn't accept the excuse. "You've endured teasing from your peers many times before," her father reminded her. "The worst you've ever done in retaliation was throw a boy into a garbage bin. You've never harmed another person before. What did this girl do that made you react so violently?"

"She dumped food over my head and then she pushed me into another student." Savanna sniffed and wiped at her eyes. She looked at each of her parents in turn and shook her head. "I just couldn't stand another minute of being bullied without fighting back! Everything seemed to go in fast-forward and all I could think of was that I had to hit her before she could hit me."

Savanna began to cry again, tortured by a tangle of emotions. She was afraid of her own actions, afraid of what would happen when she went back to that school building, afraid of how her parents must see her. She refused to look at her father when he asked her to.

Katherine's hands were gentle as she rubbed her shoulders. "Savanna, we aren't angry. We just wanted to understand how this happened. We know you aren't normally a violent person."

Savanna regarded her parents through tear-blurred eyes. "You...you really aren't mad at me?"

"I'm disappointed that you didn't seek help from an adult before resorting to physical aggression," answered Sebastian, "but from what I've gathered, there was nobody there to intervene before it escalated. The circumstances were difficult for you."

"I can't always rely on other people to stop the bullying against me," Savanna said passionately, frustrated by her father's lack of appreciation for her situation. "Papa, there's not always going to be a teacher or a guard or some other adult around to help me. What am I supposed to do after I finish school, go running to the nearest MP every time someone gives me a dirty look? Sometimes I'm going to have to defend myself!"

"What you did went beyond self-defense," Katherine reminded her gently. "The guards told us you were laying into that girl when they came in and you weren't giving her a chance to defend herself. The lack of bruises or scratches anywhere except on your knuckles indicates she never got a single slap in."

"She _pushed me_," Savanna insisted. "I didn't make the first move and everyone just laughed about it! Nobody except my friends had any intention of helping me and I didn't want them to get in trouble for my sake!"

"So she pushes you and you try to melt her face off in return," reasoned Katherine with a sigh. "Sweetheart, that's like shooting someone with a bazooka for blowing a spitball at you."

"I just reacted," Savanna again tried to explain. "I didn't think about it. I was just so mad and so..." The tears came again and she gave up trying to defend herself. She covered her face with her hands and concentrated on stopping the sobs from breaking free.

Sebastian sat down on her other side and put his arms around her, drawing her into his embrace despite her clumsy protests. "Here now, you'll make yourself sick." He brushed her tears away and tried to comfort her. "I suppose you've reached your limit. I've been afraid of this day coming for some time, to be honest with you."

"There are going to be consequences for this," Katherine said, "that's unavoidable...but I know this is a difficult stage of life and you're going to make mistakes."

Savanna couldn't take anymore of their ignorance. She pulled out of her father's embrace and stood up, glaring down at her mother. "Difficult stage of life? Mama, you don't know the _half_ of it! They draw pornographic pictures of me on the bathroom walls! They call me names in class and the teachers just wave it away! They push me in the hallways, they throw stuff at me, they steal my school supplies, they vandalize my locker, they trip me and some of the boys have even...even..." She trailed off and her lower lip quivered.

Sebastian and Katherine had both grown more and more pale with each horrific account of all the things she had endured but never told them about. They only knew a small bit of the ugliness she faced from her school mates every day, and that wasn't even counting what some of the supposed "adults" on the base said to her in passing.

"What exactly have the boys done?" Sebastian spoke in a carefully neutral tone, his face alarmingly expressionless.

"They talk about doing things to me," answered Savanna dutifully, shivering. "The one day I wore a skirt to school, one of them tried to yank it up in the hallway. That's why I only ever wear pants or shorts."

Katherine sucked in a sharp breath and Sebastian's pupils expanded slowly. "How long has this been going on?"

"Most of my life," answered Savanna. "And like I said, there isn't always an adult around to turn to. You always try to discourage me from standing up for myself but I can't just wait for someone else to do it anymore! It's just getting worse! I...I don't want to go back there! Please, don't make me go back to that school anymore."

Katherine's eyes were welling up with tears and Sebastian's face became animated again with an expression of terrible guilt. "All right, dearest. You don't have to go back there again."

Katherine shut her eyes and a tear escaped to trail down her cheek. "We'll home school. Savanna, why didn't you ever tell us it was this severe?"

"Because I wanted to try and fit in," she answered, hating the sight of her mother crying. "I thought that maybe the other kids would eventually accept me, but I was wrong. I'm never going to fit in here, Mama."

"Then we'll have to improvise," Sebastian sighed. "Why don't you go and rest in your bedroom, Savanna? Your mother and I will figure out what arrangements need to be made."

* * *

After Savanna retired to her room with a cup of hot cocoa, Sebastian stepped outside for some fresh air. Actually, the filtered, compressed air within the bio-dome wasn't precisely "fresh", but he feared he might cry and he didn't want to do that in front of his wife or his daughter. He was understandably startled to find both of the Sully twins standing on either side of his unit's front door when he stepped out. After his initial yelp of surprise, he heaved an exasperated sigh and a stern glare at them both.

"How long have you two been here?"

"Long enough," Karyu said. Her voice was cold and almost accusatory.

Kato was a bit more polite. "Dustin skipped class to come find us. He told us what happened and we arrived at the school building in time to see you and Savanna get into a transport cab. We followed you home."

"We heard everything," Karyu informed him. "We know what those vermin have been doing to her now."

"You didn't know before?" Sebastian looked into Kato's eyes and saw how fragile his control over his temper was. "No, of course not. Had you known, I've no doubt there would be many more injured students."

Neither of them denied it. "Is she okay?" Kato asked, his jaw clenching.

Sebastian nodded. "She's very upset, but she's going to be fine. She only suffered some bruised knuckles from striking that girl in the face."

Kato and Karyu exchanged a smug, proud grin between them.

"Don't look so bloody satisfied," Sebastian advised them. "If it weren't for your influence, she wouldn't have gotten into a fist fight."

Karyu looked at him incredulously but Kato spoke before she could. "I don't want to be disrespectful, but what's the matter with encouraging someone to defend herself against bullies? What was Sav supposed to do, stand there and let that little...that girl shove her around? What happens when all those...things...start seeing she won't fight back? What happens to Savanna then?"

"They mob her, that's what happens," Karyu snarled, "Just like they did on ancient Earth when they got the taste for blood. Maybe when she's a corpse hanging by her neck—"

"That's enough!" Sebastian roared the command, unable to stop the horrible images flooding his mind. He put a shaking hand to his brow and tried to calm himself. The scenario Karyu had just presented was one of his deepest, darkest fears. Mob mentality was something that could all too easily occur, especially within a group of aggressive, hormonal teenagers.

"All of this occurred right under my nose," he admitted softly, after a moment of utter silence. He looked up at the two Na'vi teenagers, agonized over the danger he'd put his own daughter in. "I've spent so much time stressing the importance of rising above petty cruelty and turning the other cheek. I should have known things were worse than they appeared, but I took it for granted that my little girl would always come to me."

"She didn't come to us either," Kato murmured.

"She said she was trying to give them a chance," sighed Karyu. "It looks like she didn't want any of us worrying. So Mr. Thomas, what are you going to do?"

"I'm sure you overheard our talk of home schooling." When the twins nodded, he went on. "That's really all we've decided, for now. We're still reeling over this."

"She's still going to be targeted," Kato said with certainty. "She's always going to be, while she lives here."

Sebastian understood the underlying message in Kato's words and he frowned at the young man. "She belongs here."

The twins glanced at each other and Sebastian got the distinct impression that they were communicating silently. Kato turned his attention back to the computer tech a moment later. "Can we see her?"

Sebastian almost refused the request, but the memory of his daughter's frightened, tear-filled eyes and desperate pleas not to go back to the school weakened him. She needed the twins right now. She'd been punished enough, simply for being born the way she was. He turned and opened the door, stepping aside and gesturing for them to go in. Kato waited for his sister to go through the door before ducking in himself. With a sigh, Sebastian went in after them and shut the door behind him.

* * *

When her bedroom door opened and she looked up to see Kato and Karyu standing at the threshold, Savanna almost broke down crying again. Her mother looked up at them as if deciding whether to shoo them away or not and then she kissed Savanna on the cheek and whispered that she'd be in the living room if she needed anything. The twins stepped aside for her as Katherine exited and Kato immediately went to Savanna's side and sat beside her on the bed. Karyu shut the door before joining him.

Savanna put her cocoa mug on the nightstand and put her arms around Kato's neck as he pulled her into his lap and held her close. Karyu was soon seated beside them and she stroked Savanna's hair.

"Just tell me who to kill," Karyu said, and it was difficult to tell if she was joking or not.

"I'm just glad you're both here," Savanna sighed, breathing in the wild, woodsy scent from Kato's hair and skin. "They aren't going to make me go back to school, so I don't have to see those people anymore except when we pass on the street."

"It's a small colony," Kato murmured.

Savanna shut her eyes. "I know. I guess I'm going to have to live with seeing my bullies now and then for the rest of my life, no matter where I go on this base."

"You don't have to." Kato nuzzled her ear with his lips and pulled away to look her in the eye. He caressed her face with his fingertips, his handsome features devoted and serious. "Sav, if you don't want to live here anymore, all you have to do is say the word."

She was confused for a moment, but it dawned on her what he was suggesting. "What about my parents? They might not let me."

"In another year and a half, they won't have a say over it," Karyu reminded.

"But if you don't want to wait that long I'll take you out of here," Kato promised, kissing her softly on the mouth.

Karyu blinked at her brother and Savanna stared at him. "How?"

"We'll pack some things for you and leave," Kato answered simply.

"Are you talking about running away with her?" Karyu asked, her eyebrows shooting up. "That's going a little too far, Kato."

Kato shot an annoyed glare at his sister. "You pick the worst times follow the rules."

"Where would you go?" Karyu demanded in a whisper, glancing at the door meaningfully. "If you tried to take her to the village without her parent's consent, _Sa'nok_ and _Sempul_ will just bring her back!"

"Then we'll live in the wilds on our own," he said determinedly.

Karyu snorted. "Yeah? What if she gets attacked and hurt by an animal?"

"I can defend her from the animals out there," Kato growled, "it's the animals in _here_ that worry me more. They're allowed to take a chunk out of her and nobody gives a flying fuck. I was willing to do things by the book and wait until Sav finished school but that was before I knew how bad things are for her."

"You're being an idiot," Karyu hissed. "Savanna hasn't had enough survival training to survive in the wilds for long, even with you protecting her!"

"Please, don't argue," Savanna begged, her anxiety rising again. "I'm not ready to leave home yet anyway. All I want right now is to spend some quiet time with you two, okay? Kato, can we just hold each other?"

The twins lapsed into silence and Kato tightened his embrace on Savanna. "Okay. We won't talk about it right now."

* * *

_Meanwhile at the UNEC detention center:_

Private Rachel Sanders greeted her fellow guards as she approached the prisoner's door. This section of the prison wasn't filtered for human respiration, so most of the staff had to wear exopacks. The prison held a few enhanced avatar operatives and some second-generation ones, but most of the prisoners were human. This sector was designed for Na'vi prisoners, though this would be the first time they'd ever held anyone in custody that required Pandora air to breathe.

Now a former marine occupied one of the cells. Somehow, this marine transferred his consciousness into an avatar body permanently, _without_ relying on the procedure perfected by the science department. As she prepared to open the cell, she had to admit she was excited. She'd heard so much about this particular prisoner and she looked forward to seeing him in person.

She opened the door and called out softly. "Corporal Sully? I've brought some reading material for you."

Rachel froze when she saw that his bunk was empty and the sheets were neatly arranged. She looked around the cell and found no sign of him. She started to activate her transmitter and send word out that the prisoner was missing, but then she heard a man's voice speak from overhead.

"Morning."

The private looked up and gave a start. Jake Sully was wedged casually between the narrow walls over the doorway, like a spy in a movie getting ready to drop down on an unsuspecting enemy. His long queue dangled over the left side of his torso, the tip of it swinging just above her head. Rachel impulsively reached for her gun and the prisoner nimbly hopped down and knelt before her, so that they were eye-to-eye.

"It's okay," he assured her with a friendly, crooked grin. "I was just getting a little morning exercise."

She kept her hand on her weapon and glanced at the door, confident that the other staff would hear and come to her aid if he tried anything. She'd been exposed to avatars before but never one with his reputation. He wore the prison uniform pants but no shirt. She could easily imagine him in native garb. "Why don't you do pushups like normal people or wait for the cells to open for the day and hit the gym?"

Jake shrugged. "I already did my pushups. Climbing is more fun. Makes me feel more at home." His yellow eyes went to the book satchel hanging from her free arm. "What's that?"

She relaxed a little and took her hand off her weapon. "Books and magazines. The General thought you might like something to read, since you haven't been interested in watching TV. You...know how to read, don't you?"

He grimaced at her. "I don't know what you've been told about me but I got pretty decent grades in school. Yeah, I know how to read. I can even write, though my handwriting sucks."

She winced at her mistake and offered the satchel to him. "Sorry. I wasn't sure if you remembered after living with the natives for so long."

"A lot of the natives can read and write English," Jake informed as he took the bag and opened it up. "Some of them are better at it than humans. Hmm, what have we got here? 'A Tale of Two Cities'. Boring. 'The Hobbit'. Hmph...my brother would like that. 'The Idiot'. Heh...Norm would say that's me. Hey, what's this?"

Jake pulled out a book and his expression suddenly changed. It was a guide to Na'vi culture, written by Dr. Grace Augustine. "This one, I'll keep." He got up and placed the book carefully on his bunk, treating it with an odd sort of reverence.

"There are also some magazines in the side pocket," Rachel informed him. "I think there's a book of crossword puzzles, too."

Jake picked up the bag again and opened the side pocket. He tugged the stack of magazines out and his eyebrows shot up when he saw the first one. "Playboy?" He looked at her with an amused little smirk.

Heat spread through Janet's face and her eyes went to the scantily clad human woman on the cover of the magazine. "A lot of guys on the inside appreciate that kind of entertainment, sir. Apparently it gets lonely."

Jake glanced at the cover again. "Sure. I'll have my mate visiting me, though. I won't need it."

She found that cute and she smiled. "Most guys won't turn down a skin mag even if they know they're going to be getting regular conjugal visits. I can take it away with the other books."

He started to hand it over but he changed his mind at the last minute and looked at the magazine thoughtfully. "On second thought, I'll hang onto this. I can use it for something else."

She grimaced, coming to her own conclusions. "If your lavatory is out of toilet paper, we can it restocked right away."

Sully laughed and she stared at him. "That's not what I want it for," he explained between chuckles. "I'm just going to play a little prank with it."

She smirked. "If you say so. I'll take these other books away and leave you to it. They should come unlock your cell at ten hundred hours."

He gave her a little salute and started thumbing through the crossword puzzle magazine. "This is all on recycled paper, right?"

"Everything is, these days." She smiled a little before leaving the cell. After finishing up her rounds, she went for some coffee in the break room and she chatted with a couple of other young women assigned to her section.

"So you saw Jake Sully," one of them asked with a curious grin. "Was he cute?"

Rachel smiled into her coffee cup. "Blindingly."

"He's an avatar," reminded the second woman with raised eyebrows. "Never mind almost twice your age."

"Wait until you see that smile," advised Rachel. "You'll see what I mean."

* * *

As soon as they unlocked his cell, Jake went outside to take advantage of the exercise yard. He'd already made a few friends in his short time there but he didn't kid himself; most of his fellow inmates were real, hardened criminals. Some were doing time for things like theft, assault, drug dealing and fraud but there were murderers and rapists in there as well.

The men that were involved in the illegal mining and Tommy's death were being held in a separate military compound, with other disgraced MP's. Jake would have initially been held there too as a political prisoner, under different circumstances. West and Archer were working on having his status changed so that he could be put in a private living unit and given the freedom to move about the base under probationary restrictions but until then, he would be spending his time in the main detention center.

Jake was sure some of the other inmates were former RDA operatives and he kept his senses alert at all times. The guards kept a close eye on him—more than any other prisoners. He knew this was supposedly more for his safety than to keep him in line, but he wondered which of the guards could be trusted to do the job West gave to them. How many would sooner put a bullet in Jake's skull themselves or watch and do nothing while someone else did it?

He kept that possibility in mind as he went outside to occupy himself for the day. He chose jogging as the exercise of the day and despite his desire to be alone, someone decided to make friends.

"So what did you do to get in here?"

Jake looked at the man who came up beside him on the track and he slowed his pace solicitously so that the human could keep up with his longer strides. "You first."

The inmate looked up at him and Jake guessed him to be in his early thirties, with dark, short-cropped hair and hazel eyes. "I got caught dealing cycad."

Jake frowned at him. "Say that again?"

"Dried up, ground cycad leaves," explained the other man. "If you soak them in liquor, let them dry out and then smoke them, they get you high. It's like marijuana from Earth. I don't think it works with Na'vi or avatars but it gets humans high as a kite."

Jake huffed a laugh. "You're telling me you got busted for selling pot?"

"That's right. Primo stuff, too."

"Well how much time did they give you for that?" Jake thought there were more important things UNEC could be arresting people for but for all he knew, the cycad doobies had deadly side-effects for users. Most Pandora plant foods were toxic to humans when consumed, after all.

"It was originally going to be two years but I'm up for parole next month. I might get out a year early."

Jake nodded. "Good luck."

"I'm Luke," introduced the jogger. "Luke Barnes."

"Jake Sully," answered Jake absently. They were passing by one of the guard towers stationed around the exercise yard and he noticed how closely one of the soldiers manning it was watching him.

"That's what I thought."

Jake detected something in "Luke's" voice a second too late. He looked down in time to see something glinting in the human's hand and it was only through years of military and hunter training that he lunged away in time to avoid getting stabbed in a vital area. The blade that was meant to sink into his right kidney cut him on the hip instead. Jake reacted instinctively and grabbed his attacker by the throat.

"You little shit," he snarled, squeezing harder than he intended and shaking the human like a rag doll. He heard a snap and Luke's body went suddenly limp, his head falling to the side bonelessly. Jake stared at the blank, open eyes of the human through the clear visor of the exopack, hardly believing what he'd just accidentally done.

"Oops." Jake looked around when he heard the yell of the guards and he lowered Luke to the ground. He leaned over him and put an ear close to his chest. Feeling and hearing no heartbeat, he checked his pulse and looked at his visor. No breath fogged the clear barrier. Other prisoners had stopped what they were doing and were gathering around curiously, muttering amongst themselves.

"Oh, _come on_!" Jake flung the human's limp hand over his still chest when he didn't get a pulse. He looked up at the guards as they closed in with weapons drawn and he sighed, putting his hands up and grunting as he got to his feet. "Crap! I didn't do this on purpose. He tried to stab me, guys."

"Get down on the ground and put your hands behind your back," ordered one of the guards. Another one checked on Luke and as Jake obeyed the order and allowed them to restrain his wrists, the guard pronounced the other prisoner dead.

"Call it in and block off the area," ordered the first guard. "I'll take Sully inside for questioning."

Jake grimaced. "Well, this is just great."

"I suggest you keep your mouth shut and your eyes open," the guard said to him in a low voice. "Pick up the pace, Mr. Sully."

Jake frowned. Eyes open? As they entered the native wing of the building, it dawned on him that the guard believed someone else might try to make a move on him. As soon as they entered the interrogation room and the door was shut and locked behind them, the guard removed Jake's restraints.

Jake looked down at the man curiously as he rubbed his wrists, recognizing him from the turret earlier. "Did you see what happened?"

"Yes, I did. I was told to keep you under strict observation while you're in this facility. General West thought something like this would happen soon and he was right."

"So you know I didn't just snap that guy's neck for the hell of it," reasoned Jake, still a bit shocked over it.

"I saw him take a stab at you first," agreed the guard, "but now we can't question him and find out if anyone set him up to it. Good job."

"Hey, I didn't know he'd be that fragile. What kind of genius sends such a sucky assassin after someone anyhow?"

"He nearly had you," pointed out the soldier.

"Only because you were watching me so close," Jake countered. "I got distracted, thinking you were up to something."

"Well, now you know I wasn't, sir. You should be more careful if this happens again before security can intervene. Odds are anyone that tries to kill you has some kind of connection to the people responsible for your son's death."

Jake shut his eyes and cursed. "I just reacted...like swatting a bug. I didn't mean to kill the stupid bastard."

"You should have more self-control than that," criticized the guard. "Maybe living with the Na'vi destroyed your discipline."

Jake snorted. "You wouldn't say that if you ever went through the hunter's trials. So what happens now?" In truth, he thought the stress was starting to get to him and he admitted to himself that he wasn't in top form.

"Now you wait here while I send someone in to see to your injury and we make a report. You'll be questioned and probably locked back up in your cell until the matter is investigated fully. Maybe that's better for you right now, anyway."

"What about my visitation rights?"

The guard shrugged. "I don't know. I'm just laying out the protocol for you. My guess is you won't have visiting privileges until they determine this was self defense."

Jake sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Come on universe...cut me some slack."

* * *

"Any idea who else might have been involved?" West looked over the report and glanced up at the officer that brought it to him.

"No sir. Sully said that the deceased struck up a friendly conversation and introduced himself. When he gave his name, the man attacked him and Sully broke his neck in the struggle before anyone could intervene. He seemed pretty upset about it."

"The attack or the death?"

"The death, General. It was pretty clear to me that he didn't mean to kill him. He was just reacting and he used more force than he intended."

West sighed. Fortunately for Jake, there were enough unbiased witnesses to vouch for him that it was purely a case of self-defense and accidental death. "How badly was Corporal Sully injured?"

"Superficial, General. He moved fast enough to avoid serious injury and the attacker only cut him on the hip. We had a doctor clean it, seal it and bandage it."

"All right then." West frowned fiercely at the report. "I want logs of all visitations to the deceased inmate. I want to know how he got his hands on a damned carb knife and kept it a secret long enough to try and stab Sully. Someone has to have smuggled it in. There's a trail and I want it sniffed out."

"Yes sir. We'll get right on that."

"Good. Double the watch on Sully and make sure nobody that isn't on my list is put in charge of guarding him while he's in here."

The guard saluted. "General West, Sully did ask me something that I couldn't answer for him."

"What's that?"

"He asked if he could still have visitation rights with his family."

West almost said no, simply because he didn't think it was a good idea to bring Jake's little girl there while they were trying to figure out if someone put his attacker up to the assassination attempt. He changed his mind though, deciding he could arrange transport to a smaller, more secure location for Sully to have his visit if he had to.

"His visitation privileges stay intact. Dismissed."

* * *

Parker was more or less back on the job, though he was required to go to counseling every other day. As he said to Stone, he didn't really need to fabricate an uneasy state of mind. He was amazed he could function as well as he did, in fact. He had mixed feelings about it when he found out they were bringing Jake in, but he kept his concerns to himself. When he heard about the attack on Sully in the prison, he reported to Stone that night, using the secured superluminal channel he'd been told to use.

"The guy's name was Luke Barnes," Selfridge said over the transmission. "He got in close to Sully and tried to stab him. It was sloppy. Sully broke his neck in two seconds flat, according to the report."

"I see. Well, no harm done."

Parker frowned. "What do you mean; 'no harm done'. Was he one of your guys or not?"

"Technically, yes."

"So you sent him after Sully to kill him," reasoned Selfridge.

"Not exactly," answered Stone. The older man's voice sounded smug. "He was paid and offered an early parole, but nobody thought for a second he could take Jake Sully out."

Parker felt a headache going on. He rubbed his eyes and tried to make sense of it. "Then why send him after him? Was the guy an agent at all?"

"No, he was in for narcotics trafficking. Our agents are much more skilled and much more subtle, Mr. Selfridge. Consider Mr. Barnes a distraction of sorts."

"For what?" demanded Parker. "If your division has plans to get rid of Sully, you're just getting his guard up by sending clumsy thugs after him."

"It hasn't been decided yet whether Jake Sully's death is worth the risk of exposure. Allow me to explain."

Parker listened and his eyebrows slowly rose to his hairline. By the time the conversation was over, he had to silently applaud the underhanded genius of it all. When he left the communications room, he didn't go to his own office or home quarters. Instead, he went to the other side of the building to a different office. He hesitated a moment before pressing the chime button. The face of the office owner appeared on the screen a moment later.

"Yes?"

"It's Selfridge."

"It's late, Mr. Selfridge. Can't this wait until morning? I was just about to retire for the night."

He grimaced. "It's important."

There was a moment's hesitation. "All right. Come in."

The door unlocked with an audible click and Parker pressed the hand panel to make it slide open. He walked through and crossed the room to stand before the glass-top desk. The woman seated behind it looked up at him through a pair of reading glasses and she set her holopad aside.

"What can I do for you, Administrator?"

Parker hoped he wasn't making a mistake. "I've got to talk to you. It's about Sully."

Archer removed her reading glasses and frowned. "What about him?"

* * *

_Hell's Gate, the next day:_

Baxter looked over the food selection without any real appetite. It all looked so...artificial. He used to love human food but the sausage pizza slices laid out on the buffet looked like cardboard covered with melted rubber and burnt turds. He grimaced and selected an ear of corn and a baked chicken leg before moving on to the native buffet. The food here looked a little better but that was probably because it was all fruit, nuts and veggies from the gardens. There weren't any processed foods with dubious ingredients. He scooped up some grape-like pieces of fruit and he started to grab one of the citrus fruits, but someone next to him reached for the same thing at that moment.

"Oh, pardon me," a feminine voice apologized, and the slender avatar hand retreated.

Baxter turned to assure her it was okay and offer to let her pick first, but he froze when he saw the woman's face. She had aged some since he last saw her, but he recognized her instantly. "J-Jill?"

Dr. Calhoun looked as startled as he felt. She gazed at him with wide eyes and it took her a minute to speak. "Howell? Baxter Howell? Is that you?"

He tried to answer but his voice seemed to have taken off somewhere without telling him. He swallowed, licked his lips and tried again. "Yeah, it's me."

"When did you come out of cryo?" she demanded, her expression warring between amazement and joy. "I had no idea!"

"Almost two months now," he answered. "Nobody told you? I thought you were with UNEC now."

"Well, I just arrived an hour ago," she answered. "I'm here to exchange some supplies. I'm still with UNEC. Baxter, this is _incredible_! I wish I had known you were awake."

He smiled, feeling a familiar surge of affection for her. She was still gentle, kind and polite. "I wish I knew you were coming. You look great. Are you sure you haven't spent all these years in cryo too?"

She laughed gently and shook her head. "And you're still a charmer. You don't have to be so polite, Baxter."

"I'm not," he assured her, looking her up and down. "You _really_ look great. You're just as pretty as I remember." He meant it, too. The laugh lines around her mouth and the subtle crinkles at the corners of her eyes only added a classy appeal to her.

"You're too kind, but I know I've aged." Jill sighed and searched his face with her eyes. "You look exactly the same as I remember, though. Of course, that makes perfect sense, doesn't it? You're still literally the same age as you were then."

He shrugged and looked down at his food tray absently. "Yeah. Everyone else kept going and I just stayed the same."

She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "That must be hard for you."

He looked at her from beneath lowered lashes and grinned. "Well, moments like this make it easier."

She returned his smile. "It's good to see you're coping so well, for the short amount of time you've been awake. I don't think most people would adjust to waking up in a different time so quickly."

Baxter's smile faltered a bit. "To be honest with you, I go to therapy a couple of times a week. They say I've still got PTSD from the ISV explosion and sometimes I wake up really confused."

Her gaze softened with sympathy. "Of course. I'm so sorry, Baxter. I wish there was something I could do."

He smiled at her again, boyishly. "Well, you _could_ have lunch with me outside. How about it? We could pick something fresh from the garden in the avatar compound. Who knows how long this stuff's been sitting in the fridge?" He gestured disdainfully at the Pandora foodstuffs he and Jill had both selected from the buffet line.

"I think that sounds lovely," she agreed. "It's a nice day outside and we can catch up."

* * *

Karyu sat cross-legged in the grass outside the avatar lodge, reading a book while Savanna did her biology assignment. The hybrid lay on her stomach, kicking her ankles absently as she worked. She kept grumbling and Karyu sighed and lowered her book into her lap.

"Would you stop that? It's really distracting."

"Sorry," apologized Savanna. "Genetics are just so _boring_ to me. I should bribe Dustin to do this assignment for me. He loves this stuff."

Karyu glanced down at touchpad her friend was working with. "Here, let me see."

Savanna handed it over and propped her chin in her hands, no doubt drifting off into fantasies about Kato already. Karyu rolled her eyes and looked over the home school assignment Katherine had given the other girl.

"It's a map of the human genome," Karyu said after examining it. "You're supposed to put the missing sequence in."

Savanna twisted a little to look up at her. "Are you offering to do it for me?"

"Since I can tap the answers in without worrying about handwriting, I might as well. Besides, I can't stand anymore mumbling from you."

Savanna grinned at her and laid her head in Karyu's lap.

"Suck up," Karyu accused, though the corners of her mouth curved into a smile of amusement. She absently stroked her friend's rich mahogany hair as she worked on the assignment.

Kato emerged from the lodge a few moments later, towel drying his hair after showering to clean the blood of a fresh kill off. He smiled at the girls and closed the distance, draping the damp towel around his shoulders.

"What's up?"

"I'm just doing your girlfriend's homework," muttered Karyu, steadily tapping at the touchpad. "Although since you're her man, you really should be the one doing this."

Kato squatted down and held his hand out. "Sure, hand it over."

Karyu grinned and leaned over to murmur to Savanna. "That was easy."

Savanna lifted her head off the female twin's lap and scooted around so that she was facing both siblings. "Kato, you don't have to."

"Oh shut _up_," Karyu said with an offended look. "You were happy to let _me_ do it!"

Savanna giggled. "You sound funny when you try to imitate the girls at school."

"Okay, that's done." Kato handed the touchpad back to his girlfriend—who stared at him with open astonishment.

"Bullshit," Karyu muttered, "let me see that."

"It's just cross-referencing an analysis of the genes and their protein products." Kato shrugged. "I'm surprised you didn't have it done already, Karyu."

Karyu looked over the finished assignment and Savanna moved in beside her again to look as well. The huntress gave her brother a rueful smirk after a minute or two and she relinquished the touchpad to Savanna. "Show off."

"I think my parents were trying to make my head explode with that assignment," Savanna groaned. She turned the device off and put it in her purse before crawling over to Kato and giving him a smooch on the lips. "Thank you."

Karyu cleared her throat and Savanna laughed and hugged her. "And thank you too."

"That's better," Karyu said. She got to her feet and brushed stray bits of grass off of her legs. "Let's go to the recreation building and find something to do."

"But I just showered," protested Kato. "And I was out hunting all morning with _Sa'nok_. Can't we just relax?"

"Is it going to kill you to walk a couple of blocks?" Karyu planted her hands on her hips. "I didn't say we have to pump iron or run laps. We could shoot pool or play darts or video games."

"That doesn't sound like a bad idea," Kato conceded. He got up with Savanna and put an arm around her waist. "Let's go."

When they started walking past the last row of the gardens, Karyu stopped in her tracks. "Who is that woman?"

"What woman?" Kato frowned and followed her gaze.

"That woman sitting with Green Eyes...Bax...I mean Howell."

Savanna gave Karyu a look over her verbal stumble and when she saw the intense stare her friend was aiming toward one of the fruit trees, she looked in that direction. Sitting in the shade beneath the tree was Baxter Howell. He was munching on a piece of fresh native fruit and an avatar woman in a cream colored button-up blouse and brown slacks sat across from him, nibbling on some berries. They were smiling at each other with familiar affection and laughing as they talked. The woman was attractive, though older.

"I've never seen her before," Savanna admitted.

The woman touched Baxter's hand and Karyu tensed. Kato noticed it and he looked at his twin slyly. "She looks around our parents' age," he said to Karyu. "She's probably just an old friend of his. Remember, if he hadn't been in cryo for all this time he'd be about that age too."

Karyu stared at the two of them. The couple seemed to be completely absorbed in each other, looking into one another's eyes and finding excuses to touch as they talked. "Or maybe she's an old girlfriend."

Kato shrugged. "Maybe. She's a little old for him now, though."

"Age isn't that big of a deal," Savanna argued. "Not when two people really love each other. Can you imagine it? Separated by tragic circumstances and reuniting almost twenty years later. How romantic."

Karyu glared at her and Savanna lapsed into silence, wondering why her friend was so offended by whimsical theories.

* * *

After finishing the last of their harvested food, Baxter and Jill got up and prepared to return indoors. He helped her to her feet and she stumbled against him briefly. "I'm sorry. I sat wrong and now my left foot is asleep."

Baxter put a supportive arm around her, incidentally drawing her closer. "I've got you. Just lean into me until you've got the feeling back." Inwardly, he wondered what in the hell he was doing. The woman hurt him, though she hadn't meant to. He shouldn't risk going there again.

Jill smiled at him and she reached up to trace his chin and jaw with her fingertips. "I really did miss you, Howell. I wish...I felt so terrible when I found out what happened."

Baxter shook his head and caressed her face. "Don't. It was me being a stupid drunk and that's all. You didn't have any control over my bad decisions, all right?"

She closed her eyes. "But it happened the day we broke it off."

He almost reminded her that _she_ broke it off, but he refrained. It went against his nature to try and hurt a lady's feelings and encouraging guilt would certainly accomplish that. "Again, that was all me. I didn't have to get smashed or try to climb that fence to get at Phelps. You just did what you thought was right and I didn't take it like a man."

Jill gently pulled out of his embrace and she straightened her blouse. "Be that as it may, I should have known something was wrong. I never wanted to hurt you."

He reluctantly let her go and he sighed. "I know. You were just doing what felt right to you."

His thoughts strayed to a younger female with a petite build a personality that was the complete opposite of Jill's. A little thrill went through him as he remembered the way she'd given him bedroom eyes over her shoulder. Karyu Sully was one hot dish and he had to admit, he'd never felt such a powerful attraction to someone so immediately. He'd seen some beautiful women that could stop traffic but something about Karyu had him mesmerized from the beginning—until the pain of her knee colliding with his crotch made him want to hurl.

But he had a history with Jill. She was sweet and calm and not at all neurotic or violent. Maybe something could still work between them. Darren never mentioned a boyfriend or husband the one time they'd spoken about her after Baxter woke up. Maybe she was still available and he was sure he wasn't imagining the attraction he sensed from her.

"Jill? Maybe you can stick around for a while after you finish doing what you came for. We could spend more time together. I want to know more about what you've been up to for all these years."

She lowered her gaze. "That's very tempting, Baxter. I don't think I can, though."

He slipped an arm around her waist again, carefully pulling her closer. "Why not? You never really gave me a chance, Jill. You just assumed we weren't compatible without giving it enough time."

Her hands rested on his shoulders and her lips parted. Her eyes were distressed and regretful. "I'm married."

Baxter felt like he'd been punched in the gut. "Oh. Well, sure. A woman like you...of course you'd be married by now." He let go of her and averted his face, humiliated.

"Baxter, I should have told you earlier. I didn't realize you might still be interested in me that way." She sounded miserable and guilty.

"Don't sweat it. The day isn't complete if I'm not making an ass of myself."

He felt soft hands cup his face. "Look at me, Howell."

Reluctantly, he obeyed. Jill smiled at him and she brushed aside the tumbled locks that fell over his forehead, just above his right eye. "Even if I weren't married, nothing's changed. I still couldn't keep up with you."

He managed a weak smile. "Come on, I'm not _that_ hyper."

She chuckled. "I would bore you eventually and you would wear me out. I think we both know that. I may be the 'safe' girl but I'm not the best one for you. I never have been."

He drew a slow breath and nodded, catching one of her hands in his and turning it to kiss the palm. "Maybe so, but I still envy your husband."

"And I envy whoever you end up with," she said sincerely. "Believe it or not, it hurt me to let you go. You're hard to resist, Howler."

He smirked. "Good."

"Can I hear it just once, before I go?"

He furrowed his brows in confusion. "Hear what?"

"The reason for your nickname." She smiled shyly and coaxingly at him. "Please?"

He couldn't refuse her. "All right...just once."

Baxter tilted his head back, shut his eyes and howled. It started out soft and it steadily rose in volume, only to taper off again before ending. He smiled at her, blushing a little when he saw her expression of delight. "It's funny how many girls dig that. It was just my alert call in training and it just stuck with me."

Jill smiled fondly at him. "You're very good at it." She stepped closer and pressed a kiss to his lips, startling him. The soft touch lasted for three heartbeats before she pulled away again. "I had to give you one last kiss. Goodbye, Baxter."

He kept his eyes shut and relished the lingering feel of the kiss. "Goodbye, Jill."

* * *

Karyu was utterly confused by what she witnessed. Baxter and his older woman seemed to keep bouncing between romance and friendship...awkwardly. The part that _really_ made her go stock-still was when he tilted his head back and opened his mouth. For a minute, she could have sworn there was a viper wolf nearby. The howl was so natural and pure she couldn't immediately distinguish it from a real animal's call. While viper wolves commonly communicated in short yips and hisses, they were known to make such mournful sounds when distressed. The loss of a cub or pack mate usually provoked such haunting cries.

She stared at Baxter, flicking her ears. She detected sorrow in the call but it was subtle. The idiot woman standing there smiling at him probably couldn't hear the sad tone in his howl. Beside her, Kato and Savanna murmured to each other, also amazed at how realistic the sound was.

When the howl ended, the woman kissed him on the mouth and Karyu felt that ugly, horrible feeling rise to the surface again like molten lava. She wondered if she had steam coming out of her ears and she questioned why she was so troubled. She had no claim to Baxter Howell and she hardly knew him yet.

The feeling faded to a more bearable level when the couple spoke once more and Karyu heard the woman say goodbye to Baxter. It sounded permanent and he kept his eyes shut and wore a pained expression on his face as she left him alone. Karyu deduced that she was right about their past relationship and for whatever reason, the woman had chosen not to try and be with him again.

"I suppose you want to go over there and ask him about her now," Kato guessed, interrupting her musings.

Karyu looked at Baxter, who had opened his eyes again and kicked the ground with the toe of his combat boot. His shoulders slumped dejectedly and she swore he was pouting. A different feeling welled within her breast and she wanted to pet him and cuddle him like a stray cub. She also wanted to chase after that woman and smack her around for making him look so sad and miserable.

"No, let's go before he sees us," Karyu said, pitching her voice low.

Savanna expressed surprise. "You don't want to find out about the woman?"

"Not now," confessed the huntress with a sigh. "Leave the man alone."

Even Kato was put off guard by her uncommon charity. Karyu tried to ignore the suspicious look her brother gave her as they took a different route so that Howell wouldn't spot them and know he'd had an audience. How could she explain it to her companions? That howl that came from him had a loneliness she could identify with. She hadn't expected it to come from a man that always seemed to have a smile for people—even when they were rude to him like she was.

* * *

_Hometree, early the next morning:_

Norm almost fell out of the tree and broke his neck trying to get to the communications transmitter before the caller gave up and quit. He jammed the earpiece over his ear and practically strangled himself with the voice receiver while securing it around his throat.

"Norm...Spellman," he coughed. "I read you."

"This is General West, Dr. Spellman. I've got Jake Sully here waiting to talk to you and his family."

"Great," Norm enthused, bracing himself on an overhead branch. "Put him on."

There was a rustle of sound and a bit of feedback that made Norm wince. "Norm, you copy?"

"Yeah Jake, copy. How is everything?"

"A little rough, but it's getting better. You sound a little out of it."

"Well, I just woke up," excused the anthropologist. He started moving toward the trunk, trying to get his bearings so that he could get Neytiri on the line for his friend. "What's been going on over there?"

"For starters, someone tried to knife me in the exercise yard a couple of days ago."

Norm's jaw dropped. "_What_? Did they catch him?"

"You could say that. I kind of accidentally killed him."

"Accidentally...how? Just how do you _do_ something like that, Jake?" Norm could almost picture the embarrassed, guilty expression on Jake's face, like a kid caught breaking someone's window.

"I'm still not sure what happened," confessed the warrior. "I dodged his attack and I just grabbed him. Next thing I knew I heard this 'snap' and he was gone."

"Umm...okay. Where did you 'just grab him', exactly?"

"By the throat," answered Jake. "He was human. I didn't think he'd be that fragile but I haven't gotten into a hands-on fight with a human for a long time."

Norm shut his eyes and shook his head. "You broke his neck?"

"Yeah. I didn't mean to. But it happened and they couldn't question him to find out if anyone put him up to it. They're checking the guy's visitation logs and they've brought in and questioned two people so far, but they haven't found any leads."

"Is this one going on your record too?"

"No," assured Jake. "Some of West's guards saw it happen and it's been ruled out as self-defense."

Norm breathed easier. "Thank Eywa for that. You've got to be more careful while you're in that place, Jake. You're a lot stronger than most of the other inmates and you don't need to add more to the body count."

"The guy tried to kill me," Jake reminded.

"I'm not talking about situations like that," corrected Norm. "I'm talking about jerks that might try to push your buttons and goad you into a fight. You're under a lot of pressure right now and you've got to watch it, surrounded by humans. Lose your temper once and you might snap someone's neck for mouthing off to you. Remember Phelps? There's bound to be more guys like him locked up in there with you."

Jake swore softly. "Thanks for ruining my day, Norm."

The scientist managed a smile. "I'm just trying to help you out." He approached Neytiri's hammock and he looked down at her. She was snuggled up comfortably with her daughter, still fast asleep. He hated to wake her but he knew she'd want to talk to her mate.

"Hold on a second, Jake. I'll get Neytiri up for you."

"Wait...don't wake her up," Jake protested.

"If I don't she might kill me for making her miss the transmission," Norm said seriously. He sat down on the branch and bent over carefully to tug the hammock open. He gently shook Neytiri's shoulder and murmured her name when she stirred.

"Forgive me for waking you," Norm said in Na'vi. "Jake's on the transmitter and I thought you would want to talk to him."

Neytiri sat up immediately and she climbed out of her hammock so deftly she barely rocked it. Sylwanin mumbled in her sleep and settled back down. Norm started to offer his transmitter but Neytiri was already getting hers off of her belongings rack. When she had it situated properly, Norm helped her tune it to the right frequency and he said goodbye to Jake before turning his off and letting her speak with him privately.

* * *

"Neytiri, don't worry. I'm fine."

"But that man tried to kill you," she said in a low voice, looking around at her waking clan-folk. She moved to a more private location further out on one of the branches. "There could be more like him, Jake."

"I know. They've increased security and West thinks he can have me transferred out of here in another week or so."

She sighed. "When can we come see you?"

"I don't want the kids coming until after I've been moved," Jake answered, "but as long as you bring a handful of warriors with you for security, you can come this weekend. I want you to be _extra_ careful, though. I'm sure now that West is on our side and he's going to do whatever he can to keep everyone safe, but there are people here that would be happy to see me dead or at least miserable. That's why the kids can't come while I'm in here. The prison compound is too big, with too many potential enemies."

"I understand, my Jake. I will come at the end of the week." Neytiri absently caressed the earpiece, wishing he could feel her touch. "I miss you."

"I miss you too, beautiful. I can't wait to see you. It gets lonely in here."

Neytiri nodded, sympathizing. "Being confined in metal and stone is not natural. It chokes the spirit. I hope you are getting time outside, even if it is not for very long each day."

"Don't worry, I'm getting plenty of fresh air. They actually treat me pretty good here."

"You will be better off with your people," she stubbornly insisted, "but I know I must be patient. I love you, Jake."

"I see you," he answered. She could hear the smile in his voice.

"I will let you speak with Sylwanin and Tsu'tey," Neytiri murmured, hating to end the conversation but aware that he was allowed only so much time to chat.

"That would be great," agreed Jake.

Seeing Tsu'tey already awake and moving about groggily, Neytiri opted to hand the transmitter over to him first. She walked toward the trunk and crossed over branches to meet up with the young man before he could get inside. He was all too happy to talk with his father and Gracie smiled when she saw him chatting away. Neytiri reminded her son to let Sylwanin speak to Jake when he was finished and she walked into the trunk to meet up with Ni'nat and Ralu in the den for breakfast.

* * *

When Tsu'tey finished speaking with his father over the transmission, he woke his sister up and offered the device to her. Sylwanin was adorably pleased to hear from their _Sempul_ and Tsu'tey watched with amusement as she immediately started bombarding the man on the other line with all manner of questions. He patted the girl on the shoulder and got up to join Gracie. She was just finishing slipping on her leggings when he approached their hammock and she gave him a warm smile.

"Did you have a good talk with your father?"

He nodded. "Sylwanin and I should be able to go and see him in a couple of weeks, if not sooner. He just wants to make sure it's secure enough first."

"That's probably a smart idea," approved Grace. She bit her lip. "Take a walk with me? I mean, unless you want breakfast now. It can wait until afterwards."

Tsu'tey almost said he'd rather spend time alone with her than eat, but he remembered that she hadn't had any breakfast yet either and she needed to feed herself and her little one. "Let's stop by the food stores first and get a couple of _nikt'chey _to snack on. Maybe we can forage something fresh while we're out too."

Hand in hand, they walked into the trunk and down the inner spiral column, passing clans folk on the way and wishing them good morning. They waved at their mothers and Norm when they spotted them by the fire pit and the parents smiled in response, watching them as if remembering a time when they were young and newly mated. Tsu'tey stopped by the food store alcove and he grabbed a couple of food wraps for them, picking the ones that seemed to be most fresh.

They walked out the back entrance of the den, passing over a huge, partially exposed root before hopping down and making their way through the _pa'li_ meadow. They patted the domesticated animals in passing as they walked by them and they munched on their food wraps while they went. Thankfully, Gracie rarely suffered morning sickness anymore, having almost passed that stage in her pregnancy.

Grace led their trajectory, steering them toward the colorful grove of warbonnet ferns and hanging skycups. She reached out and touched one of the large fronds in passing, running her fingers along the surface of the leaf. Tsu'tey finished his food wrap and licked his fingers, glancing sidelong at his mate. She was likewise cleaning up the juice that had dribbled out of her food wrap onto her hand. He admired the way her pink tongue delicately licked between her fingers and captured droplets of moisture. She ran her tongue over her lips when she finished and Tsu'tey looked away hastily, reacting in a way he thought wasn't appropriate.

"Is something the matter?" Grace had finished cleaning her fingers and she looked at him curiously.

Tsu'tey shook his head and forced a smile. The pinkish-orange morning light was filtering through the trees now, casting her lovely features in an ethereal glow. His throat felt tight, his mouth felt dry and his heart felt like it was pounding too fast and too hard. They were utterly alone, close enough to Hometree for an animal attack to be highly unlikely, but far enough to have plenty of privacy. In fact, as he looked around he realized that Grace had taken them into a spot off the common trail, where the undergrowth was thicker and people weren't likely to pass through. Usually such spots were for mated couples to...to...

Tsu'tey swallowed again, his eyes automatically caressing his beautiful mate's form. Her belly was starting to protrude in a way he thought was cute. The subtle rounding was attractive on her and it let the world know that she was carrying new life. He had wanted to lay his hand over her belly so often since her condition began to show, but he didn't want to take unwelcome liberties. He wasn't the biological father of the baby, after all.

Grace noticed the way his eyes settled on her abdomen and she took his hand, guiding it to the little mound of her belly. She pressed his palm over it and smiled at him, laying her hand on top of his. "It's your baby too. Your blood is in there and you'll be raising it with me."

A grateful smile curved Tsu'tey's mouth and he gladly rested his hand over the bump for a while. "We should feel it moving in another month or so, I think."

"Yes," agreed Gracie, watching him with affection in her eyes. "You're excited about that, aren't you?"

He nodded. "What about you?"

"I am too. A little scared, but happy."

Tsu'tey looked up from her belly, sobering as he met her eyes again. "I'm going to be right here by your side, through the whole thing. If you get scared, link with me and I'll share it with you."

Grace laid her palm over the left side of his face and she sighed. "Tsu'tey, I love you."

His smile lit up his eyes and he took his hand away from her stomach to put his arms around her. Maybe part of the reason Grace hadn't kissed him the way she said she would was because he wasn't giving her enough incentive. Maybe he needed to initiate things this time. Taking the chance, he lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her. He was cautious at first, trying to test the waters without seeming uncertain of himself. His confidence grew when her arms stole around his neck and he increased the pressure of his lips. He gently sought entry to her mouth with his tongue and when her lips parted, he felt a rush of excitement and triumph.

He probed the moist, silk recesses of her mouth with slow passion, always keeping in mind that this sort of interaction between them was still new. He wanted to make sure she knew he was willing to take things at _her_ pace, so he was mindful to give her chances to stop him if she wanted. One of her hands slid over his shoulder and chest, making him panic for a second with the fear that she was about to push him away. When she rubbed her palm over the skin and explored his chest instead, he relaxed. She reciprocated his kisses, her tongue dancing tenderly against his. Her other hand moved down his back, kneading and caressing the muscles and angles as her mouth made love to his.

Tsu'tey was on the verge of breaking the kiss to murmur her name, but he was enjoying the intimacy of it too much. He trusted she knew how he felt—how could she not, when the evidence of his increasing arousal was pressing against her thigh?

She took hold of his queue and pulled it over his shoulder down the front, still stroking his chest with her palm as she collected her queue and brought the tip close to his. Tsu'tey closed his eyes and groaned into her mouth as the connection was made. Grace moaned faintly in pleasure as well and she released her braid to splay her hand between his shoulder blades. Her kiss grew more aggressive, the pearly teeth nibbling at his lips as she made soft, feminine sounds of pleasure in her throat.

Inspired, he eased out of the kiss and trailed his lips over her jaw and throat, gently sucking at the skin in brief intervals. The hand on his back slid lower, until it was spread out just above his tail. He rocked his pelvis forward instinctively, pushing the bulge in his loincloth more firmly against her sleek thigh. Her tail brushed against his calf as it flicked in agitation and her lips parted to call his name.

It was the sweetest sound he'd ever heard and he kissed his way up to her ear and blew in it, having heard that many women enjoyed tickling stimulation to the spot. She shivered, her skin roughening with goose bumps as she rubbed against him with lithe sensuality. She stopped exploring his chest with her other hand and to his surprised excitement, she began to loosen the laces of her leather top. He swallowed, his groin aching with the intensity of his need. He remembered to keep kissing her throat and ear, yelling at himself when he almost went still with anticipation.

He remembered he had hands and he caught himself rolling his eyes at his own stupidity. He caressed her shoulders and back with one of them while helping her loosen her top with the other. Their fingers bumped together and Tsu'tey gasped a breathless apology. Grace shook her head and shushed him, chuckling softly at the self-annoyance she sensed through _tsahaylu._ She arched her throat meaningfully and sighed his name. Sensing through the link and her body language that she wanted more attention to the spot just beneath her ear, Tsu'tey obliged her.

"Your lips are so soft," Gracie sighed.

He almost asked if that was a bad thing but he could feel her pleasure. He smiled, happy that she enjoyed his kisses. He obligingly kept lavishing attention on the most sensitive spots of her neck, occasionally brushing his mouth against her ear and blowing into it until it twitched and she shivered. Her bodice fell to the forest floor and suddenly, he felt her firm, naked breasts rubbing against his chest. He put both arms around her and held her tight, entranced by the feel of the pebbled nipples and soft flesh pushing against him. He groaned and licked her jaw, twitching against her thigh in a surge of excitement.

"Calm down," Gracie soothed, stroking his hair. "They're just breasts, Tsu'tey."

"Sorry," he gasped, mortified. The flush in his face could be attributed to either passion or embarrassment—he wasn't sure which. "It's just...I don't have...I mean, I've never..."

How could he explain to her that to a woman, they might be 'just breasts' but to a male in his prime, they were utterly beautiful? It didn't matter that he was exposed to partially topless women and nursing mothers every day. He'd never seen hers or been this intimately exposed to them. He thought he could happily stand there all day, just holding her tight against him and feeling the firm yet cushioning mounds pressing against him.

Grace reached her free hand around behind her and caught hold of his right hand, bringing it around between their bodies. She looked into his eyes and smiled softly at him as she guided his palm to her left breast and encouraged him to fondle it. Tsu'tey did so gently, taking slow, deep breaths to keep from getting overly excited. The skin was so silken, he could hardly believe it. He circled the areola with his fingertips before rubbing the pad of his thumb over the nipple. It grew harder and Grace began to kiss his throat. He sensed her pleasure, but he also got the sense that her breasts were tender because of her condition. He refrained from squeezing when he cupped it and weighed it in his palm. He stroked it for a moment before moving his hand to the other one and giving it the same loving attention.

Her fingers slipped underneath the base of his tail and she pressed and rubbed a spot there. Tsu'tey shuddered in surprise and kissed her deeply, pausing his own explorations as the sensations spread from his tail to his pelvis to his entire body. He shut his eyes and took a deep breath, parting his lips to emit a moan. He resumed fondling her breasts and he pulled back a little to look at her with questioning, confused amber eyes.

"You didn't believe it," Gracie murmured, catching his thoughts and feelings through the link. "I wasn't sure either."

Tsu'tey could only nod in conformation. Of course, he'd heard snatches of rumors here and there. He was sure some males tried pleasuring themselves with tail stimulation as well as regular masturbation but he'd always felt silly when he started to reach for the tail. Now he knew it wasn't just a myth and he struggled to hold still for her. He kissed her again, his breath shivering against her lips between soft smooches as they explored one another. When her other hand drifted down to grip his rigid length through the loincloth, he tensed from head to toe and clenched his teeth.

Somehow, he avoided the explosion but the effort cost him. He trembled all over and panted, still on the very edge of climax. Grace's velvety lips brushed against his and she was breathing heavily as well, having experienced his dilemma through the bond. She tugged at his loincloth and he blushed, murmuring a weak protest as she pulled it down. Her eyes met his as she petted the flushed length of his sex. Her other hand was still gently stroking the underside of his tail, but the touch was much lighter and more pleasant than overwhelming.

"I've never done this before," Grace confessed.

For a second, Tsu'tey was confused and his eyebrows shot up. For a pregnant woman to say she'd never—

Then Grace knelt before him, held his erection steady in one hand and slid her lips over the end of it.

Tsu'tey looked down with huge eyes and then he lifted his head and stared at the leaves of a nearby razor palm blankly.

"Oh, you meant..." He groaned and whimpered at the same time, unable to finish the sentence as the warm suction of her mouth slipped further over his rigid length. She rubbed his tense belly with one palm while she fondled his tail with her other hand. He stepped out of the garment pooled at his feet and she shoved it aside absently.

There was no hiding how it felt; that was the beauty and wonder of _tsahaylu_ that no human could ever experience. Grace felt how each stroke of her mouth, each flick of her tongue and each sucking motion felt to him. She didn't need to ask him what felt best because she could feel what he was feeling. She moaned in her throat as she adjusted her tactics accordingly and Tsu'tey combed his fingers through her hair and tried to remain upright.

She discovered that he most enjoyed gentle scratching on the underside of his tail coupled by firm swirls of her tongue around the sensitive tip of his erection. She sucked gently as she treated him to the sensations that gave him the most pleasure and when his tension built to a bursting point, she slid her lips over the length of his shaft again and started tugging rhythmically, bobbing her head and gripping the part she couldn't fit into her mouth. She had to stop a couple of times to avoid gagging but Tsu'tey hardly minded.

A few more firm strokes of her mouth sent him over the edge.

"Oh Eywa...Grace...Gracie..._GRACIE_!"

She moaned and he felt her climaxing with him. He tried to pull away from her but it happened too fast. She choked a little but by some miracle, she didn't gag or throw up as she swallowed his libation. Tsu'tey panted and placed his hands on her shoulders for balance, shuddering helplessly as he spent himself. His softening length slipped out of her mouth as she pulled her head away and he gazed down at her warily, sensing only confusion through the link for the moment.

"I'm sorry," Tsu'tey apologized. "I tried to pull away."

She shook her head and wiped her mouth as she reached for her water skin. He relaxed as she took a sip, rinsed her mouth out and spit before taking a full drink. She was pleased with herself, happy to have experienced that with him. She rested her cheek against his thigh and sighed, reaching up to stroke his naked bottom with her fingertips.

Tsu'tey stroked her hair for a moment before kneeling down next to her. He took her into his arms and kissed her softly. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm sure," she murmured sleepily, cuddling against him. "I would give you more but—"

"This is enough for now," he assured her, nuzzling her hair. "More than I expected, to be honest."

She gave him a series of soft smooches on the lips and chin. "You're so sweet."

They held one another for a while, basking in the afterglow of shared pleasure and intimacy until it started to get more humid and hot. Tsu'tey decided they should probably bathe and get back to Hometree, but he realized something rather embarrassing after gathering Gracie's bodice for her.

"Um...do you know where my loincloth went?"

* * *

Ni'nat could tell something was different between her daughter and Tsu'tey when she saw the young couple walking through the direhorse meadow together. They had been gone for over and hour and just as she was beginning to get anxious, they appeared out of the thicker, less visited area of the surrounding forest. They held hands as they walked and their tails playfully caressed and twined together. The secretive, loving smiles that passed between them weren't so different from the ones Ni'nat shared with Norm after they mated for the first time.

Speaking of Norm, he came up behind her and rubbed her shoulders. His eyes followed her gaze and he sighed when he caught sight of the returning couple. "Well, now I can stop worrying. Ni'nat, how do you stay so calm when she hunts or takes a stroll?"

Ni'nat laid a hand over one of his. "Because she is never alone. He is always at her side when she is not with others."

"I really am paranoid," Norm grumbled. He kissed her shoulder before looking at his daughter and her mate again. "Hey, is it just me or is something different?"

Ni'nat only smiled.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Kawng swirä_ **= Evil creature


	18. Chapter 18

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 18: Inappropriate humor**

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* * *

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**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Lemon warning, silliness warning, possible trigger warning for abuse survivors. **

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

With great reluctance, Karyu decided to return home with her parents at the end of the week. She spent an entire day with Savanna, Dustin and Andrew before preparing to leave with her parents the next morning. They tried to convince Kato to go with them but he refused.

"I can't leave yet. Savanna just dropped out of school because her class mates were getting too violent with her." He looked at each of his family members in turn, standing outside the avatar longhouse waiting to leave. "I wouldn't be able to sleep, knowing there's a chance those people aren't satisfied with driving her out of the school."

Tanhi's expression darkened like a storm on the horizon. "I still don't understand why the parents in this village seem so powerless to control their young people. It is natural for a youth to act out while finding his or her way in the world, but this behavior is not acceptable."

"As much as it embarrasses me to admit it, the kids here act pretty much like the kids in public schools on Earth," Tom confessed. "Humankind is still full of fear for the unknown. Maybe we always will be."

"You say 'we'," Tanhi said, glancing at him sidelong with a little smirk, "but you have never feared the unknown, Tom."

The microbiologist shrugged modestly. "No, I go out _looking_ for it. That's part of a scientist's job, though. Your average person tends to prefer things to stay familiar and unchanged, I think."

"So it's not just the strain of being cooped up on the base?" Kato sighed. "I was kind of hoping it wasn't normal human behavior to bully that much."

"Hey, Na'vi have their bullies too," Karyu reminded sternly. "Just look at some of the bullshit Emazu put our cousins and friends through."

"Yes, but he's growing out of it," Kato answered. "The humans on base just seem to get worse."

"You may have a point," Tom said with interest, his amber gaze going to the bio-dome in the distance. "As much as they've expanded this place to accommodate population growth and a need for a sense of freedom, the colonists here are still trapped behind these walls. With the exception of military, political and research personnel, most people here don't get many chances to step outside these walls. It has to have a negative consequence on their standard of living. After a while I guess it could make some people feel like prison inmates and they'll act accordingly. Maybe the kids here _are_ a little worse off than the ones on Earth."

"At least they can see the sky," Karyu muttered, unsympathetic. "And I don't care _how_ trapped they feel—there's no pardon for how they treat Sav."

"Right," agreed Kato with a nod, compressing his lips. "But since it's so much worse than I thought it was, I need to stay here for a while longer. I need to know I can leave without someone trying to lynch my girlfriend. She can obviously defend herself if she needs to but she doesn't like to get violent. She still feels bad about beating up that girl that was picking on her."

Karyu snorted. "The stupid cow deserved every punch. Savanna has nothing to feel guilty about."

"I agree, but Sav feels differently," Kato sighed. He looked at his parents and spread his hands. "I hope you understand. I need to be here for Sav until I know she'll be okay. She's got the skills but she doesn't have the attitude, you know?"

Karyu nodded, her gaze respectful for once on him. "Attitude is everything. I think you're right. Sav's so afraid of hurting someone now, she'll let them kill her before she reacts. She needs to find her inner warrior and until she does, she's got you to watch over her."

Kato smiled and laid his hand over her slender shoulder. "I knew you'd get it." He looked uncertainly at his parents. "Do _you_ understand?"

Tom nodded and sighed, placing his hand on Kato's shoulder. "Nobody could fault you for staying, under these conditions. It seems like you and Savanna are really serious about each other and your desire to protect her is only natural."

Tanhi reached up to groom Kato's hair with her fingers in a gesture of motherly affection. "You do well, protecting your intended mate. You will contact us if anything bad happens?"

Kato smiled at her. "Of course, _Sa'nu_. Maybe I can convince her parents to let me bring Savanna back to the village again, after they've had some time with her."

Tom regarded the young man warningly. "Just don't overstep yourself, son. Remember; you might be an adult now but Savanna isn't. If you push it, her parents will be well within their rights to put up a restraining order on you. You're still dating her by their good graces, but they can withdraw that whenever they feel like it and keep you two apart until she's eighteen."

Karyu nodded in agreement with their father, giving Kato a look that said: _"See? I'm not the only one!_"

"I know," Kato sighed. "Believe me, I'm being as respectful as I possibly can to Sav's parents. I know I have to play it cool until she's old enough to be free of them."

"That is a terrible way to think of it," Tanhi lectured with a frown. "A parent is a guardian and provider, not a captor. Young people need guidance until they have earned their place as adults. It is no different with humans."

Tom smiled at his mate. "I'm glad you see that."

Tanhi shrugged. "I have nothing against the Thomas family. They look out for their daughter as any good parents should. It is a shame so many of the other humans and avatars are such poor parents."

Tom heaved a sigh and shook his head, smirking ruefully. "Well, at least you can be charitable with _some_ humans. Anyway...Kato, you need to keep it in mind that even if you think of Sebastian and Katherine as Savanna's oppressors, they are her _parents_ and her legal guardians. They have every advantage here and all you've got is your charm, understand?"

Kato shrugged and nodded grudgingly. "Yeah Dad, I understand."

"Good." Tom glanced at the two hunters that had come with his family for added protection and he caressed his mate's shoulder. "Why don't you all get the ikrans ready and I'll be there in a minute, okay?"

Knowing Tom well enough by now to guess that he wanted a private word with his son, the two hunters immediately left. Tanhi gave her son one last fierce hug before going and Karyu took her place, embracing her twin fondly and giving him a moment of uncommon public affection.

"I'm surprised you haven't given Savanna a hard time for dropping out of school," Kato muttered to his sister as he hugged her and patted her back.

Karyu pulled away and gazed up at him thoughtfully. "Ordinarily I'd say she was letting the bullies win, but I know Sav as well as you do. She's not violent, Kato. Personally, I wouldn't care if she snapped someone's neck but Sav couldn't live with herself. She's probably doing the best thing for her."

Kato smirked at her. "You kind of sound like _Sa'nok_."

Karyu grimaced. "But with a better sense of humor, I hope. Take care of yourself, little brother. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"Which is what, exactly?" Kato grinned and ruffled her braids.

She swatted irritably at him. "Make a fool of myself over a pair of legs, for starters. You're a walking hormone."

Kato's grin only grew broader. "Yeah? What about a pair of green eyes, Sis?"

Karyu faltered and pursed her lips. She glanced at Tom, who was thankfully busy checking the weather forecast on his satellite device. "I'm not going to dignify that with an answer."

Kato laughed. "Because you don't have one. You might not want to admit it, but you're slowly turning to the dark side. Soon, you'll be a 'walking hormone' too and I'll finally have my revenge for all the times you've picked on me."

"Keep dreaming," she snorted. She turned away from him and gave him a dismissive wave as she walked toward the gate, following the path their mother and the other hunters had taken.

Kato grinned after her for a moment and then turned his attention to his father. Tom had put away his device and he was looking at Kato thoughtfully, his expression sober and concerned.

"Is something wrong?" Kato regarded Tom with mild curiosity. "I don't know how much more you can say on the matter. You made your opinion pretty clear."

Tom leaned closer to him and affixed him with a stern look. "I want you to forget about any ideas you might be toying with concerning taking Savanna off this base without her parents' permission. I don't want to get a call telling me the two of you have eloped into the wilds, got it?"

Kato grumbled beneath his breath. "Karyu already had this talk with me. I didn't realize my thoughts were so obvious."

Tom shrugged. "Your sister and I know you better than most. I know that if you decide to do something rash, you're going to find a way to do it before anyone can stop you. I'm asking you not to, son."

Pacified by his father's combination of advice and flattery, Kato nodded in compliance. "I promise, I'll do everything I can to respect her family, unless circumstances _force_ me to take action. I don't want my future in-laws to hate me, Dad. I just want my Savanna safe."

Tom smiled at him and sighed, settling his hands on his shoulders as he looked into the younger male's eyes. "In some ways you're like me but in others, you're like your Uncle Jake. He's as bullheaded as you when it comes to defending people...especially the ones he cares about."

"That's a compliment," Kato said, beaming. "You know I've always looked up to Uncle Jake...and Tommy. Karyu's cut of the same cloth as them but I'll never have that sort of leadership instinct."

"Who says you have to?" Tom patted Kato's shoulder and gave him a proud look. "You're going to make your own mark in this world and I know that whatever it is, it's going to be exceptional. It's too bad I can't convince you to get more involved in the research here, since you're going to be staying..." He trailed off and coughed meaningfully.

Kato laughed. "If someone offers or asks me to help, sure I will."

"That's fair enough," Tom chuckled. He glanced in the direction where the women of their family went with the other hunters and he sighed again. "Well, I'd better join them and get moving. It's going to be strange going home without you, but we'll just have to adjust."

Kato felt a sudden swell of emotion and his eyes went to the gate in the distance, where his mother and sister were making their exit with the other hunters in their travel party. His family had always done everything together. He had never been separated from any of them for long...particularly his twin.

"Yeah, it's going to be weird."

Tom studied him quietly before speaking again. "You know if you want to change your mind, we can wait for you to get your things and say goodbye to Savanna."

Kato shook his head immediately. "No. I've got to stay. Our family just isn't used to separation, but we're all strong. We'll manage."

"I don't know what made me think you'd change your mind." Tom smirked ruefully. "So much for my original theory that puppy love was the only thing between you two."

"Maybe it was at first," admitted Kato, "but not now. She means too much to me."

Tom nodded. "Then take care of her and watch yourself, too. Don't hesitate to contact us if things start getting bad, son. Your mother and I are willing to sit down and discuss options with the Thomas family, if living here starts posing too much of a danger for her. Sebastian told me he's going to the school board to take action against the bullies, but at this point he may not accomplish much."

"They obviously can't keep it under control," agreed Kato. "Or they just don't worry as much about bullying against Sav, since she's a hybrid."

Tom scowled, showing an uncommon side of aggression. "I hope for their sake they aren't allowing racial prejudice to get in the way of their duty to the young people in this colony. Keep us updated, Kato."

"I will. Have a safe trip home and contact me when you make it there so I'll know nothing went wrong."

"Of course." Tom looked him up and down for a moment and then he hugged him. "I'm proud of you. Just stay out of trouble if you can."

Kato returned the embrace and smiled. "I can't make any promises, but I'll try."

Father and son separated and spared each other one last fond smile before Tom turned and began walking to the south gate. Kato watched him go and he took a deep breath. This moment made him truly appreciate his family—particularly his father, who had always been down to earth and rational. Tom never tried to steer the twins in a direction he preferred, allowing them instead to grow into their own people. The only exception was when he thought they were about to do something stupid or dangerous, of course. He probably saved them from doing irreparable damage to themselves on more than one occasion. It occurred to Kato that he'd never thanked Tom for being such a patient father with them.

"Dad?"

Tom paused and turned to regard him questioningly.

"Thanks." Kato swallowed an annoying lump in his throat.

Tom frowned in confusion. "For what?"

The young man smiled a little. "For not putting pressure on us to be what you wanted. I know you would have liked one of us to follow in your footsteps and I just want you to know we _both_ appreciate your restraint, even if we don't tell you the way we should."

Tom smirked again and shook his head. "You kids were under enough pressure, being the children of the _Olo'eyktan_. I trust you to know what you want in life and like I said: you'll make your mark in this world your own way."

Kato relaxed a little. "Take care of Sis and _Sa'nok_."

"As much as they'll let me," Tom answered with dry humor. "I'll talk to you when we make it home."

* * *

After his family left, Kato started the long walk back to the other side of the colony, where the bio-dome sheltered the civilian community. He likely couldn't visit Savanna yet; she would be in "class" with one of her parents. Katherine and Sebastian took shifts home schooling their daughter now, though they could have probably found a retired educator that would be willing to do it for a fee. Kato honestly wondered when the couple found time for themselves these days and part of him felt sorry for them. Between their work on the base, educating their daughter and trying to bring some semblance of justice to the school board, they had their hands more than full.

Kato almost offered to help tutor Savanna but he realized how insulting that would come off—especially to Savanna. Helping with her homework was one thing but to outright offer to instruct her might give the impression that he thought he was superior. Savanna was brilliant in ways he could never match and he wanted her to know that. He didn't want to make her feel stupid in any way, so he just kept quiet and waited, willing to help if asked but avoiding overstepping himself.

He made it just past the military barracks when Baxter Howell spotted him. The marine stopped inspecting his transport rover and hollered out to him. "Hey Kato, do you have a minute?"

Kato turned and regarded the other male as Baxter jogged over to him. The green eyes that so enthralled his sister were concealed behind a pair of shades and Howell's semi-unruly, tumbled hair was kept tame beneath an army cap. He really wasn't a bad guy. If Howell flirted a little with Savanna that day, Kato supposed he couldn't blame him. He wasn't psychic so he couldn't have known she was in a relationship. Plus, Savanna was beautiful and Kato could perfectly understand a compulsion to hit on her. He cut the guy a break and gave him a friendly smile.

"Sure, I can spare a minute. What's up?"

Baxter stopped before him and cast a quick look around. "Your sister isn't nearby, is she?"

"No, she left just a few minutes ago with my parents. They're going back home."

Baxter's face underwent an interesting series of expressions as he absorbed this information. "Oh. Why aren't you with them?"

"Because my girlfriend just dropped out of public school to get away from bullies," answered Kato candidly, "and I'm staying around to make sure they don't try anything with her again."

Baxter's eyebrows went up. "Savanna's been getting picked on? Why?"

For a second, Kato only stared at the other male, suspecting sarcasm. The sincere concern and curiosity in Baxter's expression convinced him the man really didn't understand why anyone would pick on Sav. He didn't come across as a stupid person but Kato suspected that like himself, Howell was a bit air-headed.

"Because of her heritage. Humans and avatar kids alike don't accept her because she's half-and-half. Maybe they'd be just as prejudiced against each other if they didn't have a hatred for Savanna in common."

Kato blinked, realizing he was starting to sound more and more like his father. He cleared his throat. "So anyhow, why hasn't the military done something about this shit?"

"School bullying?" asked Baxter.

Kato nodded.

"Because we aren't here to babysit a bunch of asshole teenagers and children," answered the marine dryly, shrugging. "Look, I'm sorry your girlfriend's been getting singled out. I know keeping peace and order in the colony is part of our jobs but MP's can only do so much. We've got our hands full keeping Pandora wildlife from getting into this compound and attacking civilians. We've got criminals roaming the streets, a black market we've got to bring down and diplomatic bullshit to deal with regularly. It sounds to me like your beef is with the schoolboard. I thought they had security to handle this kind of thing."

"They've got security in the building," sighed Kato, "but they can't be everywhere at once and after the students leave school grounds—"

"It's a free-for-all," guessed Baxter with a frown. "I remember Ellis telling me about catching a group of girls picking on Savanna once. He put a stop to it but I guess prejudice doesn't die so easily."

"I guess not," agreed Kato. "Sorry for taking it out on you. It was stupid of me to suggest the military put armed guards in the school building."

"Your girl's been getting picked on and you can't kick ass like you want to," excused Baxter with a grin. "I think it's natural to put some blame on the people here to protect the colony. You don't need to apologize."

"You're not easy to piss off, are you?" Kato looked the other male up and down, trying to figure him out.

"I guess I don't do anger well," admitted Howell. "I think it's kind of useless, don't you? Who gets hurt when you lose your temper? Usually it's you or someone you care about, instead of the person that deserves it. An electric fence reminded me of that in a bad way."

Kato grimaced, remembering what happened to put Baxter in the position of waking up displaced and disoriented. "That's one hell of a way to learn anger management."

Baxter huffed a laugh and shrugged, spreading his hands. "Well, at least it shocked some sense into me. It took me a few days to believe it though. I thought I got hit by lightning. It's kind of humbling to wake up and hear you made an ass of yourself trying to climb an electric fence, you know?"

"I'll bet." Kato grinned. "So, you don't remember what Phelps said to make you do that?"

Baxter sobered and looked away, his mouth curving into a frown. "I was drunk, but not drunk enough, apparently. I still remember _that_."

Kato regarded him curiously, thinking of the woman they'd seen Baxter with the other day. He made a guess based on what Phelps nearly did to his mother and the behavior he'd witness from the man before his demise. "Did he insult your girl?"

Howell nodded. "In the worst possible way, and I was already in a mood when he did it."

"What did he say?"

Baxter looked at him sidelong and shook his head. "I won't repeat it around ladies and children, man."

Kato looked around and saw the other male's point. Naturally, the streets weren't empty and though most of them were in uniform, some of the people going about their daily business were women. One of the human women was heavily pregnant and in civilian clothing. A boy around the age of six walked at her side—obviously her son.

Kato smiled a little. Karyu would have rolled her eyes at Howell's attempt at chivalry but Kato found it comforting. If Baxter didn't want to repeat something foul in the presence of women or children, odds were he was too noble to take advantage of Karyu's confused feelings toward him. Speaking of his tenacious, bull-headed twin, Kato remembered that Howell asked if she was nearby when he approached to speak with him. He also remembered the swift blur of expressions the marine's face underwent when he found out Karyu had gone. Putting two and two together, Kato made his best guess on the subject of Howell's interest.

"So, you wanted to ask me something about Karyu?

Baxter looked startled, his eyebrows going up a little as he looked at the male twin head-on. "Well, yeah. I didn't realize it was that obvious."

Kato shrugged. "The way you asked if she was nearby gave me the impression you didn't want her to hear what you have to say. I drew my own conclusion."

Baxter sighed and took his cap off to comb his fingers through his hair, loosening the sweat-dampened locks. The day was growing hotter and the cap must have been getting uncomfortable. "This dream she had...or vision...whatever. She really saw me in it?"

Kato was about to answer him but he paused, studying the other male curiously. "Why are you so interested in this? Most terran-born people would just shrug it off as hokey native superstition."

The marine shrugged and tried to look casual. "Because it involves me and I'm trying to understand why she acts so spastic around me. No offense."

Kato resisted a grin. "None taken. You think she's spastic?"

"Around me, she is," answered Howell. "What, is that her on a normal day?"

"No, you're right. She acts differently around you."

Baxter nodded. "That's what I thought. So, did she tell you what I did in this vision of hers?"

"You weren't really 'doing' anything," explained Kato. "The way she told it, she saw your face and then she saw fire. Or maybe she saw you standing in front of or by some kind of fire. She never really cleared that up for me."

"That's it? Just me and some fire?" Howell scratched his head. "Maybe she has me confused with someone else."

Kato shook his head. "No, I don't think so."

"Why not?"

Kato gave the other male an incredulous look, pointedly glancing at his shades. "I don't know how many other green-eyed Na'vi or avatars you've met, but you're the first we've ever seen."

Baxter parted his lips to argue, but then he shrugged. "Good point. I keep forgetting about that because everyone here is used to seeing all kinds of different eye colors—at least on humans. I guess the novelty is lost on them."

"How did that happen, anyway?"

"Just a fluke in the genetic design of my avatar," answered Baxter. "Green eyes have always been super dominant in my family. I just passed it on to my avatar. The docs said it's unusual for drivers to pass on pigment traits but they've seen it a couple of times before."

"So you have more human in you than other avatars?" Kato asked.

Baxter shook his head. "No, they just didn't balance some of the chromosomes right when they designed this body. Call it a flaw."

Kato could have told him that his sister and a lot of other females would probably disagree with the adjective "flaw" to describe Baxter's eyes. Between his bone structure and the shade of his irises, Baxter Howell drew female attention more than he admitted.

"Well, Karyu recognized you right away when she saw a picture of you hanging on one of the walls in the military wing—one that was taken when you were still in your human body, as a matter of fact. She recognized every feature on your face, even though she only saw your avatar in her vision."

"You're serious." Baxter looked as though he was slightly disturbed.

Kato smiled a little. "My sister is creative, but her imagination isn't that vivid. She couldn't have dreamed up such a detailed persona if she tried. You _were_ in her vision and you've got some part to play in her future. That's what scares her so much—the not knowing. She's just trying to figure you out."

"She's afraid I'm going to do something to hurt the natives, isn't she?" Baxter reasoned. "I mean, if she saw some kind of fire burning in the background and she knows the military has access to all sorts of explosives. That's it, isn't it?"

Kato was surprised by the man's intuition and it took him a moment to recover and answer him. "In a nutshell, yeah. I think there's more to it than that but you've got the basic gist of it."

Baxter visibly relaxed. "That's good to know."

Kato wanted to ask him why it was so important to him—though he strongly suspected the marine was as drawn to Karyu as she was to him. He didn't get the chance, though. The little boy they saw earlier seemed to come from out of nowhere, tugging at Baxter's pant-leg urgently. Both men looked down at the child, having been so absorbed in their discussion they failed to notice him coming.

"Hey little man," Baxter said with a friendly smile, kneeling before the boy. "What's up? Did you get separated from your Mommy?"

The little boy shook his head, his eyes flicking to Kato with awe and curiosity he couldn't quite hide. "She's sick. She said to go find a soldier person for help."

Baxter's expression went from warm to worried. "Where is she?"

The little boy pointed down the street, toward the recreation building. "That way. She had to sit down. Hurry, mister!" The child took off running, motioning pleadingly for the men to follow him.

Kato and Baxter immediately followed and they were forced to shorten their strides to avoid running over the little human. Soon they were walking at a brisk pace rather than running, because the boy's short legs wouldn't allow him to move faster than that, even at top speed. Baxter bent down and scooped the child into his arms.

"Just point me in the right direction, kid."

The little boy nodded and held onto his exopack mask as the avatar soldier sprinted over the cement, heading where he indicated. Kato ran at Baxter's side and he was the first to spot the pregnant woman sitting between buildings on the ground. She was clutching her belly and she appeared to be breathing in short pants.

"I see her," announced Kato with a gesture. "She's between the rec building and one of the supply sheds."

* * *

Baxter understood why the mother told her son to look for someone in uniform when she collapsed. He wouldn't have wanted his child to run up to just any stranger for help either, were he a parent. It was no different than telling a child to look for a police officer or security guard when lost. What he didn't understand was why the child came straight to him, when there were other military personnel moving about closer to his mother's location.

"Ma'am, are you all right?"

The woman looked to be in her late twenties and she had brown hair and blue eyes. She looked up at the avatar and his Na'vi companion as they approached and her expression was slightly alarmed beneath the clear mask.

"It's okay," Baxter soothed as he set the little boy on the ground. "I'm Corporal Howell, Marine Corps. This is my friend Kato. I know he looks kind of scary but he's harmless." Baxter shot a wink Kato's way when the hunter grumbled in annoyance. "Can you tell me where you're hurt?"

"It's the baby," answered the woman, rubbing her rounded belly over the stretchy material of her purple shirt. "I think its coming. I started having contractions this morning but they haven't been bad, until now."

* * *

Kato was impressed with the way Baxter handled the situation, until the human woman informed them she was going to have her baby. Howell's jaw dropped and he tore his sunglasses off to look the woman up and down with wide green eyes.

"You've been walking around in labor?"

Kato could have told him that a lot of women walked around while preparing for a birth, but the lady answered the question first. "I wasn't _in_ labor," she panted, "at least, not before! The walking helps with the back pain." She groaned and clenched her teeth, breathing rapidly as her belly hardened again. Her son stroked her hair and asked if she was okay in a frightened voice.

"Where the hell is the father?" demanded Baxter, reaching up to adjust his transmitter unit.

"He's out with the maintenance team," answered the woman through her teeth, "Doing inspections on the filtering plants in the area. Just...get me to the infirmary!"

Kato looked down and cleared his throat. "Uh...I think her water just broke."

Baxter's eyes followed his pointing gesture and when he saw the liquid pooling around the woman, he swore. "Oh shit...oh shit. Here, just let me...one sec..." He hastily finished fiddling with his transmitter and he started speaking into it. "This is Howler, requesting immediate transport and a med team for—"

"What are you _doing_?" Kato hissed. "It's a woman in labor, not an invading army! The medical facilities are only a few blocks away and we can carry her there."

Baxter swallowed. "Right...okay." He released the transmitter button, knelt beside the woman and bent over to scoop her up. "Put your arms around my neck, Ma'am. Just try to hold it in 'till we get there, okay?"

The woman looked at him as if he'd just told a bad joke. "I'll...try."

"It's not going to just come shooting out of her like a cannon...oh, forget it." Kato could tell by the panicked look on Baxter's face that nothing he said right now would get through to the other male.

"Mommy?" The little boy was trying to climb up Baxter's leg to be with his mother as the marine picked her up.

"Kato, grab the kid," Baxter ordered.

"Go with the Na'vi warrior, Cody," encouraged the laboring woman with a strained smile at her son. "It's okay. This is your chance."

Kato briefly wondered what she meant by that but there was no time. He gave the boy what he hoped was a reassuring smile as he squatted down and motioned to him. The kid looked at the beads woven into his hair and the weapon harness on his torso before going to him. "Are you a _real_ Na'vi warrior?"

Kato noticed the leather and beadwork necklace around the boy's neck and he smiled, realizing he'd just met a small admirer of the People. He decided to test him a little. "_Srane, 'eveng_. _Olo'ikran._"

"The Ikran clan?" repeated the boy in delight.

Kato nodded, impressed. Not many human children this age would have understood his response. Hell, most adults wouldn't have understood two words. Baxter took off with the laboring woman at alarming speed and Kato followed, trying not to jostle the boy in his arms. He had to hand it to the marine, he ran as fast as any hunter—possibly faster than most, in fact.

* * *

"Aren't you supposed to be in class?" Max gave his son a severe look as the young man approached him in the hallway of the research wing.

"I was, but I checked on the relays from the geological monitoring stations between classes and I found this. Please, take a look, Dad." He handed over a holopad to Max.

The biologist looked at the screen and frowned. "Interesting."

"See? There's a definite energy spike." Dustin pointed out the anomaly on the data reading displayed on the holopad. "Tell me I'm wrong."

Max peered at the data and nodded in agreement. "You aren't wrong, son. We've got a CME coming and it's going to cause a heck of an auroral storm over this territory. How long do you think we have until it starts?"

Dustin looked surprised. "_You're_ asking _me_?"

Max smiled at the young man, amused. "Of course. My specialty is biology. You're the one with the geologist instincts."

Obviously flattered by the praise, Dustin flushed a bit and looked over the information again, thinking carefully before answering. "I estimate we should have until ten pm before the EM storms get bad. I know we've got channeling rods in place all over the colony, but I think we should tell people to be indoors by eight just to be safe."

"I agree." Max squeezed the younger man's shoulder in a fatherly gesture of affection before handing the device back and searching for his phone. "I'll just call your mo—"

"_Look out! Move people, I've got a woman in labor here!_"

Max and Dustin turned at the sound of the shouting voice and they jumped aside hastily, narrowly avoiding being run over by a blur of khaki, cyan and black. Max caught enough of a glimpse to recognize Corporal Howell, carrying a pregnant human woman whose blue eyes were huge with terror. She was yelling at her benefactor to slow down as Baxter disappeared around a corner with her.

"That's the _research wing_," shouted another male voice.

Max saw Kato Sully running after the vanished marine, carrying a small human boy in his arms. There was a sound of rubber squeaking against tiles and then rapid footsteps returned from down the hall Baxter had chosen. A nurse gave the marine a nasty look when he nearly ran into her med cart and Baxter blurted a hasty apology.

"Where's the maternity ward?" yelled Baxter, startling a passing doctor enough to make him grab at his chest.

Max got over his initial surprise and decided to bring the situation under control. "Calm down, Corporal. We can take it from here." He motioned to a nurse. "Bring a wheelchair for this lady, would you?"

Howell took a few deep breaths and Kato came up beside him and lowered the boy to the floor. "The contractions are pretty close together and her water broke just before we brought her here," explained the ikran hunter.

The nurse brought the wheelchair over and Max coaxed Howell to ease his burden into it. "She's going to be all right," he promised. "We'll get her into a room and seen to right away."

Baxter nodded convulsively, green eyes still wide and worried. Despite his obvious anxiety, he was ever so gentle with the woman in his arms as he lowered her into the wheelchair. "I'm sorry if I was going too fast," he apologized to her. "I don't know much about this sort of thing and I wanted to get you to a doctor right away."

"You passed...about half a dozen...while you were trying to break the sound barrier," she informed him between pants, squeezing the first two fingers of his hand in her labor distress. "But you got me here...and I'm grateful. C-Cody?" She looked around for her son and the child went to her side quickly.

"Do you want us to contact the father?" Max inquired as they prepared to wheel her away.

The woman nodded and gave him the information. She looked up at Baxter and Kato once more before they took her away. "Thank you both."

* * *

After leaving the research and medical building, Kato and Baxter prepared to part ways. "I don't think I've ever seen anyone move that fast on foot," Kato admitted with a smirk.

"Yeah, I blew my cool," sighed Baxter. He looked up at the gathering clouds and took his shades off.

"You think?" Kato chuckled. "Do you remember telling her to 'hold it in'?"

"Yeah, I panicked." Baxter was starting to blush. "The water breaking usually means the kid is coming fast though, right?"

"Not always," answered Kato. "Sometimes they don't even break until after the baby is born. Next time, don't panic like that. Birth takes time and babies don't just fall out of women the second the water breaks, no matter what you've seen on TV."

Baxter laughed. "'Next time'? There better not _be_ a 'next time' for something like that, unless it's my wife having a baby."

"So you want a mate and kids someday?" Kato found himself unwittingly picturing a gaggle of green-eyed little Na'vi children with his sister's attitude. He snorted before he could stop himself.

Baxter didn't seem to notice the concealed snicker. "Well, yeah. Some day. How about you?"

"I definitely want a mate...or a wife...whatever you want to call it," answered Kato, thinking of Savanna with a little smile.

Baxter nodded. "No kids?"

Kato shrugged, considering the odds against he and Savanna ever conceiving. He supposed if her parents could do it, they could as well. "It's not something I'm going to try to plan. I'd be happy just living with the woman I love as my mate."

"That's probably the best attitude to have," approved Baxter. "If you're not sure you can love someone with or without kids, you probably shouldn't be with them. I like that. Maybe I'll borrow that attitude."

Kato shrugged. He hadn't thought of it as a philosophy for others. His situation wasn't common, after all. "If you want."

Baxter glanced at his watch. "I'd better get back to my rounds. Thanks for helping me out with that lady, Sully." He offered his hand.

Kato shook the offered hand and smiled. "No problem. See you around, Howell."

* * *

_Later that evening, at UNEC:_

Neytiri looked at the storm in the distance, watching the electricity dance through the heavy clouds. There was no thunder to accompany the lightning; this was not a rainstorm. The electromagnetic disturbance likely wouldn't have a great impact on the UNEC colony, as the heart of it was close to Omaticaya territory. The journey had been long and tiring but her travel party fortunately made it out of range before the dangerous storm began to brew. She took a deep breath and glanced at her companions. Norm and Ni'nat had come with her, of course. Emazu sent five of their best warriors with as well. The handful of allies around her didn't comfort Neytiri much, though.

"I am sure Grace and Tsu'tey are keeping their little sisters safely inside the den tonight," Ni'nat murmured to her, also looking at the growing disturbance on the darkened horizon. "They are very responsible, sister."

Neytiri nodded in agreement, relaxing slightly. Yes, her son and Grace weren't likely to allow either of the girls to leave the safety of the inner trunk until the storm was over with. Forks of blue, purple and white flickered through the sky, sometimes passing one another and sometimes merging in a flash. The lack of thunder was somewhat eerie and the warm breeze that came in from the direction of the storm stirred Neytiri and Ni'nat's braids. Neytiri heard a clicking sound beside her and she looked up at Norm, frowning. He had his picture-taking device out and he was clicking away, capturing images of the storm.

"Sorry," apologized Norm when he noticed her annoyance. He gave her a sheepish half-grin. "It's been a long time since we had one of these so close. I'm still a scientist at heart."

Neytiri couldn't retain annoyance with him. She almost smiled at the inquisitive delight in his eyes and she saw Ni'nat's fond grin on him. When it came to the unknown or mysterious, Norm Spellman still had a child's enthusiasm at times. It was endearing in its way.

"_Tsahik_, we must be prepared," cautioned one of the hunters that had come with them. She looked at the gates of the compound, where the guards waited for them.

The Omaticaya party was expected, of course. It was not only a matter of gathering their things and walking through the gates. Not one of them appeared eager to take the first step and Neytiri couldn't blame them. When visiting Hell's Gate, they knew most of the humans and avatars around them were friendly and trustworthy. This was not the case with UNEC. They were about to move into an unfamiliar compound full of unfamiliar people. The people that killed Tommy came from this place.

"We are with you," reminded one of the male hunters when Neytiri shut her eyes. "You are not alone."

She nodded and opened her eyes again to stare grimly at the gate. "We should get inside. Ni'nat, Norm, you should stay here with the ikrans."

"No," said Norm firmly, putting his picture-taking device away. "I _told_ you, we're here to be at your side and support you and Jake. We're not here to watch the mounts like some sidekicks in a cowboy movie."

Everyone in the party looked at Norm with raised eyebrows. Realizing they didn't get the reference, he cleared his throat. "Ni'nat and I aren't staying behind, okay?"

Neytiri considered him, half-annoyed and half-grateful. She knew that if something went wrong, Norm might find a solution without using violence. She gave a curt nod, remembering how much the tall man had already done for her people. "Very well. We all go in together."

"Look," Ni'nat said, pointing at the gates.

They were opening and a rover vehicle was coming out. It stopped at the edge of the forest and the doors opened. The Omaticaya party formed a defensive formation around Neytiri as the spotlights on top of the vehicle beamed into the forest and human forms climbed out of the rover.

"Neytiri?"

Beside his mate, Norm relaxed and lowered his bow. "It's General West."

Neytiri eased past her companions and approached, fighting the instinct to stay concealed as she moved through the vegetation and came out of the forest's protective cover. "I am here, General."

The familiar silhouette approached and Neytiri blinked against the brightness of the spotlights, while her companions joined her side and surrounded her immediately. The human figure paused and turned to make a cutting motion with his hand. The spotlights dimmed and Neytiri was finally able to make out West's face. He wasn't attractive by her standards, but there was a certain dignity and wisdom in his features that Neytiri found comforting. She softly reassured her people and asked them to lower her weapons before approaching him.

"Neytiri, Ma'am," General West greeted with a respectful nod. "I came as soon as I got word that your party was spotted. If you and your people will come with me on the rover, I think it would be best."

She narrowed her eyes. "Why should we ride in that metal thing?"

West motioned at his companions to go back to the rover and he affixed her with a serious gaze. "It's for your safety and your mate insisted on it."

Neytiri considered the things she'd heard Jake say about the risk of hidden enemies. She looked into West's eyes and she nodded. "I will explain to my people. I hope our trust in you is not misplaced, General."

* * *

Neytiri couldn't get over the vastness of the UNEC colony. It was at least twice as large as Hell's Gate and it boasted a bio-dome for the civilian population to cultivate and multiply as well. There was a soldier sitting between her and the reinforced window for safety, but he obligingly leaned back so that she could look through the bulletproof glass. The grinding of the gears set her teeth on edge and she almost pinched her nose shut as the smell of city production reached her nostrils. Not wishing to be rude to her hosts, she endured the stink, though inwardly she wondered why these people weren't employing the same waste management as Hell's Gate. Bigger evidently wasn't better or more efficient.

Norm leaned close to her and whispered his opinion in Na'vi as they rode through the compound, inadvertently sharing some of her thoughts. "They should do something about their waste. The smell is making me sick."

Neytiri nodded. "Agreed. They lack the care that our friends put into their home."

"They have more machines," Ni'nat observed, "but they have only a few Dreamwalkers."

Neytiri noticed that as well. Hell's Gate was behind on mechanical technology but thanks to Dr. Patel's efforts and the reproduction of the avatar operatives, they had staff that could adapt to any environment.

"Hell's Gate has it for biological science," Norm muttered. "But these people have major firepower. Avatars are flesh and blood, so they aren't much of an asset against Scorpion model gunship. Don't forget how dangerous this place is."

Neytiri personally didn't see how it was possible for anyone to forget how dangerous this place was. Every time she looked out the window, she saw patrols consisting of both foot soldiers and AMP suits marching the streets. There were heavily armed turrets, spotlights beaming into the skies, blaring announcements over loud speakers and an overall sense of carefully constructed oppression. The people in UNEC didn't seem to even trust each other.

At least, that was how Neytiri and her companions saw it.

* * *

After West got the others settled in, he escorted Neytiri to Jake's cell and left the couple alone for the night, giving strict orders that nobody was to disturb them unless Jake called for something.

Neytiri smiled at her mate when the door shut behind her and he stood up from his sleeping cot. Jake took a deep breath and smiled back at her. Neytiri was amazed by how much a simple smile from the man could make her heart pound so strongly, after three children and twenty years together. She gladly met him halfway as he came to her and they embraced, holding each other tightly. Jake's fingers threaded into her hair and he nuzzled her temple, breathing in the scent of her. She likewise re-familiarized herself with his masculine scent, reveling in his closeness.

"I brought food for you," Neytiri informed him, kissing his chest and throat. "Here, it is in my pouch."

Jake allowed her to pull away and when she retrieved the food wrap she had brought for him, she opened it and gave him a rueful smile of embarrassment. "They would not let me bring it until they inspected it, my Jake."

He looked down at the mutilated _nikt'chey _she offered to him and he laughed outright. Neytiri fought a grin herself, finding her mate's humor infectious as always. "I don't see what is so amusing," she said in as stern a tone as she could muster, "they have ruined it."

Jake shook his head and pinched up a portion of the vegetable, fruit and nut mixture. He brought it to his mouth and dropped it in, licking his fingers after chewing and swallowing. "It's fresh, real Na'vi food. I don't care what it looks like." He lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her soundly on the lips.

Neytiri smiled against his mouth and she didn't object when he asked her to sit on the floor with him. He had a pallet of sorts laid out there, made up of bed sheets. A quick glance at the cot ensured her that he hadn't used his own bedding to make the pallet. They must have brought the extra sheets for him. He tried to get her to share the food wrap she'd brought but she refused.

"It is for you, my Jake. I have already eaten. Tomorrow I will hunt with the others and with Eywa's blessing, I will bring you back some fresh meat." She set the wrap between them, within easy reach for him.

Jake started to caress her face and then remembered that he'd been eating with his fingers. He gave her another kiss to show his gratitude and he pinched another bite of food from the leaf wrap. "This tastes great," he complimented between bites, rapidly devouring the offering until there was nothing left.

Neytiri felt bad for not bringing more. She'd been so fixated on seeing him again, she hadn't taken the time to prepare extra _nikt'chey_. "I will bring you more tomorrow," she promised.

Jake stopped licking his fingers and he smirked. "They _do_ feed me in here, you know. I might act like a starving man but that's just because I haven't had some good clan food since I came here."

"They may feed you but it is not good food," she insisted with a sigh. "Jake, I wish—"

"None of that," he interrupted softly. He brushed his fingertips over her lips. "I made this choice for a reason and we've talked about it until we're blue in the...uh...well, we've already been over it. They actually treat me pretty good here and the food isn't any worse than it was in the military. Here, let me show you something."

He got up and offered his hand to hers. Neytiri took it and allowed him to help her to her feet. Jake guided her over to a large piece of cloth hanging from a metal rod pinned into the back wall of the room, at the foot of his bed. He pulled on a cord and the cloth slid aside, revealing a large, clear window.

"See? I even have a view." Jake let go of the cord and waited while she inspected the window. "It's not _much_ of a view, since the compound surrounding this building blocks out the sight of everything but the mountains, but it's better than nothing."

Neytiri pressed her hands against the cool, smooth surface of the glass. He was right about the structures and buildings dominating the view, but the mountains in the distance were a nice reminder that there was a natural world beyond the human-made walls. The flashes of electro-magnetic light on the horizon flickered against the far hills and mountains.

Neytiri tapped the glass experimentally. "They are not afraid you may break it and escape?"

"It's reinforced," Jake told her with a smirk. "If I tried to bust through that, I'd knock myself out cold."

"You have a very hard head." She kept her expression serious as she looked over her shoulder at him. "They do not know you at all, my Jake."

Jake approached slowly and a mischievous smile lit his handsome features. "If I wanted to break out of here, I'd have my mate give that window a dirty look. She'd shatter it in seconds."

Neytiri feigned an indignant look. "Are you saying I am ugly?"

"Nope, just scary enough to break glass when you're mad." Jake put his arms around her from behind and pretended to attack her neck, making her laugh. His teeth playfully nipped at her shoulder and the side of her throat, while his arms held her tight against him to prevent escape.

"Jake, stop your playing," Neytiri remonstrated, squirming in his hold. "This is not the time for such foolishness!"

To her surprise and hidden disappointment, Jake did release her. He sighed, deflating. His playful mood evaporated as she turned around to look at him and he seemed troubled. "You're right. Now isn't the time for me to goof off. I just miss you and I didn't want to spend our time together talking about things that depress us both. Here, why don't you have a set on the bed and we can talk?"

Neytiri looked at the structure he indicated and she frowned. While it didn't look to be any worse than a hospital bed or one of the bunks in the avatar cabin, she still disliked human bedding and seating. It always seemed to want to force the user to sit in a certain position for comfort.

"I will sit on the pallet you made," Neytiri sighed. She assumed that she and Jake would be using it as their bedding while she was there, as well.

"Please?" Jake asked cajolingly, making a sweeping gesture at the mattress. "It's a lot more comfortable than it looks. Just try it out. The floor is cold and hard and those sheets don't do much to insulate it. It won't be like sitting on the ground, gorgeous."

Neytiri sighed and bit her lip. Jake wasn't wrong about how uncomfortable the cold tile floor was. She'd tried to ignore it when she sat down with him during his meal but it was like sitting on un-naturally smooth, level rock. There was also the faint chemical smell of disinfectant, probably left over from the most recent cleaning of the room. While she was glad his cell wasn't filthy, it had a sterile feel to it that made her think of a hospital.

"Very well. I will sit on the bed." Neytiri walked over to the cot and she eased down onto the edge of it. She bounced a little in experimental surprise. It _was_ more comfortable than she though...springy. She wondered how many other prisoners enjoyed such small luxuries and she found it ironic that most of them were wasted on a man like Jake. He could have made himself comfortable in a hole, if he had to.

"Scoot over a little more," advised Jake. "Toward the pillow. It's cushier there."

Shrugging, she did as he suggested but she didn't find the spot any "cushier" than the middle. While she adjusted to sitting on the cell bed, Jake went to a stack of books in the corner of the room and squatted down to go through them. "Maybe we can read something together," he said, glancing over his shoulder at her. "You comfortable enough?"

Neytiri bounced a little on the pliant mattress and she nodded. "I will admit; this sleeping cot is better than expected. Don't get used to it though. You will be sleeping in a hammock like a proper Omaticaya again, when this is finished."

Jake chuckled. "Is that an order, Commander Neytiri?"

Remembering some of the games she liked to play with him when he dressed in the formal uniform they kept at Hometree, Neytiri grinned. Her eyes flitted over the powerful, lean muscles in his back and legs, resting on the firm curve of his bottom. The prison pants he wore unfortunately concealed his flesh from the waist down, but they hugged his bottom just right. Jake still had a body to make a woman purr.

"Yes, but my first order will be for you to join me in our favorite place, behind the mushroom grove." Neytiri smiled at him and held his eyes when he looked at her. There were special saplings growing there now, Trees of Voices. Eventually, a new grove of _Utral Aymokriyä _would grow to maturity and though it was unlikely to match the majesty of the former grove, the Omaticaya would once again have link to the ancestral voices near their home.

Jake forgot about the books for a moment and he gave her a warm smile. "That's an order I'll be happy to follow." He glanced at the pillow on the bed for a second before returning his attention to his book selection. "I'm pretty sure you wouldn't be interested in reading about fighter pilots of the twenty-first century. I requested a couple I thought you might like to read with me, though."

Neytiri glanced down at the pillow automatically as she began to respond, drawn by his brief gaze. She frowned and went still when she noticed something poking out from beneath it. It looked like the corner of one of the glossy magazines humans liked to read. Curious as to why it was hidden beneath Jake's pillow, she pinched it between her thumb and fingers and tugged it out.

Jake noticed what she was doing and he swore. "Okay look, don't get upset."

Neytiri shot a frown his way before looking at the cover of the magazine. She blinked. The skimpy bra and thong worn by the human female on the cover wasn't any worse than Na'vi garb, but her pose indicated that the purpose behind her flimsy clothing was to arouse male libido. Neytiri read the bold, white letters stamped across the cover over the blond woman's head aloud.

"P-l-a-y-b-o-y. Jake, what is this?" She opened the magazine and began to turn the pages curiously.

"There's a reason for that being there," Jake said lamely.

Neytiri gave him one frowning glance before studying the contents of the booklet. Her jaw dropped and she wondered how half of the women in those pictures managed to walk upright, with such huge breasts and small bodies. She knew that many human and avatar women had more endowed chests than Na'vi females, but these seemed excessive. Nearly all of the females in the magazine were impossibly blond, their eyelashes were gummed together with some sort of black substance and their lips were glossy with some sort of tree sap or colored wax. Some were more natural looking than others but the way they stood, bent over or sat could not be described as comfortable by any means. When the females weren't contorted in awkward, overly suggestive poses, they appeared to be half-asleep or drugged.

"J-Jake...is this...is this what they call 'porn'?" Neytiri began to flip through the pages, unwittingly becoming bug-eyed as she looked from one manufactured looking female to the next. Some of the women were attractive in the face like many of her human friends, but not _one_ of them had a natural expression. Some even appeared to be in the middle of an orgasm. She couldn't understand the concept behind it.

"No, porn is a lot dirtier," Jake assured her.

"So in porn they put on mud instead of face paint?" Neytiri kept flipping through the pictures, horribly fascinated. When her people put paint on their faces, it was symbolic of something. Maybe the shades of color on these women's eyelids and the artificial blush in their cheeks were symbolic of something, too.

Jake's body shook with barely controlled laughter and he coughed. "Sometimes. Listen, they dropped that magazine off with the books. I was planning to send it away the next time they bring reading material around."

"Why would you keep it under your pillow?" demanded Neytiri as she shut the magazine. She waved it before her, scowling at him. "If you had no interest in looking at these women, why would you keep it so close?"

Jake grimaced and bowed his head. "It's been really lonely, Neytiri. They drop off these nudie mags to all the prisoners, so we'll have something to look at."

She stared at him, unable to hide her shock and umbrage. "Jakesully, I could _not_ come here sooner! You would not allow it! You cannot be apart from me for such a short time without looking at naked human women with boulder-sized breasts?"

Jake took a hasty step back as Neytiri got off the bed and approached him, still holding the magazine tightly in one hand. "Hey, I didn't request it. They just drop them off as a courtesy to every guy in a cell here. The girl that brought it said—"

"There was a girl?" Neytiri scowled, her imagination conjuring up images of a young human or avatar woman eyeing her mate like a...a big blue piece of candy, as Trudy once said. "A woman brought you this...thing?"

"Hey now, don't get violent with the guards," warned Jake. He dropped his book and held his hands out defensively. "She was just doing her job, okay?"

"Did she flirt with you?" Neytiri narrowed her eyes at him and compressed her lips, knowing all too well how little respect some earth women had for other women's mating territory.

Jake rightfully began to look worried. "I don't know if 'flirting' is the right way to put it. She smiled a little. Maybe she thought I was cute, I don't—"

"_Nìtam!_ I will speak to the Gen-ral and forbid any female guards from coming in here!" In her anger, Neytiri was lapsing back into a thick Na'vi accent and finding it more difficult to speak English coherently.

"Wait," Jake pleaded, taking her hand. "Before you do that, there's something you should know."

"I have learned all I need to know of this place," Neytiri hissed, trying to pull out of his grip.

"I set you up."

She went still and she stared at him, concentrating on his words and the meaning behind them. "This was a...prank?"

Jake grimaced, looking sheepish. "It was supposed to be harmless fun."

"What is 'fun' about making my territorial urges rise?" demanded Neytiri with a growl. "So another woman has not been courting you?"

Jake shook his head. "No. Honestly baby, I just wanted to see how you'd react to the skin mag, that's all."

"Why?" She wasn't amused. She was angered and hurt and indignant. "You wished to play with my emotions?"

"No," he denied, shaking his head. His expression was properly contrite. "I just...you know I've always had a thing for the way you get aggressive when you think another woman's eyeing me off. We've always picked on each other, too. I just thought it might lighten up the situation and make you feel a little better, if we stuck to our usual routines."

She looked at him and something exploded within her. She began to smack him with his dirty magazine, slapping the glossy, recycled pages against his bare chest over and over again. "I live in nightmares! I wake up weeping each sunrise, wondering if my Jake is still alive! You want to play games?"

Jake took the punishment, offering no more complaints than a faint hiss of protest. When he spoke, he did so calmly, in a loving, warm tone.

"Yes, Neytiri. I want to play games. I want us to be able to laugh, even when things suck. You want to know why?"

She calmed down and stopped smacking him with the magazine. She looked into his eyes; those expressive, intense eyes that always made a shiver go down her spine. "Why?"

Jake smiled crookedly and caressed her face. "Because it reminds me we're both alive. By the way, you just put a paper-cut on my nipple with that magazine and it hurts like hell."

She abruptly pulled the magazine away from his chest and looked to see a thin line of red over his right nipple. She winced. "Jake, this is not—"

"And if I can't laugh through that," he chuckled, putting his arms around her and holding her closer, "I've lost my sense of humor. My mate just cut my titty with a Playboy magazine. That's hilarious, if you ask me."

"Jake, that is not funny," protested Neytiri, even as her mouth curved upwards at the corners. She tried to push away as he embraced her tighter and she dropped the magazine on the floor, forgetting about it. She finally gave in and she gently kissed the abused nipple. "I did not mean to do that."

"This time, I believe you," Jake assured her, stroking her hair. He sighed and kissed the crown of her head. "I'll forgive you for nipple abuse if you'll forgive me for tricking you at a bad time. Deal?"

Neytiri laughed softly. The sound came out almost awkwardly still and she supposed it would be like that for a while. She nuzzled Jake's chest with her cheek and sighed. "I accept your terms, my _Toruk Makto_. What books can we read together—that do not include naked humans?"

Jake chuckled and pulled away long enough to pick one up from the pile in the corner. He showed it to her a moment later. "I asked them for this one and they brought it to me. What do you think?"

Neytiri stared at the familiar cover and she traced the lettering and picture with her fingertips. "This was...my favorite."

Jake smiled and put an arm around her. "I had a feeling. I found a copy of it on the floor of the schoolhouse, the first day I went into the forest with Dr. Augustine and Norm. She said you were one of her brightest students. I took a risk with this book, 'cause I wasn't sure how you'd feel about reading it. It's your choice. We can pick something else if you want."

All of her frustration with Jake over his ill-conceived Playboy prank evaporated at that moment. Neytiri smiled up at him and she drew his hand holding the book close to her chest. "I would like to read this story with you, my Jake. I would like it very much."

Jake relaxed and he gently coaxed her back to the bed. He reclined on it first and Neytiri joined him, leaning against him as she stretched out and opened the book. The colorful flashes of light from the distant lightning storm hardly bothered the couple as they began to read Dr. Seuss' "The Lorax" together.

* * *

_Meanwhile at Hell's Gate:_

As annoyed as Savanna was with her mother for making Kato leave when she decided to go back to her lab to finish some work, she started to wish she was home with her when the electromagnetic storm began. She also wished she'd asked Dustin to stay when he came by for a visit, shortly after Katherine left the unit. Now she was alone with a rather scary display of lightning going on overhead. The phone rang and Savanna lunged for it eagerly, all too happy to talk to someone.

"Thomas residence."

"Savanna?" Katherine's voice was difficult to hear over the static interference. "Listen honey, I can't...for long. Too risky in a lightning storm."

"Mom?" Savanna frowned at her phone and walked into the kitchen, hoping to get a better signal. "Can you say that again?"

"I can't leave the lab," answered Katherine obligingly. "Your...can't leave either...too dangerous."

Savanna made an educated guess as she went to a window and peered out at the electric lightshow flashing over the protective dome. "You and Papa are both stuck at the lab for the night," she surmised. The storm was causing major interference in communications.

"Yes," answered Katherine's voice with some relief. "Sweetheart, there's...in the fridge and all you need to...heat it in the..."

Savanna shook her head. "Mama, I can feed myself. I'm not a child anymore. Stop worrying."

Katherine sounded a little contrite. "Of course. Stay indoors, Savanna. We'll...you tomorrow, I hope."

"Okay, Mom. Try to find somewhere comfortable to sleep tonight. I love you and give Papa a kiss goodnight for me."

Savanna ended the call and she sighed as she put the phone back on the charger cradle. A bright flash outside made her wince. She rubbed her bare arms and made herself step closer to the window. She and the other civilians at home were probably safer than anyone else on the base. The bio-dome encasing the colony was equipped with channeling rods for situations like this. Any lightning that struck the dome would be drawn to a rod and safely conducted to the ground—in theory. Dustin informed her that the lightning rods weren't foolproof. He warned her to stay inside just in case, because he didn't want to hear that his best friend fried herself.

As she looked at the light show over the clear dome, Savanna thought of the rest of her conversation with her friend. A part of her had always known Dusty's secret, she supposed. When he told her he was gay and looked at her with such wary concern, she almost laughed. It dawned on her how worried he was that she would reject his friendship and she was quick to assure him she loved him just as much as she did before. They had a good cry and a warm hug and that was basically the end of it. No harm, no foul. The only thing that really shocked Savanna was finding out that Andrew was gay too and the two of them had been together for months. She thought she should have seen it, given the number of female admirers Andrew routinely ignored.

The lights flickered and went out. Savanna looked up at the dark ceiling over her head and she pursed her lips. No power meant no television and no computer. It was getting late anyhow and it would be her bedtime soon, but she would have liked to watch something before trying to go to sleep. She impulsively touched the beaded shell pendant around her neck, thinking of her boyfriend. Kato had made the piece of jewelry for her and he gave it to her earlier that afternoon as a surprise. He'd been waiting outside while she finished her lesson plan and he stayed with her until Katherine shooed him away.

"I wish you were here," sighed the hybrid, her fingers closing over the beautiful pink, purple and blue spiral shell hanging from her necklace. Kato told her to think of it like a promise ring, since he didn't have an actual ring to give her. She shut her eyes and imagined a life with him, as his mate.

* * *

Kato crouched on the roof over the door of his girlfriend's apartment unit, keeping a cautious eye on the energy churning in the sky overhead. Direct exposure to one of those energy flares would kill any living thing. He hoped the protections in place on the colony were good enough, because he refused to leave while Savanna was alone in the house. Karyu would have told him to just knock on the door and ask to come inside. Savanna would surely insist on it, if she knew he was out there. He remembered what his father said about pushing his luck, though. If he wanted to stay in the Thomas family's good graces, he had to play by the rules. Katherine and Sebastian didn't want their daughter alone with him—for obvious reasons—and he needed to respect that.

He stayed low on his belly and he took comfort in the lightning rods he saw at each corner of the building. At least if any of the EM surges made it through the dome, they would probably strike the rods before striking him. Kato rested his chin on his crossed forearms and he wondered what his lovely little girlfriend was doing in the unit beneath him. She could be right under him at that very moment. He grinned, imagining how she'd react if she knew he was just over her head.

She'd probably act indignant at first, but then she'd start to give herself away with a little smile. She'd put her arms around him and tell him—

Kato's thoughts were interrupted when he noticed a group of figures moving down the street toward the unit building where he was perched. There were five of them, all human except for one avatar. He wouldn't have thought much of it under different circumstances. He would have just assumed it was a group of teenagers walking home together or going out somewhere for some fun. The group was moving strangely, though. They moved with purpose and their steps took them closer and closer to Savanna's living unit. Kato perked his ears and listened close, thankful for the lack of thunder.

"You sure about this?" one of the humans said in a hushed voice.

"Yeah," answered another boy, "nobody's going to notice with this shit going on overhead. Everyone's too scared to come out or even get close to the windows. We'll do it fast and go."

Kato heard a clanging sound as the avatar shook a can of some sort. "She's out of our school. Now the freak and her family need to get out of our colony."

"Yeah, they can go to UNEC," another boy whispered. "Just so they don't stay here."

Kato saw another boy shake a small canister and he began to understand the group's intention. They were going to vandalize the Thomas home. While it was only paint and could be washed away, Kato had no doubt that the words they intended to mark on the building would cause deeper harm. He could well imagine the sort of foul, racist things these people intended to write about his intended mate and he snarled. Words could hurt like stones, especially written for all the world to see and judge.

Kato's body tensed as his hunter's instincts took over. These Sky People were going to learn what a mistake it was to cross Savanna Thomas, one way or another.

* * *

Savanna heard the hushed voices outside as she passed by the living room window. She recognized one of the voices as a boy from school and she grew instantly suspicious. She frowned and hunkered down low, just under the blinds. She carefully lifted the corner of them and peeked out the window to see what was going on. Her heart stammered in alarm when she saw that there was a whole group of people creeping up to her unit. They had pressurized paint canisters and she could hear them snickering about what they were going to do. She counted five boys in all but she couldn't be sure there weren't more in the darkness somewhere.

"What do I do?" she whispered, letting the blinds fall back into place. She could probably physically handle two or even three human boys by herself, but they had one of the avatar bullies with them. Something told her that the avatar boy wouldn't hesitate to hit her, even if he normally wouldn't hit other girls. They hated her. Some of them probably even wanted her dead. Now they were punishing her parents for her existence too, preparing to do property damage since they could no longer get to Savanna at school.

She clenched her fists and her fear began to dissolve before anger. It broke her heart that so many people her age despised her, when she'd never done anything to deserve it. Her whole life, all she'd ever tried to do was fit in and avoid hurting anyone or causing conflict. She could have given her father the names of everyone that gave her trouble when he asked for them, but she procrastinated. She lied to Sebastian, telling him she didn't remember the last names of all of her bullies. That wasn't true. She knew the full names of each and every one of them; she couldn't _help_ but commit them to memory.

"No. You can't bully my family the way you bully me."

Knowing full-well she might be walking into a serious ass-kicking that could hospitalize her or even kill her, Savanna marched for the front door. She grabbed her mother's umbrella on her way, snatching it out of the holder in the foyer. She unlocked the door and yanked it open with one hand while wielding the umbrella like a club with the other.

"All right, you bastards," Savanna yelled...

...Just as her boyfriend dropped down from the roof and punched the avatar boy square in the face. Savanna blinked and stood there with her mouth hanging open as Martin Little fell to the ground with a split lip. One of the human boys reacted to the sudden attack, but he didn't seem like he knew exactly what he wanted to do about it. He made a clumsy, confused lunge at Kato and he was rewarded for his stupidity by a sweeping kick to the torso that sent him flying to the footpath.

"Screw this," Jeffery Walters muttered after taking a brief moment to consider the angered Na'vi warrior and the hybrid girl armed with an umbrella. He took off running, leaving his four friends—two of which were still on the ground—to fend for themselves.

Another boy tried to hit Kato but the hunter blocked it with his arm and struck back. He didn't put his full strength behind the blow but the boy got a nose job out of it anyhow. Blood poured from the broken nose and the young man clasped both hands over it and staggered back. The only uninjured conspirator left tried to run, but Kato caught him and shoved him against the side of the house, glaring into his eyes with feral aggression.

"Kato...don't." Savanna had been prepared to knock some heads off herself if she had to, but Kato's animalistic snarl woke her up to the reality that he could kill someone entirely by accident. She really didn't care about Lewis Peterson's well-being and she took a bit of delight in the sight of the telling stain spreading over the crotch of his pants. What she _did_ care about was the consequences her boyfriend would face if he caused the death of any of these boys.

Savanna dropped the umbrella and approached her wild young lover, gazing up at him with soft, hazel eyes. "Kato, please. They aren't worth it."

Kato glanced at her. He was breathing heavily and the avatar boy he'd hit first groaned and got to his hands and knees a few feet away, spitting out a tooth. The boy with the broken nose stumbled away from the apartment building as quickly as his dizziness would allow. The boy Kato had pinned against the house started to choke, getting a bit strangled by his own shirt.

"Kato, put him down," Savanna begged, stroking her boyfriend's tense arm. "I don't want you to go to jail, okay?"

Kato looked into her eyes and this time, she got through to him. His scowl faded and he looked back at his prisoner again. He leaned in close, pinning the boy with his eyes as surely as he had him pinned with his hand.

"Remember this. I eat grubs like _you_ for breakfast." Kato gave the boy a second to think about that and then he abruptly released him, letting him sprawl to the ground. The human scrambled to his feet, not even seeming to notice or care that he'd wet himself. He was bug-eyed and white as a sheet. He was off running in seconds.

"What are you waiting for?" Kato asked Martin Little as the avatar struggled to his feet and wiped his bloody mouth. "The sight of you offends me. Get the hell out of here before I decide to find out what avatar guts look like."

The avatar didn't attempt to stand his ground and he looked at Kato with the same dreading fear as his companions. He left without a fight and once all of the would-be vandals were gone, Kato asked Savanna to bring out a towel.

"Why?" She asked, confused.

"So we can pick up these paint cans they left behind without getting our fingerprints on them. If the authorities get involved in this, you can give them these as evidence."

Savanna thought it was a good idea, even if it was unlikely that any of the boys would call the authorities. She did as Kato asked and retrieved a towel from inside the house. He took it from her and she followed him as he gathered up the pressurized cans.

"I don't think they'll call the authorities."

Kato bundled up the towel containing the paint and gave her a questioning look. "Why not?"

"Well, because they could get themselves in trouble if they try. If they call the peacekeepers, they have to explain what they were doing at my house at this hour during a dangerous EM storm after citizens were warned to stay indoors. Who's going to believe they just happened to be taking a stroll up to my door under those circumstances, for no reason at all?"

Kato laughed. "Good call, but do you really think _they've_ thought of that? They've seen what you're capable of doing when you get pushed too far, Sav. They know you can kick serious ass but they keep coming after you anyway. That tells me they're all very stupid, batshit crazy or just plain obsessed. Either way, someone like that probably isn't going to have the common sense to think of how they could screw themselves by getting the law involved. My bet is at least one of them is going to try and press assault charges against me. Cowards like that always think they're entitled to abuse people without repercussions."

Savanna scowled. Kato was probably right and even though an attempt to take legal action would likely only hurt the bullies, the thought of them having the nerve to try and get her boyfriend in trouble made her want to stab them all to death.

"Ugh...what's happening to me," Savanna sighed, hefting the towel of paint cans under one arm while rubbing her forehead with her free hand. "I want to stab them with something! It's like beating them up isn't good enough anymore."

"After putting up with their shit for all these years, I'm surprised it hasn't happened before now," Kato said. "They've spent all this time trying to make you wish _you_ were dead, why the hell shouldn't you wish _they_ were dead? I think it's a normal reaction to being pushed around and abused so much."

"But what kind of a person does that make me?" she demanded. "Is this how it's going to be now? Is what these people have put me through going to turn me into a killer? Am I just going to start snapping people's necks when they say something I don't like?"

Kato parted his lips to answer, paused and reconsidered what he was going to say. "Will you put those cans down for a minute?"

She did so and she looked up at him trustingly. The same hands that had just knocked one guy's tooth out, broke another guy's nose and nearly strangled a third by accident were now gently cupping her face. Lightning raced from cloud to cloud over the dome but Savanna wasn't worried about it now, with Kato so close to her.

"If you wanted any of those guys dead, you wouldn't have stopped me," Kato murmured. "After all they've done to you, I'm not sure I would have stopped if you hadn't talked some sense into me."

She shut her eyes and nodded. Yes, she knew Kato had come very close to killing someone and now that she thought of it, she hadn't fantasized about stabbing them until she thought of the possibility of them trying to get Kato in trouble with the law.

"So I'm not turning into a killer?"

Kato smiled and shook his head. "You aren't turning into a killer. If anyone here is a killer, it's me."

"No you aren't." Savanna laid her hands over his. "You're a hunter. You haven't killed any people and you only kill animals for food."

Kato released her face and looked away. "What about Phelps? I know it's kind of a stretch to call him a person but he _did_ have most of the basic qualifiers."

"What about him? Kato, everyone knows the man killed himself," she reasoned, laying her hands on his shoulders. "He tried to take a guard's weapon and he got shot for it. You weren't anywhere _near_ him and neither was Karyu."

"But we drove him crazy," argued Kato softly.

Savanna heaved an exasperated sigh. "He was already crazy to begin with! Kato, people don't act the way he did unless they're seriously demented. He was sick, understand? He despised women, he loved to create misery and I think in the end, he probably _wanted_ to die."

"He went for the guard's gun because he thought Karyu poisoned him," Kato reminded her. "He was trying to make them get him to a doctor. If he wanted to die, why would he have been so desperate for medical help?"

"Because it wasn't the death he wanted," Savanna said with confidence. "Think about it, Kato. Phelps was always trying to goad men into violence. Your uncle shot him in the ass, your father almost lost his temper with him on numerous occasions, Corporal Howell got so riled up he electrocuted himself trying to get to him and what do the reports say about all of these events? What kind of bait did Phelps _always_ use to provoke these men, Kato?"

"Their women," answered the warrior with a dawning expression on his handsome face. "Phelps always used their love for their women against them. He can't love a woman the way they can and he exploited what he saw as a weakness."

Savanna nodded. "He wanted to die by a man's hand. Being killed by a girl would have been the ultimate insult to someone like him, so he did whatever he could to make sure that wouldn't happen. He probably didn't even care when the guard shot him. I'll bet he was just glad he wasn't put down by a female."

Kato stared blankly with an expression of amazement on his face. "Wow...that's so twisted but it all fits so perfectly. Sav, maybe you should be a psychiatrist someday."

She shrugged modestly. "I've just done a lot of research on Phelps over the years. I know you've always felt some guilt and I wanted to understand why someone would act the way he did. Being bullied most of my life made me more curious about human nature, too. I thought if I could figure Phelps out, I could figure out my bullies too and find some way to reason with them." She sighed and looked down at the paint cans wrapped in the towel. "I guess that isn't going to happen. You can't reason with people that are determined to hate."

Kato looked at her with open admiration. "I definitely want you to be my mate someday, Savanna. Or my wife...whatever you want."

Her heart skipped a beat and she smiled up at him, putting her arms around his neck to draw his head down. "How about both?"

He smiled at her and lowered his mouth to hers, pausing just as their lips brushed against each other. "I'm sold." He kissed her deeply then and Savanna forgot all about the skirmish in her front yard, the attempted vandalism and the natural phenomena happening over the territory. She was reminded of the storm a moment later when a pulse of energy streaked down from the sky and struck one of the rods lining the bio-dome. She broke the kiss with a little gasp and Kato held her closer as the electricity streaked down one of the conductive arches lining the dome.

"Let's get you inside," Kato murmured, holding her protectively while he looked up at the sky.

Savanna didn't miss his failure to include himself in that idea. "Kato, you're coming inside with me. I'm not going to let you go all the way back to the avatar compound and expose yourself to the open sky!"

"I'm not going back to the avatar compound," he corrected, "I'm staying here. I'll just sleep on your roof."

Savanna's eyebrows went up and she impulsively looked up at the roof. "You're crazy! I'm not letting you sleep on the roof while there's a stellar flare storm raging over our colony!"

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Kato tried to reassure her. "The chances of any energy striking me are so small it's practically negligent."

Savanna quickly changed her tactic. "Well, if it's that safe, I'll sleep on the roof with you."

He shook his head. "No way. You're not staying out here."

"Why?" she challenged, putting her hands on her hips. "If it's safe enough for you it's safe enough for me. Otherwise quit lying and trying to tell me you're not in danger."

He groaned. "Sav, I promised your parents I would respect their rules and one of those rules is I don't go in the house when they aren't here! What do you think they'll do if they find out I stayed the night alone with you?"

"They'll probably congratulate me on making a smart decision and inviting you in," Savanna answered stubbornly. "Kato, if my parents were here there's no _way_ they'd let you try to go anywhere in this mess. There are exceptions to every rule and I know they wouldn't want you to risk getting fried. If I could call them right now and ask, I'll bet they'd tell me to bring you inside."

"Then call them up and ask them...just don't do it out here."

Savanna quickly improvised, not exactly telling a lie but not telling the whole truth, either. "The phone lines aren't working right. There's too much interference to get a clear signal, whether I try the landline or the satellite phone. Just trust me, Kato. Mama and Papa wouldn't want you putting yourself in danger over a rule."

He looked as though he was going to refuse her again but another streak of lightning reached the dome, closer to where they were standing this time. Kato pulled Savanna to him again when she yelped and he winced a little himself. "Okay, I'll go inside with you. I don't want to get fried either."

* * *

Savanna tossed and turned restlessly in her bed. Every time she started to drift off, a flash of lightning outside lit up her room and startled her awake. She wished it were a regular thunderstorm. The silence was more disturbing to her than the rolling clashes of thunder that accompanied the usual heavy weather. She sat up and looked at her clock. No glowing numbers greeted her and the device looked like a clear piece of plastic wedged into a black docking station without them. The power was still out. Savanna sighed and reached for the watch she'd left on her bedside table. She held it up to the window and opened the blinds for some light. It was almost one in the morning.

She put the watch back down and thought about what she wanted to do. She would normally drink a glass of warm milk to help her sleep, but without power, she had no way to heat it up. Her only options were to keep lying there and hope she eventually fell asleep, or take some cough medicine to knock herself out. She could well imagine the reactions of her family and friends if they found out she drugged herself to sleep but at this point, Savanna couldn't see it happening naturally. She was too keyed up over the fight and the storm to relax.

Grumbling, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and got up. She almost started out the door but she remembered that Kato was sleeping on the couch in the living room, and she'd have to walk past him to get to the bathroom. Savanna hastily took her hairbrush off her dresser ran it through her hair to get rid of tangles and put it in some semblance of order.

Satisfied that she at least didn't look like a bramble now, she reached for the robe hanging on her door and slipped it on. The thin white slip she wore wasn't exactly negligee, but it wasn't completely opaque and it only came down to her thighs. She and Kato had a hard enough time keeping their hands off each other, without her giving him a peek-a-boo show.

She tiptoed down the hall and into the living room, where her boyfriend slept quietly on the couch. Savanna paused and looked down at him, tilting her head as she examined his sleeping face. He was the only man he knew that didn't snore. She was convinced that all males had some kind of snoring gene, until she slept near Kato for the first time and realized he didn't do it.

"Maybe you're just special," she whispered, smiling. She hesitated, tempted by his parted lips but wary of accidentally disturbing his sleep. Kneeling as quietly as possible, she decided to risk it. She kissed him softly on the mouth and prepared to get back up, but he reciprocated and cupped the back of her head.

"Mm, what time is it?" Kato murmured against her mouth after a few seconds of kissing.

"About one in the morning," answered Savanna. She kissed him again and he smiled and did it back, stroking her hair with slow, sensual motions.

Her pulse was already quickening with desire from the simple, tender little kisses. She caught a glimpse of his belongings out the corner of her eye and she turned her head and dropped her jaw when she realized that his loincloth was among said belongings, hanging from the bow leaning against the wall.

"Kato...why are your clothes on the floor?" Well, technically it was his "cloth", since the item couldn't really be described in a plural sense.

"I washed it," he answered sleepily, squirming into a more comfortable position. "You wouldn't want me sleeping in a damp loincloth, would you?"

"So...you're naked under that sheet?"

"Well, the other loincloths I brought with me are in my bag at the avatar lodge, or I would have changed into one of them. Is something wrong?"

No, something was entirely too _right_ and Savanna flushed, stammering a little as she tried to explain her discomfort. "W-well, not exactly. Um, did you have to wash it?"

Kato opened his eyes and gave her a puzzled look. "Would you wear dirty underwear to bed?"

"No."

"Then what's the problem?" Kato sat up and Savanna squeaked when the sheet dropped to expose his torso to the navel. "Sav, Na'vi wash our clothes, just like humans. We don't run around in filthy hides. You know this."

"I...I know," she stuttered, blushing even deeper. She felt like a complete heel and it wasn't like she hadn't seen this much of him before. Heck, she saw more than his torso every single time she saw him. "I just didn't think you'd strip naked here. I would have gotten something from my father's closet if I knew you wanted to wash your clothes."

"I don't think any of his clothes would have fit me," Kato reminded her with a look of dry humor. "Come on, it isn't a big deal. It isn't like I stripped in front of you and I figured since I always wake up before you do, I'd be dressed and ready to go before you even stumbled out of bed."

Savanna shoved back the mental images of Kato stripping. "And what if my parents came home while you were still sleeping and found your loincloth hanging there?"

Kato looked at the window, where the blinds were flashing with light from the storm outside. "This storm is going to last well into the morning, babe. I'll be dressed and long gone by the time your parents get home."

"But what if you're wrong about that and the storm ends early, or they decide to come home anyway?" Savanna sure _hoped_ her parents wouldn't try to come home in this mess, but she trusted they would choose a transport vehicle capable of sheltering them safely for the ride.

"If for some reason your parents _did_ come home early, I'd have to explain what I'm doing here in the first place. I guess I'd just tell them the truth." Kato shrugged. "I'm sure they'd understand wanting to wash the only piece of clothing I have, Savanna. They're more than capable of reason."

"So you don't think they'd mind you sleeping naked on the couch with me just down the hall?"

Kato raised his brows. "Uh, how long do they think my dick is?"

Savanna lightly slapped him on the arm and tried not to laugh. "Kato..."

"No really! I mean what, do they think my wang is going to slither down the hall and into bed with you?"

Savanna started to giggle, despite her efforts to stay serious. Kato grinned and went on mercilessly. "Maybe I've got some kind of super sperm and the loincloth is the only thing keeping them in check. Careful Sav, they might come after you while you sleep!"

Savanna shrieked with laughter as Kato put his arms around her and dragged her onto the couch with him. He growled playfully and tickled her ribs. "The mighty penis is coming to get you, Savanna!"

"You realize you just called yourself a dick, right?" Savanna fought laughter and tried to ward his hands away.

"Just for that, I'll shoot you in the eye with my super sperm." Kato started to put his hand beneath the sheet covering his lower half—which was steadily slipping down.

"Okay, cut it out," Savanna gasped, grabbing his wrist. "You've made your point!"

Kato's white-toothed smile said he wasn't quite finished making said point. "Are you sure? Because I can show you it's is nothing to be afraid of, if you need some reassurance."

She snickered behind her hand and shook her head. "Quit being rude, okay? You can sleep naked under there if you want. I give up."

"Rude?" Kato gave her a mock pout. "Once upon a time not too long ago, you said it was 'neat' and you liked playing with it. Now it's rude?"

"Don't be silly," she muttered, trying not to look down where the sheet concealed the body part in question. "You know what I meant. We can't fool around now, Kato."

He kissed her, making her stomach do a somersault. "Why not? You came and woke me up, remember?"

"Because I couldn't sleep, she mumbled against his lips. He kissed her again and she kissed him back, hardly noticing that her robe was hanging open and the outline of her nipples were visible through her thin shift.

"Well if you can't sleep," he purred between kisses, "maybe you should let me wear you down."

"We can't." Her tone lacked conviction and she didn't try to stop him when he pushed her rob off of her shoulders. He helped her out of the garment and lay back, bringing her with him. Savanna groaned softly into his mouth and when his tongue eased in between her lips, she caressed it with her own and began to touch his body with feverish need. Sensing her resolve weakening, Kato stroked her outer thighs and encouraged her to straddle his hips. Savanna could feel him getting hard under the thin cover and she undulated instinctively, pushing against his stiffening arousal through her panties. She was getting moist with arousal and she whimpered his name when he gently cupped one of her breasts over her slip and fondled it.

"Want you so bad," Kato groaned, echoing her thoughts.

Savanna pushed her fingers into his hair and kissed him hard, giving up the fight to resist her needs. Now was the perfect time, if they were going to go all the way. Her parents wouldn't be back until sometime after the sun rose...maybe even later. The storm might even last through the next day, giving them time to make love as much as they wanted. She had been good for long enough, hadn't she? She obeyed her parents, she did her best to be a polite and helpful guest when she stayed with the Na'vi, she kept up her studying, she endured cruel and painful taunts from other people her age and she waited to see if her relationship was going anywhere before going to third base with Kato.

Savanna thought it was past time for she and Kato to hit a home run. Why should they wait longer? Most other couples their age had already done it several times by now. She loved him and she wanted him and she knew he felt the same way. When he slipped one of his hands under her nightie and began to stimulate her nipples, Savanna trembled and moaned his name. She rocked on top of him and the feel of his delightfully hard erection grinding against her loins through the thin barrier of materials threatened to drive her crazy. It felt like she had a coil inside of her pelvis that was winding tighter and tighter with each moment.

"Kato," Savanna murmured, dragging her fingertips over his back and shoulders. Her short-trimmed nails scratched the surface of his skin but he seemed to enjoy it. He cupped her bottom with his free hand and thrust against her, adding to the friction between their genitals. She slid her other hand over his chest and down his stomach before burrowing it under the sheet. She easily found his swollen sex and she began to fondle it eagerly.

"Oh damn," Kato panted, and Savanna found herself lifted, settled on her back and covered by his hard, naked body.

She didn't mind his aggression at all. In fact, the feel of his weight pinning her to the couch made her long-unsatisfied desire spike to levels she wouldn't have thought possible. His mouth and hands laid claim to her body as she did the same to his. They explored one another eagerly, touching areas they had never spent much time on before because they were always in such a hurry. Savanna learned that the soft skin on the back of her knees was very sensitive and a light caress from his fingers made her eyelids flutter with pleasure. The crease where Kato's buttocks connected to his thighs was evidently a new weak spot for him. When she ran her fingertips over the spot, he shivered with delight and purred.

"Sav," Kato gasped desperately when she gave his erection a slow, leisurely pull. "I don't think I can take a lot of teasing tonight."

"I'm not teasing," she promised, panting lightly in her own excitement. "This time I don't want to stop."

Kato went still above her and he looked down at her with a mixture of hope, anxiety and lust. "Really? You mean it?"

She smiled at him and stopped her fondling, realizing she really and truly did mean it. "I was going to wait but I think I can trust you when you say you want to be my husband, Kato."

He nodded with enthusiasm and balanced his weight on one elbow as he took one of her hands. He kissed the palm and looked into her eyes. "I do. I really want to be with you for the rest of my life." He seemed to consider something and he took a deep breath. "I can prove it, too. Let's link up."

"You mean _tsahaylu_?" Savanna could hardly believe what she was hearing.

"Yeah. What better way to seal the deal, until we can get married?"

"I don't know...wouldn't that be sort of like eloping? If we connect our queues..."

"We'll be mated for life, most likely," finished Kato. His expression said he found the idea more appealing by the moment. "I'm fine with it. We can have a formal wedding for your parents later. Nobody has to know we've been mated before Eywa until we're ready to share it with people."

"Kato, I'm not sure."

The excitement and joy faded from his eyes. "You aren't sure but you want to have sex with me now? I expected you to want a permanent commitment before sex, not the other way around."

"It isn't that," she tried to explain. She reached up with a pained look and traced his lips with her fingertips. "Some couples find out they aren't neurologically compatible when they link to each other for the first time and it ruins everything. It happens to full-blooded Na'vi and I'm not even half. I'm not afraid of the bond, I'm afraid of it failing because I'm so different. What if it doesn't work for us?"

The hurt dissolved from his expression and he smiled down at her. "Those incidents you've heard about are usually a result of two people trying to mate with someone they don't really want. A failed link is a warning from Eywa that you aren't meant to be together. It can also mean you're just trying to rush it and you need more time to get to know each other. That won't happen with us."

"How can you be sure?" she asked. "What if you're wrong and we can't be together anymore because of it?"

Kato frowned. "Savanna, even if we fail to make the bond, I'm not giving you up."

"But _tsahaylu_ is as important as sex to Na'vi," Savanna reminded him warily. "Are you sure you'd be willing to live without it?"

Kato shrugged. "I've managed to live without it so far."

She smiled and rested her hand on his chest, feeling the steady thump of his heart beneath her palm. "But we aren't mated yet. Don't you think you'd feel differently if we were? You'd be missing out on an important part of a Na'vi relationship, Kato."

He lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her. "Your parents can't link and they seem totally happy together. I'm not worried."

Savanna had honestly forgotten about that little fact. At least she and Kato could try to form _tsahaylu_. Her human mother and avatar father would never have that luxury. Kato was right though; her parents loved each other very much and she knew for a fact they were satisfied with their relationship. Unfortunately, she heard that satisfaction sometimes at night, no matter how quiet they tried to be about demonstrating it.

"I don't really want to think about my parents love life," she decided with a little grimace.

Kato chuckled softly and kissed her throat and jaw. "Then we won't talk about it anymore. The point is we aren't going to know until we try and even if by some fluke it doesn't work, I'm still going to want you."

Savanna became aware of his naked erection resting against her thigh and her thoughts quickly shifted back to the gorgeous hunter stretched out on top of her. She reached up and tucked a braid behind his ear. "Then let's try."

Kato wasted no time. He shifted and helped her drag his queue into place, so that it fell over his shoulder and rested on her stomach. Savanna lifted her head and adjusted her braid next, offering it to her boyfriend trustingly. They looked into each other's eyes as Kato brought the ends close together and the tendrils began to entwine. Pupils dilated wide and the young couple was immediately overwhelmed by the rush as their neurological systems synchronized and rewarded them. It started in their hair plug tendrils and spread through their bodies, igniting sensations everywhere as the bond stimulated their nervous systems.

Savanna knew something wasn't normal, but it wasn't something bad. She'd heard that queue linking was intense but her body immediately began to shake. The pleasure and ecstasy was like an explosion that wouldn't stop. Kato's stunned expression and loud moans would have assured her that he felt the same thing, even if she couldn't feel his bliss through the link. Something warm and wet spurted against her thigh and it only took her a second to realize what it was. Kato was twitching against her leg and trembling all over. Savanna put her arms around him and held him tight, whimpering as she pressed her forehead against his chest. She was coming too and for the first time, she believed in multiple orgasms.

There were brilliant flashes of color behind her eyelids as she shut her eyes and cried Kato's name. It was like looking through a kaleidoscope. She tasted salty perspiration on her lips when she kissed his trembling chest and she felt his tail slap against her left outer thigh. She vaguely heard him begging her, telling her he couldn't take it. She empathized completely but she couldn't do anything about it. Was death by orgasm possible? If it was, she and Kato were going to climax their way right into the next life, if this went on for too much longer.

When she was tossing her head helplessly and Kato was panting and groaning in exhaustion, the intensity finally eased up. Their queue's completed the initial adjustment period and harmonized with each other, leaving both young people spent and limp with pleasure.

"Oh god," Savanna panted, stroking Kato's sweat-dampened braids. "K-Kato...are you okay?"

"Holy shit," he gasped hoarsely into her hair, his weight pressing her down. "I'm surprised I didn't blast us through the roof and all the way to Polyphemus. Eywa, that was intense!"

Savanna laughed breathlessly and nodded in agreement. "I don't think that was exactly normal, but at least I can stop worrying over whether we're compatible or not."

Kato struggled to rise to his elbows and he looked down the length of their bodies at the prominent mess he'd made between Savanna's thighs. "I think if we were any more compatible, we'd probably blow up Pandora. Sav, I know we were going to have sex but to be honest I don't think I have anything left in me."

"Me either," she agreed, sighing with satisfied amazement. She could feel every bit of him, as if he was a part of her. This was how it was supposed to be. This was the miracle she was so afraid they'd never experience. She coaxed him to lay his cheek between her breasts and she stroked his hair. "I'm happy to just lay like this now."

"Me too," sighed Kato blissfully. He squirmed a moment later and she felt a flash of disgust through the link, however. "Except if I lay like this I'm laying in my own spunk."

Savanna smirked, but then she realized with horror that said "spunk" was all over her parents' couch. Kato felt her panic and he lifted his head to look at her. The dread in his eyes reflected his own. "Savanna, I'm such a dumbass!"

"No, it's my fault," she insisted. "I should have known to put a towel down or something, since I was planning to have sex with you. Kato, what do we do?"

He got up abruptly, intending to go looking for something to clean up the mess with. Savanna tried to warn him but she wasn't fast enough and they both yelled in pain as Kato inadvertently pulled their linked queues.

"Okay, let's undo this," Kato gasped, sitting back down on the edge of the couch hastily.

He helped Savanna sit up and they both concentrated on releasing the hold their tendrils had on each other. Thankfully, the delicate strands obeyed and released their grip, allowing the newly mated pair to separate. For a moment, Kato and Savanna looked at each other with mutual wonder on their faces. The loss of intimacy from the bond made them both feel a little hollow. It was almost like coming down from a buzz or crashing after an adrenaline rush.

"Well, my mess isn't going to clean itself up," Kato sighed after a moment. "We don't need your parents coming home and finding a stain."

Savanna tried not to stare at his nudity as she got off the couch and secured her robe back into place. "I'll go and get the fabric cleaner and some towels."

She retrieved the items and brought an extra towel for Kato. "I'm sorry but your naked butt is too distracting," she informed him when she draped the towel around his waist. He laughed and helped her secure it. They took the soiled cushion off the couch and what started as the most amazing, intense experience either of them had ever had ended as a desperate race to clean and dry the couch cushion before Savanna's parents got home.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Srane, 'eveng_. _Olo'ikran _**= "Yes, child. Clan Ikran (or Ikran Clan, depending on perspective)"

**_Utral Aymokriyä_** = Tree of Voices

**_Nìtam_** = Enough


	19. Chapter 19

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 19: Letting go of the past**

* * *

_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Warning: Graphic sex. **_

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

Sebastian wasn't surprised when he returned home to find Kato standing outside the unit. He looked up at the sky, still partly cloudy but blessedly clear of dangerous EM activity. "Good morning, Kato. How long have you been standing out here?"

"Most of the morning and some of last night," answered the younger man.

Sebastian checked his watch and raised his eyebrows. "It's almost lunch time. You've been out here for that long? You could have been exposed to an energy pulse!"

"Just keeping Savanna safe, Mr. Thomas." Kato's expression was grave and troubled.

Sebastian approached the warrior and looked up at him searchingly. "Did something happen during the storm last night?"

Kato sighed and started to answer, but the front door opened and Savanna came out. She hugged Sebastian around the neck before he could brace himself and he chuckled, returning her embrace. "I'm all right, dear. So is your mother." He pulled away and looked into her eyes, concerned. "What about you?"

Savanna shared a look with Kato. "Let's go inside, Papa. Is Mama on her way home too?"

"She should be here within the hour," answered Sebastian, growing more concerned by the second. "Savanna, what is going on?"

"I'll tell you when Mom gets here," she insisted. "You both need to hear this. Kato, are you coming?"

The young man looked oddly reluctant but he followed them through the door. Sebastian cast a suspicious look Kato's way and all sorts of fears—both rational and un-rational—began to rage in his mind.

_"Papa, I'm pregnant. Kato is taking me to live in a tree somewhere."_

_ "Papa, some people from UNEC came last night and they've given an ultimatum that I have to go with them or they'll declare war with Hell's Gate."_

_ "Papa, I've decided to take up strip dancing instead of pursuing a career in education or art. Nobody's ever going to listen to a hybrid like me but at least the boys like to look at me. I might as well enjoy a future of—"_

"Mr. Thomas? Did you hear what she said?"

Sebastian shook himself out of it and blinked at Kato. Savanna was standing before him, offering a glass of ice water. Embarrassed for the lapse, he took the glass of water from his daughter and thanked her. He walked over to the couch and sat down on it. He thought he saw a flicker of alarm in Savanna's expression as he took his seat and he found it strange. He sipped at his water and motioned Savanna to have a seat with him. She did so gingerly, as if expecting the couch to jump up and bite her.

Sebastian looked up at Kato. "Would you like to sit down, Kato?"

The hunter's eyes flicked to the couch, then considered the armchair. The former was sized up to better accommodate Na'vi bodies but the armchair was average sized for humans. "I think I'll stand, thanks."

Sebastian looked from Kato to his daughter, losing patience quickly. "You two are acting very odd. I'm going to call Katherine to check on her progress and the moment she walks through that door, I want you to tell us exactly what's going on and I want you both to be completely honest. Is that understood?"

The two of them looked at each other again and if Sebastian didn't know any better, he would have sworn they were communicating telepathically, the way Kato sometimes seemed to do with his sister.

"We'll explain everything, Papa," promised Savanna with a sigh.

* * *

Sebastian hated cultural stereotypes and yet he always managed to fulfill his own, in some way or another. When Savanna brewed some water and brought him a cup of his favorite tea, he sipped it gratefully and tried to keep himself calm. He almost sighed aloud when Katherine came through the front door and emerged from the foyer. She saw the way her husband and daughter were sitting; noticed Kato's uncomfortable, tense stance and she knew right away something wasn't right. She put her handbag down on the coffee table beside the tea set, poured a cup for herself and sat down in the armchair.

"All right, what's happened now?"

"I have no idea," Sebastian admitted, looking meaningfully between their daughter and her boyfriend. "Apparently Savanna and Kato have something to tell us."

Katherine looked at her daughter briefly, before switching her attention to Kato. "Well, spit it out. I've had my fill of suspense this week and I'd like to get the shock over with and have a glass of port."

Sebastian reached out and took her hand, trying to soothe her. The biting sarcasm was a defense mechanism and Katherine was bracing herself for something terrible. He could whole-heartedly empathize.

Savanna watched the two of them for a moment, looked at Kato and got up. Sebastian asked her where she was going when she began to walk out of the room and Savanna assured him she would be coming right back. When she was gone, both of her parents looked up at Kato suspiciously. The young man cleared his throat and gave them a respectful nod, looking like he wished he were anywhere but there.

"I don't suppose you'd like to shed some light on this?" Sebastian kept his gaze steady on Kato, reminded of a wild animal warily eyeing a human approaching it. For all his education and exposure to human culture, Kato's instincts were native through and through. It never really dawned on Sebastian before, how different native-raised kids really were from colonists.

Kato answered in a low voice. "We'll explain everything when Savanna comes back."

They didn't have to wait for long. The hybrid girl returned perhaps a minute later and she carried a bundled up bath towel in her arms. As her parents watched with wary curiosity, she placed the towel on the floor and unfolded it. Katherine leaned forward in her seat and frowned. Sebastian didn't recognize the five objects lying on the towel at first, until his wife said something.

"Are those spray paint cans?"

Savanna nodded. "Yes, Mama. We took them from the boys that came here last night and tried to vandalize our unit." She walked over to her boyfriend, who hadn't moved from his position by the window. She put an arm around his waist and smiled up at him. "Kato chased them off before I had to do anything."

"What do you mean 'had to do anything'?" Katherine asked, and Sebastian nodded in agreement, wondering the same thing. "What about the peacekeepers? Didn't you think to call them?"

Savanna gave her mother an exasperated look. "In the middle of an EM storm? Mama, I probably wouldn't have been able to get through to the authorities if I tried and even if I had, they probably wouldn't have made it here in time."

"You've made a valid point," agreed Sebastian reluctantly. "But what exactly did you intend to do to stop them, before Kato intervened?"

Savanna shrugged, looking a little sheepish. "I grabbed Mama's umbrella."

"In case it rained?" scoffed Katherine. "Darling, never take a knife to a gun fight. That's what your revolver is for."

"_Katherine_!" Sebastian stared at his wife with wide eyes, shocked that she would suggest the use of a firearm against human beings.

"No, Sebastian." Katherine held his gaze and the lovely face he adored so much was hard and set with anger. "Not this time. The carrot isn't working. If Savanna has to blow one of these little bastards away to make the rest of them leave her alone, so be it."

"I didn't want to use the gun," Savanna announced before Sebastian could try to reason with his outraged wife. "I was afraid I might kill someone. Mama, I know you don't mean what you just said."

"Like _hell_ I didn't," snapped Katherine. "If the little criminals are getting bold enough to come to our home to get at you, it's time to bring in the stick."

"Right on, Dr. Thomas," Kato approved, speaking up for the first time since Savanna brought the cans in.

"_You_ shut up," Sebastian said to the hunter sternly. "I won't hear anymore talk of violence."

"Then you'd better plug your ears, dear," advised Katherine, "because I'll talk about violence as much as I damned well please—especially when it's aimed at our daughter! Who would you rather see hurt, the abusers or Savanna?"

"I'd rather not see _anyone_ hurt," insisted Sebastian, standing up in his anxiety. Katherine stood up as well and the two of them glared at each other. "Don't even _suggest_ that I would prefer for my little girl to come to harm!"

"You certainly have a problem with her defending herself!"

"Only with a deadly weapon! I suppose you'd rather her go on a killing spree and pepper each student that's been cruel to her with bullets!"

Savanna and Kato looked back and forth between the two fiercely arguing adults, wide-eyed.

"I never _said_ I wanted her to go on a killing spree," shouted Katherine, "I just want our daughter safe!"

"I want her safe too!" Sebastian shouted back. They had never argued like this in the entire time they'd known each other. He'd never seen his wife so bloodthirsty before. He'd never raised his voice this much before—especially to a family member. It tore him up inside and he felt like he might be reduced to tears before long.

The couple was so fixated on their argument that they failed to notice their daughter's growing distress. Savanna watched them with horrified eyes and when their yelling reached a crescendo, she exploded.

"_Stop it! Both of you just shut UP!_"

Sebastian and Katherine _did_ shut up, both of them stunned by Savanna's outburst. They turned to look at her, staring at her clenched fists, flushed face, teary eyes and trembling form. Kato rubbed her back and watched her in concern as Savanna gathered her wits.

* * *

_~Well, I got them to stop yelling at each other. Now what? ~_

Savanna struggled to regulate her breathing. She had a horrible feeling that she might start hyperventilating soon. Her mouth was dry, she was shaking all over and she wanted to scream bloody murder at the top of her lungs...or laugh hysterically, whichever came first. She drew strength from her boyfriend's quiet support and she took a deep, shaken breath.

"I don't want to shoot anybody."

Sebastian nodded in approval and Savanna held her hand up in warning, stealing his satisfaction before he could enjoy it completely. "I don't want to bake a cake for anyone either. 'Killing with kindness' sounds nice but it doesn't work with these people. Mama's right, they've gotten away with too much. You're right too, Papa. Hurting people won't make me any better than they are. I have to try something different, because everything else I've tried hasn't worked."

"What would you like to do, Savanna?" Katherine's voice was considerably calmer and she appeared somewhat ashamed of her behavior.

Savanna looked up at Kato again and he gave her a little nod of encouragement, his eyes promising that he was with her all the way. She reached into the back pocket of the jeans she wore and she withdrew a piece of recycled paper. She unfolded it and handed it over to her father, who regarded her curiously.

"Those are the names of everyone who has threatened me, stolen from me or physically harassed me—including the five boys that tried to spray paint our home."

Sebastian looked over the list of names, tilting the paper so that Katherine could read it as well. "I thought you didn't know the last names of your tormentors, Savanna."

She shrugged. "I lied. I didn't want to resort to getting them in trouble but they haven't left me with any other choice. I'd rather tell on them than have to shoot any of them and I'm tired of trying to be nice all the time, too."

"This is a surprisingly short list, sweetheart," Katherine observed, glancing up from the paper suspiciously. "Are you sure this is everybody?"

"Everybody that matters," confirmed Savanna with a nod. "The rest of the kids just call me names and spread nasty rumors. I don't think it's illegal to be an asshole so I'm not reporting them."

Sebastian smirked at her final sentence. "No, there is no law against being an asshole, more's the pity." He put an arm around Katherine and drew her close, apparently forgiving their earlier argument and silently asking forgiveness himself. "I'm glad you've chosen to do this, Savanna. It's never pleasant to be thought of as a 'nark' but considering their opinion of you already, I hardly think it matters."

"That's true," sighed Savanna. "Who do we go to with this list, Papa?"

Katherine and Sebastian glanced at each other with a frown. "We'll try the school board first," Katherine suggested. "I'll demand a meeting with the parents of these kids and if they don't cooperate, we'll think of something else."

"I hate to say it, but we may have to transfer our location," Sebastian sighed.

"No," denied Savanna with a shake of her head. "I'm not moving away."

"Especially not to UNEC," agreed Katherine with a frown. "Which is really the only other place we could go."

"I wouldn't want to move even if we had somewhere besides UNEC to go," Savanna said stubbornly. "I grew up here and all my friends are here, except the Na'vi."

Katherine looked at Kato. "If it comes to living somewhere else, I know where I would prefer Savanna to go."

Sebastian followed her gaze and compressed his lips, saying nothing. Savanna stepped closer to Kato and took his hand, wondering if she should just tell her parents the truth about the status of their relationship or not. While it was heartening to see her mother hint that she'd be willing to let her go and live with the Ikran clan, Savanna sensed that her parents were both reaching their stress limits.

If she came clean and told them she and Kato were a mated pair now, her father might toss aside his preference for civilized behavior and try a rugby move on Kato. Her mother might decide someone needed to be shot after all and go for her gun. Savanna sighed and watched her parents discuss the best way to deal with the bullies. No, this wasn't the time to approach them with a request for permission to marry Kato. They'd want to know why she was in such a hurry and they were in no condition to hear the truth.

* * *

While the Thomas family made their plans and approached the school board to deal with the bullies, Neytiri and Jake reluctantly prepared to part ways again. She and the others stayed through the weekend but there were clan affairs to take care of. One such important affair was to prepare for travel to the Tree of Souls. The great gathering of the clans was a week away and as an important representative of the Omaticaya, Neytiri had to be there.

"It is not right," she sighed as she checked her belongings and looked at her mate. "You should be there, Jake. This is a rare and important thing for the People. The one who brought the clans together to save our hallowed ground should be there."

"You just want to show me off."

Neytiri grinned. "You are still _Toruk Makto_, even if you are no longer _olo'eyktan_ of the blue flute people. Our clan takes pride in you, my Jake."

"Like I said, you want to show me off." He winked at her, ensuring that he didn't take himself seriously. "I think the other clans would be unimpressed when I showed up on an ikran instead of a toruk, anyhow."

"You may have set your toruk free," she countered, "but you are still a rider of Last Shadow. You would bring hope and joy to the people, if you could come to the great meeting."

Jake sobered and regarded her with a faintly troubled expression. "Why are you dwelling on this, Neytiri? You know I can't be there. I'd love to but I can't."

She lowered her gaze and nodded. "Yes, I know. I only wish it were different because this will be the first time Emazu meets other clans as our chieftain. He is young, hotheaded and uncouth at times. He does not have your charisma, my Jake."

Jake lifted his button-up uniform shirt off the hook on the wall and pulled it on, leaving it unbuttoned for the moment. "He's going to do fine. He'll have you, Mo'at and Norm there to keep him in line. Maybe Norm isn't all that scary but nobody in their right mind would cross you and your Mom."

Neytiri chuckled softly, shaking her head. "You make a game of everything."

Jake closed the distance between them and drew her into his embrace. "I find things to laugh about whenever I can," he reminded her between soft kisses. "It's going to help keep me sane while I'm in here. Visits from you are going to help with that, too."

Neytiri put her arms around him and laid her cheek against his chest, listening to his even breaths and steady, strong heartbeat. "I will come again as soon as I can. I hope that it will be safe to bring Sylwanin soon. She misses her _Sempu_ and so does Tsu'tey."

"They just need to hang in there for a little longer," soothed Jake, rubbing her back. "When the arrangements are made and I get moved to a safer place, they can come and stay as long as they want. I'll be glad to see them both again."

"Are you so sure that the general can provide such safety?"

"No," admitted Jake, "but I'm sure he'll make it happen if it's possible. I won't let the kids come and visit unless I know it's safe, so don't worry."

Neytiri sighed and nodded, turning her head to kiss his chest and throat. "I would stay longer, if I could."

"Baby, if you stayed much longer I don't think you'd be able to walk," Jake purred, sounding only slightly teasing.

Neytiri smiled, reminded by the pleasant ache in certain places from all the times they mated during her stay. Jake's virility was most certainly still impressive. His appetite for her was like a half-starved man that knew his next meal might not come for a long time. She didn't get much sleep during her visit but Neytiri hardly minded all the times Jake eased her out of her dreams to make love with her again.

She lifted her head to look at him with a smile. "If I were a younger woman, I would not be surprised to find myself expecting a little one, after your vigor."

Jake grinned. "Even if you weren't in heat?"

Neytiri nodded. "You were very, very thorough," she purred, kissing him sensually.

Jake responded, lancing his tongue into her mouth and lifting her against him. He started walking once her feet were off the floor and Neytiri realized he was trying to take her to the bed. She hastily broke the kiss and shook her head. "Jake, we have no time for more!"

"There's always time for more," he said, kissing her between words. "Just like there's always room for Jell-O."

Neytiri had no idea what the latter statement meant but she knew her travel companions would be coming to get her at any moment. "Jake, they will be here for me soon."

Her eyes fluttered shut and she purred unwittingly as his mouth kissed the most sensitive spots on her neck and then moved on to the place just below her left ear. She could feel the evidence that he wasn't just playing with her about having one last romp. It was digging into her hip through his prison pants. The back of her knees touched the mattress and Neytiri muttered another half-hearted protest as her mate eased her backwards onto the bed. His mouth covered hers in a searing kiss and his body pinned hers down.

She could have broken free if she wanted to, of course. The moment she put up a real fight, Jake would have gotten off of her and even helped her sit back up, no matter how disappointed he might be. His kisses and the intimate weight of his body on top of hers convinced Neytiri that she didn't really _have_ to put a stop to this just yet. She combed her fingers through his braids, glad that his hair was once again growing out from the mohawk he'd fashioned it into. Her interest in enjoying a few more stolen kisses turned into a desire for more as his mouth made love to hers and his hands caressed various sensitive areas on her body. He avoided full contact with the most erogenous areas, instead choosing to skim by them just enough to make her tense with anticipation.

Her Jake was teasing her again.

He always did this when he sensed her protests weren't genuine. Neytiri grumbled in her throat and slipped her hands down his stomach. "Fine. We will have a 'quick-ee'," she said in defeat, beginning to fuss with the drawstrings of his pants.

Jake reached down and stalled her. "Hold on a minute. I think you're right; we should just be satisfied with what we've got and—"

"_Jake! Nga txìm eltu!_"

He stared down at her and whistled. "I'm a butt brain now, huh? You're the one that said we don't have time for more loving."

"I changed my mind," she insisted peevishly, tugging at his drawstrings. "Quit playing."

He tried to keep a straight face but evidently, the frustration on hers was too much for him. He started to laugh low in his throat and he lowered his head to give her a kiss. "All right, since you put it that way."

* * *

Norm knocked on Jake's cell door when the guard stepped aside. The guard informed him that he didn't think Sully or his mate were quite ready to end the visitation and it only took a moment of listening for Norm to find out why. He glanced at his mate, who smiled when her sharp ears detected the muffled sounds of pleasure on the other side of the door. At least Neytiri and Jake _tried_ to keep their voices down. The guard at the door evidently heard it anyway, because he looked like he couldn't decide whether to laugh or play dumb.

"We will wait near the exit," Ni'nat said patiently. "We can return to say goodbye to Jake when Neytiri comes and finds us."

Norm nodded in agreement, thanked the guard and walked away with the singer. As they moved down the hallway, Norm glanced over his shoulder at the cell door and shook his head. At first, he wondered where Jake found the energy to go at it like that, but then he imagined himself in his friend's shoes and he decided he would probably try to find that kind of stamina too. When people were kept apart from what they needed, they appreciated it more. Norm guessed Neytiri was treasuring their time together as much as Jake was and he wished he could give them all the time they needed.

* * *

Neytiri tried to keep her spirits up after returning home. She could at least be thankful to be with her children and to have the opportunity to visit her mother without the need to stay hidden. Those in the clan who were to attend the gathering began their travel preparations two days ahead of time; a necessity for such a large travel party. Norm tried to convince his oldest daughter to stay at Hometree, since her pregnancy had progressed to a more obvious stage. Grace of course refused to comply with his request, insisting on being with her family and mate.

The people staying behind saw their brethren off and offered their blessings as they started their journey to the sacred tree. Sylwanin rode on Neytiri's banshee with her. Grace wisely chose to travel on the ground by direhorse. Flight would have been uncomfortable after a while in her condition, due to the riding position necessary to maintain balance.

Tsu'tey chose to ride double with her in case she wanted to rest during the journey. Gracie's parents and sister rode horseback for the journey as well—mainly because Norm wanted to be close to his expecting daughter in case anything out of the ordinary happened.

"Are you comfortable enough?" Tsu'tey murmured into Gracie's ear after about an hour's travel.

She squirmed a little and tried not to make it obvious. "I'm fine."

"You can lean back against me if you want," he offered gently.

She turned her head to regard him with a weak little smile. "So you noticed anyway."

He shrugged. "I'm starting to learn your body language. I can tell your back is aching."

She leaned back against him gratefully; her smile growing more relaxed as he embraced her supportively. "Have I told you today how glad I am we're riding together, Tsu'tey?"

He smiled and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I'm glad too."

Norm watched it all from the corner of his eye and he found himself smiling. He still wasn't sure when it happened, but the partnership between his daughter and her young mate had blossomed from one of convenience into one of love. He could tell by the way they looked at each other and interacted.

"They did good for themselves, Jake," Norm muttered under his breath. "I think we can both stop worrying about that now."

Flying overhead in formation with Emazu and a dozen other ikran riders, Neytiri called out to her clan people below. Ni'nat answered her call, assuring her that all travelers were accounted for. The singer moved her horse closer to Norm's and she reached out a hand for him. He reached across the distance and took it, feeling a sense of excitement as they drew nearer to their destination. He was going to meet all new clans he'd never even heard of before and hopefully, learn about some of their customs that differed from the clans he was familiar with. To a man like Norm Spellman, it was like going to Disney World.

* * *

"_Sa'nok_," greeted Neytiri warmly as she dismounted.

Mo'at smiled and approached her daughter. She had come with E'quath to meet up with them when the lookouts announced that the Omaticaya were coming into the valley. "Daughter, you look well."

Mo'at embraced Neytiri and for several heartbeats, the two women enjoyed one another's closeness. When they broke apart, Mo'at went straight to her grandchildren and Grace. Sylwanin beamed at the old _Tsahik_ as Mo'at marveled aloud at how tall she'd grown since they last saw one another. When she finished doting on the little girl and Tsu'tey, Mo'at approached Grace and regarded her with matronly affection. Her eyes went to the young woman's rounding belly and she gave Gracie a silently questioning look. When the pretty huntress obligingly dropped her arms to the side and smiled invitingly, Mo'at placed her hand over the rounding belly.

"I trust you are eating well and balancing activity and rest, child?" Mo'at gave Grace an expectant look, but her eyes twinkled with fondness beneath the stern mask.

"Yes, Wise Mother," answered Gracie readily, holding Tsu'tey's hand in hers. "I have a very supportive mate to help me be sure of that."

"Of course," Mo'at said with amusement. "May it be that way always."

She moved on to Emazu, standing beside his parents. He gave her a respectful nod, watching uncertainly as she hobbled over to him with the help of her walking stick. Mo'at studied his face for a few moments before glancing at his mother and father. She gave them a polite nod but her attention was for the young chieftain.

"You have grown inside, I can see."

Emazu inclined his head, holding her gaze. Whatever he felt at that moment was well concealed beneath a disciplined expression of authority. "I have had guidance, _Tsahik_."

His eyes went not to his mother or his father, but to Norm Spellman—who was carrying his travel-weary younger daughter out of the valley entrance toward the village center. Emazu's parents didn't dare show offense at being excluded, knowing full-well that Mo'at found their beliefs concerning avatars and their offspring offensive.

Mo'at nodded. "It is good that you are taking these lessons well, Emazu. If you are honorable and fair, you will make a great _Olo'eyktan_."

He inclined his head again, this time expressing pleasure and a rare sense of modesty in response to her words. "Thank you, Mo'at. I will remember your words."

* * *

Karyu smirked at her cousin as she embraced him. "What took you so long? My family has been here for hours."

Tsu'tey took note of the number of Ikran clan members present. "You didn't have as many people to move as we did, smarty-pants. So where's your twin?"

"Probably making out with Savanna in a dark room," grumbled Karyu. She released Tsu'tey to hug Grace. "He didn't come. He won't leave her side even for an event like this."

Grace smiled, endeared to Kato for his apparent loyalty to his girlfriend. "Don't be too hard on him, Karyu. He just wants to protect her. He must really love her, to be so determined."

"Yeah, he's all washed up," sighed the petite huntress. "She's all he thinks of. I guess I can deal with that, since she's one of my closest friends."

Grace noticed the curious way Karyu was eyeing her belly as they broke the embrace and she smiled at her. "Go ahead, you can touch it."

Karyu looked faintly embarrassed and she tried to appear non-interested. "I'm sure you've got enough people rubbing your stomach."

Grace laughed softly and caught hold of the smaller woman's hands, guiding them to her rounding tummy. "It's okay, Karyu...really. You're practically family."

The ikran huntress didn't pull away and the left corner of her mouth quirked as her palms rested over the tunic covering Gracie's belly. "Well, if you insist. This is the first time any of my friends was expecting. Does it feel weird?" She gently rubbed the mound, as if soothing it.

"Not so much," answered Grace. "It's been such a gradual process, I've had time to get used to the changes. I think it's going to feel weirder after I give birth and I suddenly don't have a baby inside of me anymore."

"If you say so." Karyu patted Grace's belly and took her hands away. "So you haven't had any movement yet?"

"No. Should I be concerned?" Grace placed her hands over her belly and looked down at it, suddenly worried. Tsu'tey also placed his hand protectively over the growing mound.

"Of course not," assured Karyu hastily. "Your father would know if something wasn't normal. He hardly lets you out of his sight."

"Yes, sometimes I want to throttle him," Grace said dryly. "But I know he means well and I just want the baby to make it safely into the world."

"I'm glad it's not me," sighed Karyu.

Tsu'tey looked at his cousin with a smirk. "I'll bet you'll look cute with a baby bump someday."

"You're insane," she spouted.

"Aw, Karyu," Grace chuckled, "I can just imagine you with a little baby bump."

"Do you _want_ me to hate you?" challenged the smaller female with a dirty look.

Grace shared a conspiring look with her mate. "Why would you hate me for a compliment? You'll make an adorable Mommy."

The "adorable" huntress put on a scowl that wasn't remotely becoming on her delicate features. "Don't be so smug. Now come on...I'm hungry."

Tsu'tey and Grace both sobered and stared after their companion as she walked away. Her stance was stiff and Grace felt bad for teasing her.

"Wow...I think she was really mad," Tsu'tey whispered.

Grace shook her head, understanding Karyu a little better than her male companion. "She's afraid, Tsu'tey. She's becoming a woman and she's fighting against it. That's why she's so moody and rude."

"She's _always_ been moody and rude," Tsu'tey pointed out with a little smooch on Gracie's temple. "But maybe she just needs your advice. You've been through it and you're okay."

Grace sighed and caressed his hand as it settled on her shoulder. "It isn't so simple. One day we're thinking of chasing fan lizards and the next we're thinking of naked boys. It's jarring and scary. I'll bet she cries when nobody's around."

"Karyu?" scoffed Tsu'tey. "I think you have my cousin confused with someone else."

Grace regarded him with faint annoyance. "Just because she refuses to let people see her do it doesn't mean she doesn't cry. She has tear ducts and feelings, like anyone else."

"I was only kidding," defended Tsu'tey contritely. "She picks on _me_ all the time, after all."

Grace tried to be fair. "I know picking on each other is something you and your cousins have always done but if she's anything like I was, she's having a really hard time right now. Try to go easy on her while we're here, okay?"

Tsu'tey listened to her words and he smiled at her. "I guess I can do that. If she's really that stressed out, I don't want to make it worse for her. You're really going to make an outstanding _Tsahik_ someday, Gracie."

She returned his smile and turned around to kiss him on the lips. "If that's true, it's just because I've had good teachers."

He chuckled, not missing the compliment to his mother and grandmother. "Let's go find my hormonal cousin."

* * *

Grace and Tsu'tey parted ways when they made it to the central village. Tsu'tey went to join his mother by the cooking fire and Grace went to Karyu, who was munching on a haunch of hexapede with vigor few women her age dared to express.

"Hey, I found a female version of Emazu." Karyu swallowed the food she was chewing on and she pointed a young woman out, who was sitting beside said male on the ground, talking to him. "Her name's Alyara and she's from the Mune'tsyal clan. Her brother is their _Olo'eyktan_ and she's here representing him. He apparently took an injury while he was out hunting and he's still recovering."

Grace looked at her friend sidelong. At least Karyu seemed to be in better spirits than she was a little while ago. "You sure know a lot about her."

Karyu picked off another strip of meat from the bone and she shrugged. "So I eavesdropped on her and Emazu a little. I was bored."

Grace looked at the individuals in question again. The two of them were deep in a conversation and like her clan members; the young woman had paler skin than most of the southern Na'vi. Grace guessed the lighter pigment was due to living in a slightly cooler climate with less sun exposure. Her features couldn't be called beautiful but she was a handsome female. Emazu and Alyara both seemed to take the subject of whatever they were talking about very seriously. Perhaps they were discussing tribal politics. Maybe it was a bit of an overstatement to call her a "female version of Emazu" but Grace could definitely see similarities in their mannerisms.

Grace turned back to Karyu, remembering her purpose in seeking her out. "Can I speak with you alone for a minute?"

Karyu regarded her warily. "About what?"

"Calm down," intervened Grace with a chuckle. "I just want to talk to you, girl to girl. Like we used to when we visited each other's clans, you know?"

Karyu relaxed and favored her with an—almost—repentant smile. "Since you put it that way, sure. You need to eat, though." She walked over to one of the cooking fires and used her hunting knife to cut off a slab of roasting meat. She put it on a leaf plate and grabbed some nuts from a nearby barrel before bringing the meal to Grace.

"There. Now we can talk without me worrying."

Grace smirked at her friend and she lifted the steaming piece of meat to take a delicate bite. "You and Tsu'tey act like I'll crumble if I don't stuff myself every minute."

Karyu gave her a grin and she shrugged. "We're just looking out for you."

* * *

After having her meal, Grace coaxed her friend away from the gathering so that she could have a private word with her. By the look on Karyu's face, she was expecting something like a natural disaster and Grace had a bit of a laugh at her expense.

"You don't have to pull that face," she assured, "I'm not here to pressure you or put you down."

"Then what _are_ we doing here?" asked Karyu with a glance around their surroundings.

"You're thinking of a man," guessed Grace, deciding to get to the point. "He's in your mind always, isn't he?"

Karyu gave her an annoyed look, but then she deflated and confirmed the suspicion with a nod. "I keep thinking of all the different ways I'd like to screw his brains out."

For a few heartbeats, Grace stared blankly at her friend. She wasn't used to her caving so soon and the lack of denial indicated that Karyu's situation was getting desperate. Remembering her fixation on that marine at Hell's Gate, Grace guessed he was the object of her frustrations. "That bad, huh? Is it that avatar operative with the green eyes?"

Karyu shrugged and averted her gaze.

"Do you remember when I started feeling a woman's needs?" Grace said gently, "I had thoughts of pouncing on Tommy. I mean _literal_. I couldn't be around him without wanting to knock him to the ground and rub against him."

Karyu snorted. "Thanks for the reminder."

"I'm just trying to tell you it's okay, Karyu. Really. Wanting to jump a man that catches your interest is completely normal. You told me the same thing, back when I started going through this. Don't you remember?"

"I was just repeating what I've heard other women say." Karyu gazed at her uncertainly. "Do you feel that way about Tsu'tey? I really don't mean to jab you like this, Grace. I know you loved Tommy and I know you wouldn't hurt Tsu'tey on purpose."

"I understand," assured Grace. "I _do_ love Tsu'tey and I would die if anything ever happened to him."

"Okay, enough melodrama," grumbled Karyu uncomfortably. "Eywa, you're morbid. A simple 'I love him' would have done just fine."

Grace stifled a giggle. "But I doubt it would have convinced you."

"Maybe not," agreed Karyu with a shrug. She looked down and began to trace patterns in the moss with her big toe, allowing a hint of vulnerability to show. "So there's really nothing wrong with wanting to tie a man up and lick him all over?"

"Um...I'm probably going to regret asking, but why do you want to tie him up?"

Karyu cleared her throat and blushed. "Because then I can play and touch him all I want until I'm satisfied. Go ahead and call me a freak."

Grace blurted a laugh. "I don't think you're a freak. It just surprised me. You're...a little different from me."

Karyu smirked. "Different, huh? So you've never done anything like that with Tsu'tey?"

Grace cleared her throat and blushed so deeply that it was a wonder she wasn't turning purple. "I haven't considered tying him up, no."

"But I can tell I've got you thinking about it." Karyu snickered softly with amusement. "Oh, come on...he's your mate. I really think he'd be okay with a little playing."

"Karyu, we're still getting to know one another as mates," reminded Grace shyly. "I really don't think tying him up is a good idea and for Eywa's sake, this is your cousin you're talking about."

Karyu sighed and rolled her eyes. "You're so squeemish. Not that I want to hear about how my cousin has sex, but come on. You've got your needs and you just _said_ it was totally normal to think of—"

"Okay, okay!" Grace looked around warily and clamped a hand over Karyu's mouth. "This conversation is drifting into a weird place."

Karyu pried the taller girl's hand off her mouth. "Where exactly did you expect the conversation to go? You started it."

Grace sighed and nodded in defeat. "I guess you're right. I really just wanted to talk to you because I'm a little worried about you. If you take a mate and have a family, your life isn't going to be over with."

Karyu grimaced. "I know what my mother went through having Kato and I. I'm put together just like her. Did you know my mother got so bloated she couldn't get up on her own? One day _Sempul _found her rolling around on the sand like some helpless sea creature washed to shore. Where the hell is the _dignity_ in that?"

Understanding her concern, Grace stroked the petite huntress' hair soothingly. "Well, if it's any consolation at all, it doesn't last forever," Grace reminded her. "And the really clumsy stage doesn't happen until you're almost finished with it anyway. I think you'll do just fine, if you ever decide to become a _Sa'nu_. You're too stubborn to let a swollen belly keep you down for long."

Karyu harrumphed and tried to play it off like she wasn't flattered by the compliment. "Well, I guess I should thank you for taking the time to tell me the world isn't ending because I'm horny."

Grace put an arm around her. "I know you hate the mushy stuff, but I'm here for you if you need me, okay? You and Sav were there for me and I want to be here for you too."

Karyu managed a dry smirk. "Just whatever you do, don't tell Kato. The last thing I need right now is that smartass saying; _'I told you so'_."

Gracie laughed. "You know, you kind of deserve your comeuppance. You've picked on him endlessly from the day he first hit puberty."

"Hey, I thought girls were supposed to stick together." Karyu gave her an accusing look and nearly pouted.

"You really _are_ a mess right now," sighed Grace, hugging the smaller woman with one arm. "Let's get back to the village center. Maybe some song and dance will make you feel better."

Karyu didn't argue with her...possibly because she was almost desperate to get her mind off Baxter Howell.

* * *

The music and dancing went on all through the night, long after little ones and elderly people retired to their sleeping pallets. Grace was amused with her father, who seemed to have an endless supply of questions for the foreign clans. Between the two of them, Norm and Tom obtained plenty of information about Mune'tsyal and Swizaw traditions. Grace listened in on the conversation for a while, until she looked up at the sky and saw one of Tommy's favorite star constellations.

She tried to look away, but she couldn't. Her thoughts went to the way his eyes stared blankly up at the sky after the bullet to his skull ended his life. A sudden sob shook her and she hastily got up and left the populated area, hoping to get away before anyone noticed her distress. One pair of eyes followed her as Grace left, empathizing with the young woman more than she could possibly know.

* * *

"You should not wander so far, this late at night."

Grace whirled around, instinctively reaching for her knife. She relaxed when she recognized the owner of the voice. "Chieftess Tanhi. I...didn't know anyone followed me."

"Only out of concern," assured the older woman. "It is not safe to be alone out here. A predator could see an opportunity in a lone, pregnant Na'vi woman. Understand?"

Grace shut her eyes and nodded. The pain in her heart and the guilt wouldn't go away. "I know. I just needed to be alone for a while."

"You are thinking of your first mate," guessed Tanhi.

"Yes," admitted Gracie. "Sometimes I just can't help it. At first, I felt guilty for having feelings for Tsu'tey, like I was cheating on Tommy's memory. Now I feel guilty for thinking about Tommy sometimes."

Tanhi nodded. "The guilt. I know it well. I still think of my first mate and son, now and then. I still ache for them. I no longer feel that I am betraying my living family when I do so, but it took many years for me to understand this."

"So the guilt is normal?"

"Yes. It is an unfortunate part of the grief, Grace. We punish ourselves for the deaths of those we love and we punish ourselves for living on without them. I can tell you it is useless and un-necessary to hurt yourself this way, but it would not help you. This is something you must come to terms with on your own. All that I can do is assure you that none of this is your fault and neither Tommy nor Tsu'tey put any blame on you. One day, you will believe it."

Gracie's vision blurred and she sniffed. "I...don't know what to say. Thank you. I forgot that you've been through this too." The tears came harder, despite her efforts to hold them back. Embarrassed, she looked away from the great chieftess, hoping she wasn't offending her.

Soft footfalls approached and slender hands rested on her shoulders. Grace swallowed hard and murmured an apology as the older woman soothed her. "Don't apologize," whispered Tanhi. She rested one hand over the curve of Gracie's belly and she drew her head down to rest on her shoulder. "He is alive within you. Be thankful for that and let your pain go free."

Her words had a healing effect on Gracie and the young woman began to sob helplessly against the _Olo'eyktan's_ shoulder. Tanhi stroked her hair and let her cry it out, offering maternal comfort and understanding. This was the first time in months that Grace was able to cut loose and cry her heart out. She'd been fighting the pain for so long, thinking of how unfair it was to Tsu'tey for her to still pine for his brother. Every tear she shed for the father of her unborn child brought terrible guilt with it. Even though she knew Tsu'tey would never think badly of her for missing Tommy, she couldn't convince herself it was okay.

Something happened in that moment that made Grace abruptly stop crying and stare blankly into the shadows. Tanhi felt it too and she drew back to look at the taller female with a satisfied little smile. "Your little one leaps inside of you, Grace."

Grace put a hand over Tanhi's smaller one, her teary eyes wide with amazement. The tiny life inside of her moved again, provoking a smile of hope and delight on Gracie's lips. "I wondered how long it would be before this happened."

Tanhi shrugged. "Some babies become active sooner than others. I think your child is trying to say to you: _'everything is going to be okay, Sa'nu'_."

Grace covered her mouth with her hand to muffle the shaken laugh that escaped. She rubbed her stomach in slow circles, enchanted with the feel of her baby moving inside of her. The activity made it all feel more real, somehow. Until that moment, she felt oddly detached from the pregnancy, as if it were happening to someone else and she was just along for the ride, watching.

"I promise to keep you safe and healthy," she whispered, smiling down at her belly. The sorrow began to fade to a bearable level again.

Tanhi's smile grew and she took Grace's hand. "Come. We should go back to the village. You can share this new miracle with your Tsu'tey."

* * *

Tsu'tey was delighted when Grace joined him near one of the bonfires and let him feel the baby move, but he noticed that her eyes were puffy and her lashes were sticking together. His smile of amazement faded into a look of concern as he caressed her face. "You've been crying."

"Some," she admitted softly. "But I'm okay now."

"Are you sure?"

She smiled at him and nodded. "Yes. It was just one of my moments. I looked up and saw a constellation your brother used to like and it just...got to me."

He put an arm around her to draw her closer, still keeping one hand over her belly. He looked like he was going to say something but the baby moved again and he smiled at Grace, evidently losing his train of thought. Norm was passing by and when he saw the expression on their faces and the way Tsu'tey was touching her stomach, he guessed what was happening. He quickly had a feel for himself and he called out to his mate and daughter.

Ni'nat and Ralu hurried over when they heard the news that the baby was active. Other clan mates nearby surrounded Grace and she shared a grimace with Tsu'tey as people began to take turns feeling her young move inside of her. Before she knew it, Grace was passed around like a parcel and it seemed like everybody at the gathering laid hands on her belly before leaving her alone. She didn't mind her family and friends touching her but she was glad when the novelty wore off and strangers stopped asking to feel the baby move.

"Maybe I should have told you in our tent," Grace muttered to her mate dryly as they approached said structure for bed. "I've never had so many strangers touch me before. It was a little intrusive."

"People are just excited for you," excused Tsu'tey. "Even _Emazu_ cracked a smile when he had a feel, but that could have been because he was touching _you_."

Grace chuckled, resting her hand over the tunic covering her belly. "I think he's come to accept that you and I belong together." She bit her lip as he held the tent flap open for her and gestured for her to go inside. "Tsu'tey, some day we'll be feeling your baby move like this. You know that, right?"

He gave her that gentle, patient smile that always made her feel a little better. "I wouldn't change how this baby got there for anything. I love it as much as I would if my seed helped make it, Gracie. I hope you'll believe that, someday soon."

She stared at him, finding him so attractive at that moment he was practically beautiful. Now was the perfect time to become a real mate to him. She knew it as surely as if Eywa had whispered it into her ear. Grace walked past him and took his hand as she ducked into the tent, tapping the bladder lantern that hung overhead. The insects inside awoke and provide a bit of luminance. He followed her and as soon as the flap closed behind them, she took his hands and urged him to sink onto the pallet with her. They went to their knees together and she cupped his face, staring into his eyes for a moment before kissing him. Tsu'tey made a funny little sound that normally would have made her giggle, but her desire and appreciation for him outweighed her amusement.

His lips were soft and firm at the same time. She traced his jaw with her fingertips, admiring his sculpted bone structure. Emazu used to call him 'girlish' and Grace herself often thought of him as a very pretty male. His elfin features were a thing of beauty, as far as Grace was concerned. The gentle reciprocation of his kisses and his soft, caressing touches made her feel confident and safe. Tsu'tey always allowed her to take the lead—which she normally appreciated because it allowed her to do things at her own pace.

Tonight, however, she wanted something different. She wanted to see his aggressive side. He would never be rough with her—especially while she was pregnant—but she knew how he held back for her sake, each time they linked or kissed. It was time for him to listen to his masculine instincts and allow nature to take over. She just needed to convince him she wouldn't break.

Karyu had fantasies of tying up Baxter Howell and there Grace was, fantasizing about being held down by her pretty-faced mate. The irony made Gracie giggle before she could stop herself and the puzzled smile Tsu'tey gave her only increased her amusement.

"I'm kissing you wrong," he guessed. "Too soft? Too wet?"

Grace shook her head and stalled him with two fingers pressed against his lips. "Shhh. Your kisses are wonderful, Tsu'tey. I was laughing at my own thoughts."

"What kind of thoughts?" The look on his face told her he was starting to feel nervous and vulnerable.

Grace blushed, biting her lip again as she tried to think of the best way to explain to him. How did one inform her mate that she wanted him to jump her bones? It wasn't Tsu'tey's fault, after all. She'd given him no reason to believe she wanted him to be aggressive and the only thing he was guilty of was trying to be a good mate without pressuring her. She stroked his hair and sighed, looking into his eyes. As sensitive as he was, Tsu'tey was no mind reader.

"I want you to take me." She thought her face was going to explode with embarrassment as she forced the words past her lips.

Tsu'tey blinked. "Um...take you where?"

Grace thought he must be joking at first, but the sincere confusion on his face told her he was quite serious. He really didn't understand what she meant. She was going to have to rise above her bashfulness and speak plainly, to get what she wanted. "Tsu'tey, I want you to make me your woman tonight. Don't hold anything back."

Poor Tsu'tey's eyes grew wider with each word that passed her lips. His throat worked and he swallowed, looking her up and down. "Er...really? You want me to just...attack you?"

The urge to hug him until he popped was almost stronger than her desire for sex. "We're a mated pair and we both have our needs. I think it's time we answered those needs, don't you?" She combed her fingers through his braids and kissed him, brushing her lips over his cajolingly.

"Uh, yeah...I just...I'm trying to respect you and...you're making it really hard for me to think right now, Gracie."

She smiled against his lips. _Something_ was definitely hard; she could feel it pressing against her thigh through his loincloth. She didn't say so aloud but Grace was sure that anyone under the impression that Tsu'tey wasn't "manly enough" would quickly change their mind if they saw the length and girth of his erection. His lips traveled from her mouth to her throat and they found a sensitive spot, distracting her. She sighed and arched her neck invitingly, loving the way his mouth gently sucked and nibbled at the skin.

"Tonight, I just want you to stop worrying about offending me and listen to your instincts."

His body trembled against hers as he pulled her closer to him and kissed her flesh with greater enthusiasm. "I just don't want to hurt you or the baby."

"Women have sex with their mates all the time during pregnancy," reminded Grace huskily. "I'm healthy and we may not have this opportunity again until after the baby comes, once I get heavier. Please, Tsu'tey...I really want this."

His ability to resist her charms evidently reached its end, because he groaned as if in pain and eased her onto her back. Gracie kept her arms around him and she gazed up at him invitingly as his hips settled between her thighs. He instinctively shifted against her, rubbing his stiffened groin against her in a way that made a thrill of excitement go through her. He was breathing heavily, his breath hot and fluttery against her skin as he kissed her over and over. His palm glided over her outer thigh and it paused when it reached the strings of her loincloth. Gracie wriggled impatiently, begging with her body for him to remove the scant barrier. Tsu'tey kissed her as his fingers began to tug at the loincloth. Grace lifted her hips and helped him pull the garment off, hardly embarrassed at all as the bulge of his manhood pressed against her exposed loins through his garment.

"Tsu'tey," she moaned, lightly scraping his back and shoulders with her fingernails. His muscles were lean and strong beneath her hands as she explored him. His scent was earthy and soothing, his lips were intoxicating and the little shivers that raced through his body were endearing. He was afraid, even if he didn't say so out loud. Grace could sense it in his tension and she loved him even more for it.

She paused her kissing to look into his eyes, cupping his face in her hands. "You won't hurt me. I can take more than you think."

He nodded and licked his lips. "Okay...if you're sure. Just...you'll tell me if I cause any pain, won't you?"

Grace smiled at him and she reached for her queue. "You'll feel it, if you do. Trust yourself, okay? I do."

He reached for his queue obligingly and gasped a nervous little laugh. "I completely forgot about _tsahaylu_."

"You're just nervous," Gracie encouraged. She gasped and embraced him as the tendrils entwined and the pleasure of the bond washed over her.

"Well, you've got some experience," he reminded her breathlessly, his voice laced with shyness and desire. "I just hope I'm not too clumsy."

She could have reminded him that her sexual experience was limited to the single night she enjoyed with Tommy and the time she gave him oral pleasure, but she didn't want to ruin the moment. She reached down and began to slide his loincloth down over his hips, eager to expose him. She hadn't touched him down there since the day she took him by surprise outside the village.

Tsu'tey eagerly helped her and Grace looked down to see his stiffened shaft spring free of the garment as he pulled it down. The sight was strangely hypnotic to her and she curled her fingers around the warm girth of the organ, stroking gently. Tsu'tey's breath caught and he stared into her eyes, allowing her to touch him at her leisure. She could feel his pleasure and she smiled at him, enjoying the velvety feel of it.

"It's okay," she soothed when his body shuddered and his tail flicked in agitation. "You're so tense. Just try to relax."

"O-okay," he gasped, struggling to comply without putting too much of his weight on her.

He started to unlace her tunic and Gracie stopped stroking him, sensing that he was getting too excited. She helped him open up her tunic and she shrugged out of it when it was loose enough. Tsu'tey stared down at her exposed breasts with appreciation. The slope of her belly didn't put him off and Grace was thankful for that. Her expanding tummy was the one thing she'd been a little concerned with, but she sensed nothing but love, desire and admiration through the link. Just as Grace was about to encourage him to touch her, he lowered his mouth to the left one and took the nipple between his lips. Grace was taken by surprise in a very pleasant way and she moaned his name encouragingly. His tongue swirled around the pebbled nipple and his lips gently tugged on it, giving her a fantastic wet, tingling sensation. He fondled her right breast with his hand while he stimulated the left with his mouth.

Grace tilted her head back and shut her eyes, enjoying every swirl of his tongue and stroke of his fingertips. He almost got too rough at one point but he quickly corrected himself when he sensed the ache through the link. He took great care to pleasure her without allowing his excitement to drive his motions. Grace expressed her gratitude with soft whimpers and gasped encouragement. He began to rub against her again, groaning softly with need. She was moist with desire herself and the tip of his erection pressed against her entrance, teasing her without any conscious effort on Tsu'tey's part.

"I need you," Grace panted, wriggling beneath him. Other sexually active women mated regularly with their men, but Grace deprived herself of that pleasure until now. The grief distracted her from her body's needs but now that she was ready to finally move on, her desire was like a flame within her. She was burning up and the tender little nub crowning the folds of her loins was swollen with arousal and highly sensitive.

Tsu'tey stopped his oral stimulation of her breast and he kissed her deeply. He stopped to look down at her curiously after a moment, picking up on what she wanted through the bond. He didn't hesitate, even though Grace felt a little flash of confusion from him. His hands wrapped around her wrists and pushed them over her head, holding them there. The simple move excited Grace to the point of emitting something between a growl and a purr and she felt a momentary flash of uncertainty through the link.

"Don't stop," she begged him. She licked his chin and undulated beneath him, showing him her approval of his actions.

Tsu'tey held back for a while, sensing her need and drawing the encounter out for longer. He purred softly when she whimpered his name pleadingly, his confidence growing along with a sense of satisfaction. He nibbled her ear and whispered endearments to her, keeping a firm hold on her wrists without being too rough.

He started to get too excited and he swallowed and warned her breathlessly. "I...need to calm down. Stop squirming, okay?"

She wasn't even aware that she was squirming and complying with his request proved to be difficult. She stared up at him and panted, struggling not to rub against him like a wild animal. He bit his lip and shut his eyes, slowing his breathing in concentration. Fortunately for both of them, Tsu'tey brought himself under control before it reached a critical point. She felt his lust taper down to a less explosive level and she shared his smile when he opened his eyes again to look down at her. He kissed her with enthusiasm and murmured one last endearment to her, again declaring his love for her before proceeding.

He shifted on top of her and she gasped a little as he started to penetrate her. He paused and waited for a moment, watching her with quiet concern as he waited for her to adjust. When her body relaxed to accommodate him, he pushed deeper inside of her. He trembled and moaned her name, sucking in shallow breaths as he slowly eased his length into her body. His fingers entwined with hers and he nuzzled her cheek, holding still again as he sensed her discomfort. When she adjusted to the breach, he pushed in the rest of the way and kissed her hard, groaning softly in pleasure.

"Tsu'tey," gasped the young woman, loving the feel of him deep inside of her. She wished she had found the courage to do this with him sooner.

He pulled back and he swore softly as he accidentally withdrew too far. "Sorry," he apologized sheepishly, flushing.

She shook her head and kissed his lips. "It's okay. Don't worry." She gasped again when he slid back into her. "Mm, Tsu'tey." It was hard to be shy now, with so many wonderful sensations coursing through her body.

He began to move with care, taking time to figure out a good rhythm. He didn't repeat his earlier mistake of withdrawing too far and soon, he was pumping his hips with greater vigor and confidence. He was careful to balance his weight so that he wasn't pressing down on her belly and he took her advice, listening to his instincts. Grace called out to him when he bucked into her almost roughly. She begged him to do it again and despite the worry she sensed from him, he obeyed. Grunting and moaning her name, he mated with her enthusiastically, eagerly complying when she asked him to change his pace or try a different angle.

He started to release her hands but she shook her head, stalling him. If Tsu'tey thought it was strange for her to get off on being restrained, he didn't say so. Every pelvic thrust brought her closer to orgasm and Grace writhed beneath her straining mate, encouraging him with breathless candor. She moved beneath him, matching his motions to intensify the experience.

"Yes," she panted when he discovered an angle that sent a shock of pleasure through her. He kept going, looking somewhat pained as he strove to please her before spending himself. He began to groan with his efforts and he struggled to keep his voice down. Grace shut her eyes and bit her lip as his efforts paid off. The climax shook her in a most satisfying way and she smiled with relief as the pulsing throbs put her in a state of bliss.

Tsu'tey stared down at her with amazement as she clenched rhythmically around his swollen length and he felt the orgasm through their bond. "Oh...that's..." He couldn't finish whatever he was going to say, because the sensations overwhelmed him and his climax snuck up on him. His tail arched over his back and his eyes went blank as he bucked inside of her, spurting his seed. He shut his eyes and panted, his mouth slack with pleasure. Grace squeezed his hands and sighed in satisfaction as her climax tapered off. She looked up at him and admired the expression of wonder and pleasure on his face. His tension faded as he expelled the last of his seed and he released her hands to caress her face.

"Thank you," Tsu'tey whispered hoarsely, completely sincere.

"You're silly," Grace chuckled breathlessly. She combed aside some dangling braids that had fallen over his forehead and she rubbed his back. "I feel like I should be the one thanking _you_."

"You don't have to stroke my ego," he said bashfully, averting his gaze. "I goofed up right away."

"It was your first time," she excused, "and you made up for that one little slip. You were very considerate and you did everything I asked you to do. It was great. "

He smiled a little. "You mean that?"

"Completely. I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it."

Evidently, he felt her sincerity through _tsahaylu _and was satisfied. They kissed for a little while, basking in the afterglow. He eased his body off of her after a few minutes and she winced a little when he withdrew from her. She was probably going to be sore for a while but the experience was more than worth it. He rolled onto his back and encouraged her to stretch out on top of him. As she laid her head on his chest, Tsu'tey stroked her hair and asked if she was okay.

"Just a little sore," she admitted, knowing he could feel it. "But that's normal, from what I understand. I'll eventually stop feeling sore after having sex, once my body gets used to it."

"So...we'll be doing this again sometime?"

Grace giggled and nodded. "What, did you think I was just going to have sex with you once and that would be it?"

He smiled. "I didn't even expect you to have sex with me at all. I'm still kind of dazed that it happened."

Grace tilted her head to look at him. "You're my man now, Tsu'tey. I don't want to live in sadness anymore."

He nodded in agreement. "Me neither. Hey, do you think humans have this much fun when they mate?"

"Um..." she wasn't expecting the question and it took a moment for her to digest it. Sometimes, Tsu'tey really did come up with the strangest questions and thoughts. "Well, I'm sure they like it, or the population at Hell's Gate would be a lot smaller."

"But they don't have queues to link," he observed, "so how do they sense what their partners like?"

"I guess they just have to communicate more than we do. It's too bad, really. We don't have any barriers between us when we make love, but humans have to hope their partners are being honest with them."

"It sounds like a pain," sighed Tsu'tey. "But like you said, they seem to get by okay without _tsahaylu_. I must sound really naive to you."

Gracie smiled and traced little patterns over his chest with her fingertips. Tsu'tey would sense it if she lied so she didn't dispute his observation. "I like your sense of innocence, though. You don't pretend to know everything and you don't make judgments about people. You think about weird things sometimes but I don't mind."

"I think that's just a nice way of saying I'm air-headed." He smiled at her. "But I've got you to look out for me now."

"That's right," she agreed readily, shutting her eyes. "I hope I wasn't too loud. I can just imagine Karyu's smug grin in the morning if she heard me."

"You weren't that loud," promised Tsu'tey. "I probably sounded like a titanothere, though."

Gracie laughed and kissed his chest, endeared to him.

* * *

_UNEC, the next day_:

General West stared at the satellite readings before looking at his subordinate with a frown. "When did this population spike happen?"

"A couple of days ago," answered the woman. "The Na'vi population in that area is almost three times its usual size, now."

"Have the numbers gone up any further?"

She shook her head. "No Sir. It's stayed consistent. I thought you should know just in case it's a sign of a conflict coming."

West did a mental count in his head and looked at the satellite image of the territory around the Tree of Souls. He knew from his history that the last time a large number of natives gathered there, it was in preparation for war. He couldn't imagine why they would be doing that now, however. Either something else was going on or he had more rogue operatives endangering the peace treaty.

"Have they found the missing Dragon yet?"

The lieutenant shook her head grimly. "I'm afraid not, General. There's been no sign of the Dragon ship _or_ the three missing Samsons. We haven't even found evidence of crash debris in our searches. Our list of missing people is longer, too."

West shook his head, wondering how the hell someone could manage to steal four military vehicles and two dozers right out from under their noses without anyone knowing about it. Someone had to be arranging these little forays in the background...someone with power. They were maneuvering rogue operatives into position to take equipment off base, but for what purpose?

"I want all flights except the search and rescue teams grounded until I say otherwise," he ordered. "We've got to nip this in the bud and flush out these people before they rob this place blind or start a war."

She saluted him. "Yes Sir. I'll put out the order now."

* * *

Jake was surprised when General West came to his cell for a visit. He shook the older man's hand and looked inquisitively at the holopad in his hand. Recognizing the territory on the satellite image, he gave West a puzzled look. "So I guess this isn't a social call."

"I'm afraid not. My people have been monitoring this territory for a couple of days because the population spiked fast. Can you give me an idea of why that is?"

Jake didn't really appreciate finding out his people were basically being spied on, but he knew West wouldn't have taken such interest if it weren't abnormal activity. Both UNEC and Hell's Gate had a standard practice of scanning the territories for security reasons.

"The Na'vi aren't mobilizing for war, if that's what you're worried about," Jake assured him. "It's a ceremonial gathering of the clans. It only happens once in each generation. Think of it like a sort of festival. The clans swap stories, share favorite foods and trade beads and stuff."

West relaxed a bit. "That's good to know. I thought we might have a fight on our hands."

Jake cocked his head to the side. "Why would you think that? You rounded up everyone that was involved in the illegal mining, right?"

"We thought so," sighed West. He pressed his lips together, not saying more.

Jake crossed his arms over his chest. "General, if there's a danger to my people I think you ought to tell me about it now. We've had enough losses this year and I don't give a damn if the information's classified or not. You said you wanted to help me, so spill it."

West frowned, clearly not used to being given demands. He looked like he might refuse to answer for a moment but then he changed his mind and clasped his hands behind his back. "Some of our equipment has come up missing over the past few weeks. At first, it could be explained as a simple failure to keep accurate records of what came and went from this compound. Now bigger things have come up missing and we can't assume it's a coincidence."

"What kind of 'bigger things'?" pressed Jake with a frown.

"The last thing to go missing was a C-21 assault ship."

Jake's brows shot up. "You're kidding me. A Dragon?"

West nodded. "That's right."

"How the hell do you lose a whole _Dragon_ ship? Those things aren't something you can just slip into your pocket and sneak past security."

"I've been asking myself the very same question, Sully. What I think is happening is that someone's been arranging for certain people to go out with equipment on a fake assignment. Those people take the equipment to another location somewhere, instead of bringing it back."

"And nobody noticed anything before now?" Jake would have thought security was better than that here.

"Someone's been doing a good job making it all look like innocent mistakes, until the problem became drastic. The first Samson to vanish was out on a research gathering mission with one of our few avatar drivers and a lab tech. They reported engine troubles when they reached the northern territories and that was the last we heard of them. A search mission didn't turn up anything...not even evidence of a crash. It was assumed they crashed into the sea and the aircraft was somewhere under the water. The second and third Samsons vanished a week later, both carrying some expensive equipment. The Dragon went a couple of days ago."

"So you were afraid these thefts might have something to do with the Na'vi gathering around the Tree of Souls," reasoned Jake.

"That was my first concern," agreed West. "After what happened with your son, I couldn't rule out the possibility that more rogue operatives committed violence against one of the clans and started and upheaval."

Jake sighed. "Well, you can at least stop worrying about that. Someone would have gotten in touch with me right away, if there were any conflicts. So, someone's managed to fuck off with four of your gunships and _nobody_ suspected anything?"

"I'd like to remind you that this compound is a lot bigger then Hell's Gate and we've got a lot more equipment to keep up with," West answered coolly. "I've got people investigating the back logs and getting the names of everyone that came into contact with the missing machines, but someone's done a thorough job of pulling the wool over our eyes. Whoever's responsible for pulling this off is really good."

"Hmph...sounds like something the RDA would cook up," Jake muttered. "Those rat bastards are masters of being underhanded and sneaky."

"The RDA has all but dissolved," informed West. "They don't have the power to do something like this...not anymore."

"You hope," Jake said seriously. "But you probably shouldn't rule it out. Those people are like cockroaches and just when you think you've cleaned out the nest, more pop up. Have you been interrogating those other operatives you've got locked up?"

"Yes and so far, none of them have told us who they were working with. I even suspect they don't _know_."

"How can they not know who was signing their paychecks?" Demanded Jake.

"There could have been a middle man. Most of them swear up and down they got their orders from Major O'Connell and we obviously can't ask him where he got _his_ orders from."

Jake shut his eyes and grimaced. "So I probably killed the only person that might have some answers."

"We'll find out the truth eventually," said West, his face briefly expressing sympathy for Jake. "It might take longer without knowing the chain of command but they'll slip up eventually and we'll catch them. I almost hope you're right about the RDA involvement. I'd hate to think anyone else would be so underhanded."

Jake smirked. "Those people are a special kind of lowlife. Maybe you should ask Parker Selfridge a few questions and see how he reacts. He was in on the whole plan to get me here to replace my brother. I wouldn't put it past him to be up to his old tricks."

"I'll keep that in mind," said West. "I'm still working on clearing your transfer. I was hoping to have it done by the weekend but that attack on you threw a wrench in the works. I'll do what I can to speed it up."

"I appreciate that," Jake said. "Trust me, I'd rather it take longer and be secure than get rushed and put my kids in danger."

* * *

Another day passed in the prison facility and Jake had another unpleasant encounter. He was having breakfast at one of the outdoor tables in the activity yard. He always ate in his cell or outside, because the air in the cafeteria was conditioned for human prisoners and guards. He was just getting ready to take a bite of the bland fruit salad on his tray when another prisoner passed by him and lunged at him with a plastic eating utensil, of all things. Jake felt the movement coming and he leaned to the side abruptly and caught his attacker's wrist in mid-stab.

This time, he remembered not to impulsively grab the guy's throat when he saw that he was human. The man still ended up dead, though. Right as Jake was about to throw the guy to the ground and pin him down, a precise hole was blown through the visor of the attacker's exopack and into his forehead. Pale brown eyes went blank and blood poured from the fatal wound, down either side of the man's nose. Jake looked around wildly as the guards and prisoners shouted.

"I don't believe this," Jake muttered, easing the body to the ground. He stood up with a sigh and held his hands up, just in case anyone got the notion that he somehow poked the hole in the guy's cranium with his finger.

"Prisoner 298 is down," said one of the guards over his transmitter as he rushed to the fallen human and knelt to check his pulse. He looked up at Jake. "What happened, 296?"

It irked Jake to be referred to as a number, but he shrugged it off. He'd practically been a number in the military too so it wasn't exactly new to him. "The guy tried to poke my eye out with his fork. I guess he was really hungry."

The guard grimaced, not appreciating Jake's morbid humor. The sniper responsible for putting prisoner 298's lights out slid down the ladder of his turret and ran over to the scene, shouting out to his associates. Jake didn't recognize him but it was a big facility.

"I put him down. I saw the attack coming."

Jake relaxed his stance a little, seeing that they weren't going to cuff him and take him away for questioning. He nodded at the dead man. "Do you guys usually shoot prisoners in the head when they start fights?"

"My orders are to protect you at all costs," answered the responsible guard calmly.

"All right, let's bag him," sighed the guard checking the dead man. He looked up at the man who shot him. "Better get your report ready. They'll want to know why you resorted to deadly force so fast. Prisoner 296, we'll need you to give your account of this event for our records."

Jake resisted a frown and he glanced at his benefactor out the corner of his eye. "No problem."

Jake glanced around at the other prisoners and guards. They were all staring at him—some with curiosity and others with quiet hostility. Not many prisoners could get away with snapping a guy's neck on the second day there. Not many prisoners had their own snipers blowing people's brains out for trying to stab them with a plastic fork, either. No wonder some of them looked resentful.

"If you'll come with me, sir," offered the killer of Jake's attacker. "We'll get these reports out of the way and investigate this prisoner's cell right away."

Jake went with the soldier obediently, donning an exopack and allowing himself to be cuffed when they made it into the administrative area to file the reports. He gave his account of what happened and refrained from asking some of the questions that were on his mind. When he was finished, the soldier escorted him back to his cell and Jake requested to speak with General West.

"I'm afraid that isn't possible today," answered the guard. "The General is out on a mission and he won't be back until tomorrow."

Jake nodded. "Guess I'll just have to wait. So has he said anything to you about my transfer?"

The guard smiled. "Transfer? I haven't heard of any transfer, sir."

Jake kept his expression bland. "Huh...guess there was a mix up."

"I'm afraid you'll have to stay locked up in your cell until we've got confirmation that your attacker was working alone, Corporal Sully. It could take a few days."

"Sure." Jake smirked and shrugged. He walked over to his bed and reclined on it. "See you around. What's your name again?"

"Lt. French, sir."

Jake nodded. The soldier left him alone, locking the cell door as he went. Jake stared up at the ceiling, narrowing his eyes. When he accidentally broke his first attacker's neck, West's people chewed him out for it. They didn't press criminal charges because it was self-defense but they let him know in no uncertain terms that by killing the man, he made it harder for them to find out if anyone put him up to it and how he got a weapon without security finding it. They never found evidence to suggest the first man was working with anyone else—at least that was what Jake was told.

He thought of the most recent attack and he shook his head. "Why would he try to stab me with a little plastic fork?"

Jake murmured the question aloud, still baffled over it. Yeah, just about anything could be used as a weapon but what kind of idiot would go after someone five feet taller than them with picnic-ware? He also considered Lt. French's ignorance of the transfer West had promised. The soldier fired a killing shot at a clumsy attacker and he claimed to know nothing about his superior's plans to move Jake to a more private, secure location.

He frowned. Either Norm's paranoia was rubbing off on him, or...

"Somebody's fucking with me."

But what an _odd_ way to do it.

* * *

_Meanwhile at Hell's Gate:_

"We would like to help you Mr. Thomas, but it's your daughter's word against theirs. Without any proof, we can't expel these students from school." The balding man spread his hands helplessly.

"The students we've spoken to all vouch for the accused individuals," added a woman.

Sebastian stared at each face on the school board committee. There were five board members present at the meeting and he could tell that they weren't particularly eager to do something about the bullying. He had come prepared, though. "It's a shame you feel that way, but I expected just such a problem. If you'll excuse me for a moment..." He walked to the door and opened it. Dustin Patel was waiting in the hallway with both of his parents and his friend Andrew. With Sebastian's nod, they all filed into the meeting room.

Sebastian hid a smile when the board members recognized Max and Trudy and began to look very uncomfortable. Getting them involved hadn't been his idea. Dustin came up with it when Savanna told him they were probably going to have to fight the school board to see something done. Dustin and Andrew both insisted on giving the board their account of the things Savanna's bullies did to her. Trudy and Max agreed to help with their influence and resources—especially after Dustin told them more details about what Savanna had endured.

"I'm sure you all know Lt. Chacón, Dr. Patel and their son Dustin. You probably recognize Andrew Summers, too. These two young men are friends of my daughter's and they can vouch for Savanna's sincerity. Please listen to what they have to say, ladies and gentlemen."

The teenaged boys glanced at each other and Andrew gestured for Dustin to begin. The smaller boy cleared his throat and began to rattle off a list of everything he'd seen and heard other students do to his hybrid friend, from childhood up to the day she dropped out of school. Andrew likewise gave his testimony and when he was finished, Trudy put to rest any notion that the guilty kids were going to get away with it. She opened up the duffle bag she'd carried in with her and pulled out several cans of spray paint inside clear plastic bags.

"Five of the kids on that list Sebastian gave you tried to vandalize his apartment building last week. His daughter and her boyfriend stopped them from pulling it off. They took these paint cans off them. I've already got my people rounding up the kids Savanna named. We'll get their prints and compare them to the ones on these cans and if they match up, those boys are going to have charges pressed against them. This school board is under investigation too."

"_What for_?" Scoffed a rather obese red headed woman. "Even if these kids are guilty as you say, we had nothing to do with their behavior!"

"And that's precisely the problem," Max said, eyeing each of them sternly. "You had _nothing_ to do with it. Students have been abusing a young girl and committing acts of criminal mischief under your watch, yet not _one_ authority figure in this school acted to correct the situation. I _refuse_ to believe all of this could have gone on without a single one of you noticing it. You've heard what some of these kids have done to Savanna Thomas and some of it can be categorized as sexual assault."

"This school is going under investigation for failure to maintain safety protocols for the students," Trudy informed them when Max finished speaking. "If you people were doing your jobs, it never would have gotten this bad. We can't have kids dropping out of school because the people in charge look the other way when parents bribe them."

The balding man went as white as a sheet. The other board members just looked confused. Sebastian blinked at Trudy. "Excuse me? Did you just say 'bribe'?"

Trudy nodded, her dark gaze flicking to the balding man. Her lips twisted in disgust. "It turns out some of these kids have been in trouble before. I looked up their records and I thought it was pretty weird that they never got more than a few days' detention for some of the crap they've pulled. I had some people look into it and it turns out Mom and Dad slip a little something extra to get their kids off the hook. You'd be surprised how many people have done it, too. Mr. Stevens here's been making plenty of cash on the side, at the expense of kids like Savanna. I'm just sorry I didn't find out sooner."

"Some of these parents have a lot of influence in this colony!" excused the balding man. "They could have my job!"

Sebastian stared at the man and his paternal frustrations reached a boiling point. "You ripe bastard. I'll _kill_ you for this!"

Trudy was the only one to see it coming as Sebastian lunged across the room at the board member partly responsible for his daughter's torment. He punched Mr. Stevens in the face before the man could react and the red headed woman shrieked in alarm, nearly falling out of her chair in her haste to move away from the attacking avatar.

"Oh shit...Bastian, don't!"

Trudy pounced on Sebastian first, doing her best to hamper his limbs without putting herself in harm's way. Her military training helped, but she was a small woman to begin with and seven feet was still a tall order to conquer. Max, Andrew and Dustin hurried to help her. They dragged Mr. Thomas away from the table and Max tried to reason with him. Mr. Stevens was going to have a black eye and his mouth was bleeding, but they stopped the assault before Sebastian took more than two swings.

"Sebastian, please...let the authorities take care of this," Max persuaded. "We _are_ going to investigate."

"My little girl's safety has been endangered by this man's cowardice," snarled Sebastian, his golden eyes tearing up with the force of his emotions. "Get him _out_ of my sight, Dr. Patel."

Max nodded at Andrew and Dustin urgently. The boys quickly helped the stunned man out the door, ushering him away before Sebastian's control snapped again. The other board members watched with shocked concern as Trudy and Max talked their friend out of his righteous fury. All of them were wise enough to keep their mouths shut, aware that a father's rage behind an avatar's strength could easily result in swift death for anyone on the receiving end of his anger.

"He's going to face charges for this," Trudy promised, stroking Sebastian's dark hair soothingly from her perch on his back. "When we charge those kids for their delinquency, we'll fine their parents for damages done to your family."

"Their money won't heal Savanna's dignity," snarled Sebastian. "And people like that always find a way to absolve themselves of responsibility! It isn't enough, Lt. Chacón."

Max and Trudy looked at one another. No, money wasn't enough. They couldn't put a price on the abuse Savanna Thomas had endured from her classmates for all this time and to even try was a grave insult. Both of them were thankful that Katherine hadn't come to this meeting. Trying to handle Sebastian on the warpath was hard enough.

* * *

That night Trudy and Max had a beer together and they discussed the options available to them. Dustin was staying the night with Andrew—and Max tried not to think too deeply on that. He supported his son but he was still trying to adjust to the knowledge that he was gay and dating Andy. Knowing it did no good to dwell on it, Max focused on the events of the day. He realized something odd and he asked Trudy about it after taking another sip of his beer.

"Trudy, how did you know that man was taking bribes? I remember you making a remark about some of the kids on Savanna's list getting away with too much but I don't recall mention of you investigating Mr. Stevens."

"I improvised," she answered. "And then I watched their reactions and I knew I was right. I didn't actually have any proof, until the dude flipped out and spilled the beans. I didn't have time to dig before the meeting but I was pretty sure someone on that board had to be crooked."

"But what made you think of that?" Max couldn't hide his admiration or amazement.

"I thought back to my school days and remembered how much some of the rich bitches got away with, because of who their parents were." Trudy took a swallow of beer and shook her head. "I figured the same thing could be happening here. After all the crap we've been through with the RDA, I can smell it when something's fubar."

"You are _brilliant_," Max complimented in all sincerity. "You should have been a detective, Trudy."

"Hey, I'm head of security." She winked at him. "I practically _am_ a detective. It's too bad I can't do more, though. You know there won't be a perfect ending to this situation."

"Sebastian wasn't wrong," observed Max with a thoughtful look at the foamy liquid inside his bottle. "People that cheat the system with bribes usually find ways to avoid responsibility for their actions."

Trudy nodded and sighed. "Yeah. We can press charges but those kids will eventually be back out. We can't deny them an education and we can't keep them locked up for long over a misdemeanor. Hell, they didn't even get around to committing the crime before Kato stopped them, so all we've got to go on is intent."

"And the most we can do to the other guilty students is have them suspended for a while, until they break a law."

"Yeah, and then they'll hate Sav even more," predicted Trudy with a frown. "There's _got_ to be a loophole we're missing, Maxi. We can't be this freaking helpless to do something for that girl."

"If anyone can find that loophole, it's you," he said with confidence, reaching across the table to squeeze her hand.

"I don't know about that," she sighed. "Short of moving Sebastian's family somewhere else on this moon, I don't know what we can do to guarantee Savanna's bullies won't get to her again."

Max frowned as an idea popped into his mind. "Who says the Thomas family has to be the ones to move?"

Trudy raised her eyebrows, intrigued. "What's the plan, Maxi?"

"We can arrange for a relocation," he answered thoughtfully, "but the recipients will be the families of the troublemakers. The worst of them can be assigned to move to the UNEC colony. I've seen their school and it's much better equipped to deal with problem kids. The parents won't have the influence there to bend the rules and the kids are going to feel it if they step out of line _there_."

"Do you think they'll appreciate us sending our delinquents over to them?" Trudy smirked.

Max shrugged. "They sent theirs over to us, when they were looking for Jake and Neytiri."

Trudy snorted at the joke. "There's just one problem with your idea, Max."

"What's that?"

"Savanna's parents don't want the people at UNEC knowing about her. If we ship these little assholes off to that base, they're going to blab about the hybrid girl at Hell's Gate. Don't think for a second they won't and even if most people don't believe them at first, someone's bound to take interest eventually."

"Damn." Max rubbed his eyes behind his glasses, frustrated that what seemed like a solid plan was blown away by one little complication. "Well, I'm out of ideas. Short of unlawfully imprisoning these people, I can't think of any solution that will keep them away from Savanna permanently."

"We could always sic Sebastian on them," Trudy sighed, only half-joking. "I haven't seen him get that violent with anybody since the day he got in the brawl with Harris and the others."

"Every person has limits," Max reminded. "Frankly, I'm glad that Katherine wasn't there for this meeting. Mr. Stevens wouldn't have survived her wrath."

"Don't mess with Mama," agreed Trudy with a nod. "So we're back to square one again. We've still got no way to ensure those kids never mess with Sav again."

"Not yet," said Max, "but we can keep exploring our options."

Trudy agreed with him and she clinked her beer bottle against his. "It ain't over 'till the fat lady sings. We may not be able to get rid of those little shits but what I _can_ do is step up security in that school and putting more people onto monitoring things in there."

"I'd say that's a good place to start," Max approved.

* * *

-To be continued


	20. Chapter 20

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 20: Fire and Ice**

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_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Lemon warning. I've been forced to divide this into two chapters because it was too long to fit, so you will be getting two short chapters this upload, as opposed to one very long chapter. Evidently, 40 plus pages is too much for one upload here. There will most likely be errors that I missed because I'm exhausted and want to kill a certain website for forcing me to double-edit everything to put in paragraph breaks. Season's greetings to all and have a happy new year! **_

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***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

The next morning, Jake requested permission to contact his family from one of the guards he _knew_ was under West's command. Rachel Sanders was happy to escort Jake to the communications room and she even shooed a couple of low-clearance personnel away and checked to be sure Jake's booth was private enough. He thanked her with a smile and she blushed a little and told him she'd be outside the booth waiting, when he was finished.

Jake tuned into the frequency Norm was using and he thought it was a shame that none of his family or friends at home had access to a satellite camera. He would have liked to see the faces of his families. The thought made him consider the possibility that Tom could have brought some of his portable gear with him. He rarely went anywhere without _some_ kind of medical equipment or computer technology on his person. Maybe there was a chance Jake and his family could look at each other for a little while, after all. He made a mental note to tell Norm to ask about it when he got in touch with him.

It took a while for Norm to answer the frequency and Jake was thankful that Private Sanders would try to give him as much time as he wanted to talk to his loved ones. Jake sighed in relief when his friend finally responded to the transmission call.

"Norm Spellman, copy. Jake, is it you?"

"Yeah, it's me," answered Jake. "What took you so damned long to respond?"

"Well, I don't keep the transmitter on me when I'm bathing," excused Norm indignantly. "And in case you forgot, we're all in the middle of a massive gathering that only happens once every couple of decades. I don't just stand around holding onto the transmitter, waiting for you to—"

"Okay, all right...I get it." Jake smirked. "You're a real grouch this morning."

"Well, _someone_ decided to tune into my transmitter while I was in the middle of trying to get cleaned up," excused Norm, his tone lightening a bit. "So how are you, Jake? Any news on the trial date or location transfer yet?"

"I don't know."

Norm went quiet for a moment. "You don't know a date, you don't know if there's any news or you just can't say it because someone's listening in?"

"It means I don't know if there's any news," answered Jake. "Norm, have you seen any military activity near the mountains or the Tree of Souls?"

"Hmm...no. I haven't seen anyone come our way since the last time Hell's Gate personnel did an inspection on one of the seismic stabilizers, a couple of days after you turned yourself in. Why are you asking?"

Jake considered whether he should come out and say what West told him about the missing equipment or not. Deciding that if he was being monitored it was probably by the same people responsible for the theft of UNEC gear, he shrugged. They had to know West was aware of it and they probably guessed he would tell Jake, since it was no secret he had him under his personal protection.

He explained the situation as he understood it to Norm, but Jake had never been very good at giving detailed, coherent explanations. When it came to science he didn't know the terminology and when it came to military stuff, he forgot others weren't schooled in slang and terms. Thankfully, Norm had enough experience with MP's to understand most of what Jake told him but he had to ask him to slow down a couple of times and explain what a term meant.

When Jake finished explaining, there was another period of quiet on the other end of the transmission. When Norm spoke again, his question mirrored Jake's.

"How could they lose a _Dragon ship_? I can understand how someone could smuggle a couple of Samsons away during busy air traffic and faking a crash or disappearance, but a Dragon? That's a major combat vessel...not to mention huge."

Jake smirked and glanced around the communication booth before answering Norm. He was right. Samsons could go missing without raising _too_ much suspicion at first, since their main purpose was cargo and personnel transport. Scorpions, Dragons and other major fighting vehicles were a different matter. With everything West had to monitor, it was no wonder the first rotors were assumed MIA or downed.

"I asked the same question, but to be fair they didn't actually _lose_ it like 'poof'. Someone just took it out on a bogus assignment and never brought it back. They did the same thing with the Samsons and the harvesting shit they stole."

"But they _still_ should have had tracking monitors on those vehicles," Norm pointed out. "It's standard protocol, isn't it? Hell's Gate always did it so why wouldn't the UN?"

"Yeah, but you've got to remember the flux interference in certain spots," Jake reminded him. "Hell, that's how we got away from Quaritch and how we went up against the bomber without getting slaughtered."

"And we _still_ got hammered," Norm muttered.

"We won," insisted Jake. "And part of the reason we didn't have more losses was because we used the flux vortex to screw up their tracking. If we could do it there's no reason someone with tech smarts and an agenda couldn't do it too."

"So they take the gunships someplace where there's a lot of EM activity and use the flux vortex to scramble the tracking device," guessed Norm, "and while they're off the radar, they find a way to remove or disable the tracker. They'd have to, if they wanted to go further without UNEC knowing it the minute they left the flux."

"Doesn't sound so crazy, does it?" Jake was rather proud of himself for coming to the same conclusion without needing help figuring it out. He was getting better at this science stuff—even if it took him longer to get it.

"That's why you asked me if I've seen any flight activity between here and the mountains, isn't it?" Norm asked. "You want to know if the smugglers used the flux around here."

"That's right, but if you haven't seen them they must have gone somewhere else."

"Well, there are plenty of EM fields on Pandora they could have used," Norm said, "but the closest place with major activity is around the Hallelujah Mountains. At least we've got an idea of how they might have done it. Good thinking, Jake. I'm impressed."

Jake grinned. "See, I can do science sometimes."

"After learning from me and your brother," snorted Norm.

Jake accepted that without rancor. "Speaking of my brother, I was thinking of that thing he tried to do, back when we went to rescue the Ikran clan from Myer's compound."

"You mean generate a flux vortex?" Norm guessed.

"Yeah...I'm surprised you remembered that fast."

"Well, it was a brilliant idea, Jake. That's not something us science geeks forget easily. Wait, are you saying you think those people found a way to do what Tom tried to do?"

Jake shrugged. "Beats me. I was just going to tell you to talk to Tom about this and see if he's got any ideas, since he was the one that came up with the flux generator plan. Maybe he can find some way to track them or something. I didn't even think they might have come up with the same thing."

"Well, if they could make their own EM field to scramble the equipment, it would eliminate the need to find an active vortex," Norm sighed. "I'll have a sit down with Tom about this after we finish. I think you're right: he's got more potential than anyone we know of figuring out some way to use the flux to our advantage. His plan would have worked, if the machine hadn't crapped out on us when we tried to activate it. Jake, I think we should stop talking about this. In fact, we've probably already said too much over this frequency. Remember how they found you?"

"Yeah, I remember." Jake grimaced, wishing he could take back some of what he'd said. "I want to talk to my family, Norm. But can you get Tom for me first? I want to ask if he can set up some kind of camera feed so I can look at my kids."

Norm's voice was sympathetic. "Of course, Jake. I can see Tom from here and I'm sure he brought something with him that can—"

"Wait," interrupted Jake, realizing something. "Scratch that."

"Scratch what, Jake?" Norm sounded confused.

Jake shut his eyes and swore softly. He couldn't have his daughter's face broadcasted over a video feed if someone with bad intentions was monitoring this communication. They knew what Neytiri looked like and they probably knew what Tsu'tey looked like too, but he couldn't take the chance of giving someone an image of Sylwanin to go by.

"Forget the camera. I can wait to see them in person again when my situation's better."

It took a few seconds for Norm to reply and he seemed to catch on. "Got it. I'll just hand my transmitter over to Neytiri so she and the kids can take turn talking to you."

"Thanks, Norm."

* * *

Jake kept his conversation with his family focused on what they had all been up to and how things were with them. He smiled when he heard the news that Gracie's baby was starting to move and he encouraged Tsu'tey's efforts, reminding him how proud he was of him. Sylwanin sang a song to him that she learned from one of the other visiting clans and she informed him that she and Ralu were the best dancers there of all the girls their age. Mo'at spoke to him briefly and she assured him she was in good health and enjoying herself immensely. After talking to everyone else, Jake and Neytiri exchanged affectionate endearments for a while and he promised her he would let her know if he got any news about his living arrangements before she visited again.

Jake didn't see General West again for another three days and he stayed cooped up in his cell the whole time. He kept his mind and body occupied as well as he could, reminding himself that a little boredom was better than wondering if every inmate or guard he encountered was going to try to take him out with a toothpick or something.

When the General returned from whatever mission he'd been on, he ordered an end to Jake's lock-down and went to see him. He told the guards not to disturb them and he checked around the room. Guessing what he was looking for Jake finished his final pushup and got to his feet. "I've already checked. If they've put a bug in here, they hid it damn good."

West nodded, compressed his lips and eyed Jake grimly before gesturing at the bed and the single chair in the room. "Maybe we should have a seat, Sully. I've got news for you."

Jake regarded the older man warily and he took a seat on the edge of his bed. West took the chair and he seemed to gather his thoughts for a moment before getting on with it. "I've been away on a search mission these past few days. We finally turned something up after traveling in the last known trajectory of the missing Dragon ship. We found a survivor. She was in bad shape but she made it out of the dead zone where they dumped her and sent a signal out to UNEC tracking frequencies."

"Where they 'dumped' her?" Jake repeated, brows drawing down. "So they threw her out of the ship?"

West nodded. "Her and two other people that were on board the stolen aircraft. Luckily for her, she's an avatar operative—one of the few 'perma jobs' we've got in our ranks. Her two companions didn't have that advantage and without exopacks, they would have suffocated to death even if the fall hadn't killed them. We retrieved the bodies using the survivor's coordinates and I have people doing autopsies now, but whether the cause of death was asphyxiation or the fall is irrelevant. It was an act of murder, committed to get rid of the three crew on board that weren't involved in the plan. They apparently resisted when they found out and they were tossed out of the drop hatch for their troubles. The sergeant that survived only did so because some vegetation broke her fall on the way down."

Jake almost asked if the woman in question had spent some time among the Na'vi, but Trudy survived free falling from an exploding tiltrotor without any native survival training. Whether it was sheer luck or actual skill that saved the sergeant wasn't important, though. What mattered was she survived and she was a witness.

Before Jake could ask any of the questions on his mind, West continued. "I've put her under tight surveillance while she's recovering. She's going to need to testify against the people responsible for this, as soon as we round them up."

"So you know who they are?" Jake held off on telling him what he and Norm worked out, curious to hear what West had dug up. He also intended to mention Lt. French and discuss what happened the other day in the courtyard.

West frowned. "We've got names and I have people working on tracing connections. So far, I've got confirmation that one of the tech people on the stolen Dragon worked for the RDA in the past. There aren't any connections between the organization and the other personnel involved in these thefts so far, but we're going to keep peeling the layers until we get to the source...whatever it is."

Jake nodded. "Can't say I'm surprised to hear you've already found one link to those shit-heads. So, have you figured out how they smuggled this stuff away without your people tracking them down?"

West sighed. "They took advantage of EM fields and scrambled the tracking instruments."

Jake felt another little surge of smug pride. Yup, they used the flux, just like he and Norm thought. "But where did they go to do that, without your people noticing? I know you've got charts of all the known flux areas on this continent, just like Hell's Gate."

"One of the Samsons ran into technical complications and went down—so we thought. The other two were on an uncharted itinerary and the flux activity was unpredictable. Both of them used some local weather activity in the area to lose their convoy. Trying to navigate through an EM storm is dangerous and visibility is reduced to shit."

"An EM storm?" Jake's eyebrows went up and he could easily imagine Norm, Max and Tom collectively leaning forward with interest. "Like the storm we had to the south when my mate came to visit me?"

"Yes, like that one," agreed West grimly, "only smaller."

Jake put two and two together, thinking he might have figured out how the Dragon got away without using the flux near the sacred mountains. "When did the C-21 go missing?"

West looked away. "The evening the storm hit. The aircraft was on route to Hell's Gate for an exchange of supplies and personnel. Dragons are the only ships we send unescorted, during times of peace."

It made sense to Jake, given the vast firepower and the armored structure of the assault ships. Why waste the fuel sending Scorpions along for the trip when the Dragon could practically take out the side of a mountain on its own? He shook his head and sighed, unable to appreciate the strategy and timing it must have taken to orchestrate these events. Sure, it was impressive and all but no good could come of _anyone_ stealing weapons and harvesting machines—let alone the RDA. It meant someone intended to so some illegal gathering somewhere and if they felt they needed a Dragon in their possession to do it, they probably didn't intend to negotiate.

"I figured they had to use sabotage the tracking to pull this off," Jake said, "but I don't get how they timed it to use the storms like that. I figured they'd head to someplace like the Hallelujah Mountains to use the flux but Norm told me he hasn't seen any UNEC choppers since I got here."

"So you already had this worked out," West observed, looking unsurprised. "But you didn't share this information when we talked about this previously."

"That's because I didn't have it yet." Jake shrugged. "I didn't really start thinking of it until I got put on lockdown. I do my best thinking when I'm stuck in a cell, I guess."

Understatement. He'd come up with the whole idea of using the flux to try and defend the Na'vi while he was locked up with Norm and Grace. When he could do nothing but dwell on things that troubled him, his mind usually went into overdrive. It was a damn good thing Trudy and Max had the balls and the conscience to break Jake and the others out, otherwise things would have been a _lot_ different, now. Hell, he and everyone he cared about on Pandora would probably be dead.

Jake made a vow to tell Max and Trudy he was sorry for shutting them out when his son died. He cleared his throat and swallowed, putting his sentimentality and lingering grief on the shelf for another time. "The thing that gets me is how did they know when and where those storms would hit? Did they just keep sending these covert operatives out, hoping for a the chance to make a run for it?"

West gave him a politely expressionless look. "We've had the technology to forecast CME events for a good, long time now and so has Hell's Gate. It's not much different than weather prediction on Earth, Sully."

Suddenly, Jake no longer felt smart and proud. He felt as dumb as a box and he quickly tried to make an excuse for himself. "Oh, well I figured since they aren't regular storms, it's different." He hoped he wasn't blushing and he felt like he was back at the academy, asking a stupid question to the instructor and getting laughed at by other cadets for it.

West let the matter drop—much to Jake's relief. "The individuals responsible for organizing these events have probably been monitoring the weather forecasts. They wouldn't leave it up to random chance—not when exposure is the risk of failure."

"So now you've got people trying to track these guys down, people trying to connect the dots and people trying to keep an eye on me," Jake mused, scratching his chin. "Don't take this the wrong way but I think you're stretching your resources a little thin, General. Your man shot that prisoner in the head over an attack I stopped easily and he said he didn't know anything about a transfer, when I asked him about it."

General West's expression changed, hardening into a grim mask that gave Jake pause. "That brings us to the other issue I wanted to discuss with you. The soldier that acted to protect you that day wasn't one of the men I assigned. One of the guards I assigned took a sick day and they gave his shift to another MP without contacting me for approval."

"So French _wasn't_ one of your guys after all," Jake said. He felt a bit of relief. He did trust West but the behavior of that one guard gave him a second or two of doubt.

West shook his head. "He's under my direct authority like most of the militia on this base, but he's not one of the people I chose to watch over you. It seems to have been a miscommunication in the ranks but I don't believe anything can be written off as a coincidence anymore."

"That's a smart attitude," Jake approved. It seemed that the man was taking his allegations against the RDA more seriously now. "I was starting to think it was all in my head."

"It's not in your head," assured West. "Someone's got an agenda against you and they're starting to act on it. I don't know what the purpose is but I'm willing to bet it isn't as random as it looks on the surface."

"That's the feeling I get." Jake felt some relief.

"Which is why I pushed harder to get things done," explained West with a grave expression on his weathered face. "I'm having you moved to a smaller, more secure facility tomorrow, as promised. Your trial date has been bumped up. The law council has agreed that there's plenty of evidence to prosecute the men and women involved in the illegal mining activities. The first part of the trial will involve you giving your testimony in a closed, secured court. I'm afraid your son and the rest of Tommy's hunting party will also have to give an account."

"What about the rest of the trial?" Jake guessed he wasn't going to get to level his accusations and walk out of the compound with his family, free as a bird.

"There's going to be a second half to determine what—if any—restitution you need to pay for the killing of three soldiers. Mrs. Archer is confident that the UN laws aren't powerful enough to have serious authority over you, but since you were a citizen of Earth before you joined the Omaticaya, it's a little more complex. The fact that you willingly cooperated and turned yourself in is only going to help your case."

Jake nodded. They'd been over this before already but he guessed that West was only trying to remind him not to get his hopes up that his tribal status would win instant freedom for him. Plenty of people would like to see him pay for "defecting" to the Na'vi, and not just the RDA.

"I went into this knowing I could lose a few years of freedom. I can handle whatever they throw at me, as long as my family doesn't suffer anymore for what I've done."

West sucked his teeth thoughtfully. "I'm going to tell you something and I want you to listen close, Sully."

Jake sat up straighter impulsively, prompted by old military training and the commanding tone of the older man's voice.

Satisfied that he had his attention, West resumed speaking. "Men like us are fighters. It's what we know. When you stop feeling guilt for pulling that trigger, you lose your humanity—or whatever you want to call the Na'vi equivalent. That regret is there for a reason. It separates warriors from murderers. Every soldier on this base has raised a weapon against someone at least once. Some of us have killed more than our share of people in combat. Revenge isn't a good reason for killing but it's understandable, in this case. When you start to _like_ it is when you're lost. You didn't kill because you enjoyed it or wanted to and you didn't do it to cover your own ass or make a profit."

West stood up and laid a hand on Jake's shoulder in a paternal gesture, looking at him through the exopack mask gravely. With Jake still sitting, they were eye-level with each other. "So, you can keep feeling that regret but let go of the self-blame. You stand strong and proud for your son and don't show any self-doubt, when you have your day at court. Are we clear on that?"

Jake stood up as well and gave West a faint, crooked smile and a nod. "We're clear on that. Thanks."

A hint of a smile softened West's weathered features. "Now you try to get some rest while your transfer is processed, Marine."

Jake nodded. "I can do that. You've been a big help, General. I won't forget it."

"Thank me after your safe release," insisted West.

* * *

They were in one of the residential military quarters at Hell's Gate. Karyu looked around the starlit room curiously. The walls were cream colored, decorated here and there with posters of motorcycles and digital pictures of smiling MP's grouped together in obvious friendship. The light of Polyphemus and the stars shone in through the window and it beamed on the little desk situated against the wall beneath it. There was a computer console there, small and a bit more up to date than her father's. A holopad and a digital stylus sat on the desk beside the transparent keyboard and there was a framed digital photo of a handsome, grinning young man in military fatigues propped on the desk.

Karyu bent over a little for a closer look and she recognized Baxter Howell's human face looking out at her from the picture. He was squatted down with a large, golden-furred dog. The animal looked out from the photo with liquid brown eyes and a canine grin, its tongue lolling out of its open mouth.

"That's Soupbone."

Karyu whirled around, startled by the sudden voice. The man from the photo was standing there, watching her with curious green eyes. His human form was oddly scaled up, making him proportional to his avatar in size.

"The dog," Baxter said with a nod at the picture frame on the desk. "That was my golden retriever, Soupbone. The picture was taken the week before I shipped out."

Karyu regarded him warily for a second before turning her attention back to the photograph. She tilted her head with interest. "This is a golden retriever? I've seen dogs before on television programs and in pictures but I don't know much about the different breeds."

"Yeah, I almost picked a brown lab over him but Soupbone yipped at me like he was telling me I'd be crazy to pick the other puppy instead of him." A fond smile curved Baxter's mouth as he stepped closer and looked down at the picture from over her shoulder. "Sometimes you just know when it's meant to be."

A tiny shiver raced up her spine as his breath tickled her ear. "What happened to him when you left Earth?"

"I gave him to a friend," answered Baxter. "He was just two years old when I shipped out, so he should still be alive."

She turned her head to look at him and she frowned. "How can you be taller than me if you're here in your human body?"

Baxter shrugged. "Beats me. Is this your dream or mine?"

"I don't know." She studied him curiously, taking note of his complexion, hair color and bone structure. His hair was a rich brown in color, thick and wavy. It was cut short at the nape of his neck but the top was work a bit longer, giving him a somewhat rakish, tumbled look. His nose was shaped in a pleasing way, for a human nose. He was just as attractive in his human form as he was in his avatar. It was completely unfair and it irritated her.

"All right, who are you?"

Baxter stared blankly at her. "Howell. Baxter Howell, remember? I thought you recognized me, since you were all calm and chatty a minute ago."

She shook her head and frowned, stepping away from him to rub her forehead. "No, I don't mean your name. I want to know who you _are_. Why were you in my Dream Hunt vision and why am I dreaming of you now?"

"Maybe I'm dreaming of _you_, he said, smiling at her. Those vivid jade eyes swept over her lingeringly, taking time to caress her from head to toe.

"Stop that," demanded the huntress.

Baxter's eyes lit up as if he just discovered something. He stepped closer. She refused to back away and she noticed that he had a day's growth of stubble shadowing his jaw. She could smell something on him...something woodsy and pleasing to the senses. She sniffed curiously before she could stop herself and Howell noticed.

"That's my aftershave," he informed her. "You like it?"

Karyu raised an eyebrow and gave his five o'clock shadow a meaningful glance before holding his eyes with her own and giving him a facetious reply. "You have hair growth on your face. Aren't you supposed to—you know—shave, before you put that stuff on?"

His smile grew even more charming. "Hey, it's _your_ dream...I think. Maybe you like your men a little scruffy? Anyhow, you sure seem to like the smell. If I'd known that, I would have worn some the last time I saw you in person."

She hadn't realized that she'd taken another intrigued sniff and she scowled at him. "I don't like it. Why would I like some artificial crap human men splash on their faces?"

He chuckled and skimmed her left upper arm lightly with the back of his knuckles, giving rise to goose bumps with the light caress. "It's not artificial. It's made with real wood extracts from local native trees, honeybunch. I think you like it."

Karyu felt her face heating up and she wasn't sure if it was from anger or something else. She jerked her arm away from him and gave him a warning stare. "Don't use those patronizing pet names with me. Why would you still use aftershave anyway? You can't grow facial hair in an avatar body, so you don't need to shave."

He shrugged. "I know. I just like the smell and it's comforting. It reminds me that I'm still me in this body...well, the avatar body, anyhow. Certain ladies don't seem to mind it either." He winked at her. "Sweet cheeks."

Karyu bristled. "Don't push it, avatar. I wasn't even _trying_ to hurt you the day we first met. Imagine what I'll do if you piss me off."

Baxter seemed un-intimidated. "We're in a dream. I can say pretty much whatever I want. Oh, don't look at me like that. I was only playing with you. You're cute when you're mad."

"Oh, no I'm not," she promised. "Just ask Phelps."

He sobered at that, his teasing expression easing into something more serious. He sighed and looked at her like she was a puzzle he couldn't quite work out. "I'm not going to hurt your people, you know."

"No, I _don't_ know that." She held her ground stubbornly, thinking of all the things she'd heard about military people attacking the Na'vi. "What I _do_ know is I saw you and I saw fire...like an explosion happened. I also know my cousin died because Earth soldiers didn't want him exposing their greed to the authorities."

Baxter spread his hands. "Those were criminals from UNEC. You of all people should know that not all of us earthlings are bad guys. You wouldn't be here now, if your mother hadn't mated with one of them. What about your friend Savanna? What about the other people here at Hell's Gate?"

"Anyone that knows me could tell you my trust has to be _earned_, Green-eyes. That goes for Na'vi too, just as much as humans and avatars. Still, most of the grief my people have gone through since terrans came to Pandora has been caused by military men with guns, like _that one_." She nodded at the weapon holstered to his left thigh. "Can you blame me?"

He regarded her with quiet understanding and he shook his head, keeping his eyes trained on hers. "No, I can't blame you." He reached down and took his weapon out of the holster. He offered it to her. "If you think I'm a threat, go ahead and shoot me. Maybe it will make you feel better to take down a 'Sky Person' with his own gun."

Karyu looked at the gun as if it were an arachnoid waiting to sting her. "Don't be ridiculous. If I wanted to kill you, I would use my own weapon."

He smirked and put the gun on the desk. "Then why don't you?"

"I don't kill unless I think there's a reason for it," she excused, "and you haven't given me one...yet."

Baxter's eyes were challenging on her. "Hey, it's a dream right? If you can't kill me here, how do you know you could kill me in real life—if I turn out to be the bad guy you're afraid I'll be?"

In a flash, she drew her knife and got a hold on the longer hair on top of his head. He winced as she shoved him against the desk, upsetting the objects on it and knocking over the picture frame. He didn't fight her as she tugged cruelly on his hair and forced his head back, baring his throat to her hunting knife. She stared into his green eyes—which were watering slightly from the pain of having his hair pulled.

"I don't think you appreciate what I'm capable of," Karyu hissed, baring her teeth at him.

"Then show me," he insisted softly. "Go ahead. Cut my throat. If you can do it here, you'll know you can do it for real if you have to."

She glared at him, her breath growing harsh with agitation. She tried to make her knife cut the pale, vulnerable throat but in truth, she had a stronger desire to lick the area. She let go of his hair and grasped his jaw, positioning his head into a better angle. With a growl of frustration, she finally let go of him and jumped away, sheathing her knife smoothly.

She regarded him with exasperated confusion and she leveled a heartfelt accusation at him. "You're crazy."

Baxter's eyebrows went up and he blurted a laugh. "_I'm_ crazy? Hello, have you met a little Ikran princess that goes by the name of Karyu Sully? She likes to knee men in the balls when she greets them. When she's not attacking them, she flirts with them and when she isn't doing that, she puts them down. She also invades their dreams because she's just _fun_ that way."

Karyu's lips twitched before she could stop them. She almost laughed, and that was unforgivable. "I had my reasons."

"I'll bet you did."

"And anyway," she continued, interrupting him before he could speak again, "I'm not the one that invaded _your_ dream, Green-eyes. _You_ invaded _mine_."

Baxter took a step closer to her and that dimpled, charming smile of his made another appearance. "If it's really your dream, why are we in _my_ room, huh? Shouldn't we be in your village or somewhere on the beach or the forest nearby? I love your pet name for me, by the way. It's cute."

She stammered. She _actually stammered._ "I...it's strategy! 'Know your enemy'. N-naturally, my subconscious mind conjured up your room how I thought it might be. And it's not a 'pet name'. I just can't remember your real name all the time so...shut up."

Her increasing desperation only served to amuse him. "That's some subconscious mind you've got there, Pouty-lips. You managed to dream up my quarters _exactly_ how they are in real life. Did you even know I had a dog before I came to Pandora?"

No, she didn't know about the dog. She didn't know about his life before Pandora at all. This whole thing was quickly beginning to freak her out. "Get out of my dream, avatar."

"You get out of mine first."

He stepped closer to her again and this time, she backed up a step. The smell of his aftershave was too comforting and appealing. She didn't want to lose her edge, especially when she had no idea whether this was all in her mind or a real astral event, triggered by Eywa's will.

"You know my name," Howell said. "That's not why you keep calling me 'Green-eyes'. Be honest, Karyu."

Flustered by the incessant tug of feelings in every direction, Karyu blurted a riddle without meaning to. "I don't know what you think you know, but you don't know half as much as you wish you did."

Baxter opened his mouth and then paused, frowning. If he were in his avatar body, his ears would have probably swiveled in confusion. "Uh, what?"

"I said you don't know what you're talking about," she huffed. "I'm leaving."

He chuckled. "That's one of the things I like about you. You're totally neurotic but it's freaking adorable."

There it was again—that accusation of being "adorable". She could barely stand it from her friends but this...this big piece of eye candy had no right to...to...

"Good riddance," she grumbled. She raised her eyebrows at him when he failed to move aside to give her room. The back of her legs was pressed against his bunk and she didn't remember backing up that far. "Are you going to _move_ or do I have to move you?"

Baxter got the not-so-subtle hint and he politely stepped aside and made a grand gesture. "Go right ahead, Honey-bun. Just out of curiosity, how do you plan on 'leaving' a dream?"

"Through the door, _duh_." She nodded at the reinforced sliding door of his room.

He cleared his throat and nodded. "Riiight. I'm not as smart as you and your twin but I'm pretty sure the laws of physics don't apply the same way to dreams as they do to real life."

"Then I'll _make_ them," she insisted stubbornly. She paused on her way past him, helpless to avoid taking one last little sniff of his scent. Maybe he hadn't worn it on his mission the first time she met him and the second time she saw him, he was sweaty and in the middle of a game of basketball. That would explain why she'd never smelled it on him before.

...Or maybe the scent didn't actually exist and she was making it up in her mind.

"I'll wear it from now on," Baxter informed her as she reached the door.

Karyu turned a little and looked back at him with a frown.

"The aftershave," elaborated the marine with a smile. "Since you like it so much, I'll wear it all the time. Gotta keep my girl happy."

She stiffened. "I'm not your girl, avatar."

His confident smile didn't go away. "Not yet."

Karyu pursed her lips in annoyance and she unlocked the door, shooting a glare over her shoulder at him for good measure. She yanked the sliding door open, hard enough to make it bang against the stopper in its track. She walked through the exit and poured her will into leaving the dream and returning to her body.

* * *

Baxter was startled awake by the sound of his door clashing against the track buffer and his eyes popped open. He blinked in the darkness, disoriented by the dream he'd just had. It only took him a second to reach for the gun he left on his bedside table and he quickly took aim toward the door, trying to clear the sleep from his head. There was nobody there.

Staying armed and ready just in case, Baxter got out of his bunk and prowled over to his open doorway. He peeked out into the hallway and found it deserted—which was normal at 0100 hours. He checked the door with a frown, still half-asleep. His dream ended with Karyu storming out and yanking the door open. He shook his head and stifled a yawn, clicking the safety back on his firearm again. Writing it off as a prank someone in the barracks must have pulled on him like Tommy knocking, he shut the door again and this time, he made sure it was locked.

Scratching his head absently, Baxter went back to his bunk and put his weapon back on the stand. He lay down and grunted softly as he made himself comfortable. The planetary light slanted through the window and it afforded him a bit of luminance in the darkness of his quarters. He impulsively lifted his hand before his eyes and examined it. It was still an avatar hand, complete with cyan stripes and a pattern of bioluminescent dots.

"What a weird dream."

He rolled onto his side to look out the window while he tried to go back to sleep. He went still abruptly, his brows drawing down.

The digital picture frame on his desk was knocked over.

He frowned severely at it, becoming more awake with each moment as the feeling that something just wasn't _right_ grew more intense. He got out of bed again and took three steps to his little desk. He picked up the frame and turned it on again—since the sensor inside automatically turned it off when it was disturbed. There was Soupbone, grinning up at him next to his old human body. Baxter gently re-situated the frame and he looked up at the night sky through his single window.

In his dream, Karyu knocked the picture frame over when she threatened him with her hunting knife.

"No way," he denied, looking away from the deceptive tranquility of the night sky and shaking his head. "That's too wild."

He turned away from the window and his eyes went to the door leading to his small bathroom. With a sigh, he went into the bathroom and he squinted against the stab of light as he clicked the switch on. He opened his medicine cabinet and rummaged through the contents of it, skipping a tube of toothpaste, a container of aspirin and some dental floss. He found the anxiety medication that he'd thus far gone without—despite recommendations from his therapist. With a heavy sigh, Baxter Howell shook two of the little white tablets out onto his palm and he popped them into his mouth. He rinsed them down with water from the tap and he went back to bed.

* * *

Hundreds of miles away, Karyu Sully woke up with a gasp and she looked around wildly, gathering her bearings. When she assured herself that she was indeed awake and in her personal little sleeping tent, she relaxed a bit.

"Weird dream," she murmured. "Stupid avatar...I wish he'd just do whatever he's going to do so I can stop thinking about it."

She rolled over and sighed, shifting to get settled again. She folded her hands beneath her cheek and shut her eyes, intending to go back to sleep. A scent wafted up her nostrils and her eyes popped wide open again. She sniffed, wondering where it came from. After a second or two, she realized it was on her hand—the same hand she'd used to grasp his jaw with in the dream. The smell was his aftershave.

"That isn't possible," she whispered.

But having grown up with both Na'vi mysticism and human science embedded into her education, Karyu knew that very few things were actually _impossible_. Her own father had experienced a vision sent to him through the Tree of Souls years ago, and it led him to save the Kilvan clan from extinction. That was how he earned the title of "Spirit Warrior" amongst her people, and ultimately why they respected Tanhi's choice to take him as her mate. Tanhi herself was considered as a potential _Tsahik_ in her youth, but the path of the _Olo'eyktan_ won over.

It was in her blood...Kato's too. Maybe they weren't _Tsahik_ material like Grace and Tsu'tey but they were a lot more in touch with Eywa than the average Na'vi. Considering the vision she'd had in her _Uniltaron_, Karyu thought it might be possible that the Great Mother was again trying to tell her something about Baxter Howell.

She bit her lip and looked around, though there was no way anyone would dare to peek into her little sleeping tent at any hour, let alone this late. She reached for her leather satchel and she dug through it until she found a tiny squeeze light and a familiar flat, square object. She pulled both out and she shone her little light on the object.

She was going to return the picture she had "borrowed" from the military wing, but she never got around to it. Baxter Howell smiled up at her from the photo and Karyu stared at him with grudging admiration for a while before putting him back in the hidden pocket where she'd been keeping him. 

She put her hand over her nose and inhaled slowly as she lay back down to go to sleep. The scent was faint, but it was there and it relaxed her. Whether she was crazy or it was a true spiritual encounter was a question she could answer later.

* * *

_Hell's Gate, the next day:_

"Kato, I'm going to be okay," Savanna assured her mate with a little kiss on the lips. "Really."

He eyed the kids going into the school building mistrustfully. "If even one of them tries anything with you—"

"Kato, the people that gave me the most trouble have been suspended or expelled," she reminded him patiently. "The rest aren't going to dare say anything to me for at least a few days. Stop being such a guard dog."

Kato took his attention off the human and avatar kids of varying ages and he gave Savanna a wary look. "I just don't trust them. Where are Dustin and Andrew?"

"I'm sure they'll be here soon." Savanna looked around and nibbled her lower lip. "Even if they aren't, the bell has rung. I'm going to need to get to class."

"If they don't get here in time, I'll go in with you."

She sighed and laid a hand over his arm, rubbing gently in an attempt to ease his tension. "You can't. Only security, staff, students and parents are allowed in the building. I don't need you getting arrested for terrorizing the school on my behalf." Her eyes scanned him appreciatively, calling attention to his revealing native attire. "Besides, I don't want other girls enjoying the sight of you too much."

He looked down at himself and then back at her questioningly. Savanna smirked and cast a quick glance around before leaning closer to him to whisper an explanation. "Half of the girls my age in this school get the vapors when you come around. They aren't used to seeing so much of the male body in person and a hot native guy in a loincloth is like a male stripper coming to give them a show."

Kato's mouth fell open in his astonishment. It had truly never dawned on him that people might see native garb as provocative. Growing up surrounded by people in loincloths and little else, he just took it for granted that it was no big deal. Being exposed to human garb so often as well, his philosophy was that people just wore what they felt most comfortable with and that was that. He looked around and for the first time, he noticed the looks he was getting from females and even a couple of males in passing. They gave him the distinct impression that they wanted to stuff money down his loincloth.

"Oh..."

Sav giggled and patted his stomach playfully. "Your sister was right Kato; for such a smart guy you can be kind of thick-witted. I can't believe you never noticed before."

He was quickly wishing he could have remained oblivious. Some of the girls tried to be subtle about it but a couple of them—one an avatar—made it pretty obvious they wanted to see what he had under his loincloth. His face started to feel hot and he wished he had something to cover up with. He heard Dustin's voice call out and he could have hugged the young human with gratitude when he turned to see him approaching with Andrew.

"Hey guys, sorry we're running late," apologized Dustin. "I forgot today was the day for Sav to come back and Andrew slept in."

The blond teen covered up a yawn and nodded in agreement. He frowned when he looked at Kato. "What's with the purple cheeks? Did Sav put some rouge on you or something?"

"No...It's just...it's nothing." Kato looked away and tried not to look too self-conscious. Savanna noticed, however.

"Kato, are you _blushing_?"

"I don't know...maybe a little." He pretended interest in a trail of small crawling insects trooping along the cement—similar to the ants of Earth.

"You're really blushing," Dustin remarked, as if it was the strangest thing he'd ever seen. "Sav, why is he blushing?"

"He's just discovered that he has admirers on this base," answered Savanna candidly, struggling not to laugh.

"You mean he's never noticed the eye-humping before?" Andrew regarded the Ikran hunter with blatant amusement. "How clueless are you, dude?"

"It's not just the girls, either," announced Savanna. Unable to bear it any longer, she burst into helpless giggles and dropped her book bag on the ground to cling to Kato's arm for support.

"Don't make him more uncomfortable than he is already," advised Dustin, apparently detecting Kato's rising urge to flee the scene.

"Man, I can't believe you never noticed before," Andrew snickered, shaking his head.

Kato was about to make a scathing remark to the blond when he noticed that one of the new guards standing outside the school building looked familiar to him. "Hey, isn't that Corporal Howell?" He pointed, relieved to have something to take the focus away from himself.

The others looked and voiced their agreement. Kato was beginning to suspect the marine of being a bit self-conscious about his eye color, because just about every time he saw him, Baxter was wearing shades. He was hatless today and he could have almost passed as a student, if it weren't for the fatigues he wore and the carb guns sitting in their holsters.

"They're really increased security," Andrew murmured in an impressed tone. Baxter was one of two official military personnel keeping watch over the building entrance. The other MP on duty with him was a human with bob-cut, strawberry blond hair.

Dustin looked a bit sheepish when everyone's eyes went straight to him. "Mom and Dad really took it seriously, I guess. I think they might have used a little overkill though. I mean, bringing in the _army_?"

"It's not like they've brought in AMP suits and heavy artillery," Andrew said with a smirk. "It's just two soldiers. You know the security guards we already had weren't doing jack shit to keep the thugs in line."

"I feel a little better knowing Mr. Howell is on duty here," admitted Savanna softly, leaning against Kato with familiar affection. "He's really sweet but I think he'd act fast if he saw anyone start anything."

Kato's first reaction was jealousy, but the way Savanna referred to Baxter as "Mister" cooled his passions a bit and he reminded himself that even if another male flirted with his mate, she wouldn't return his affections.

"You'd better get inside," he reminded Savanna and their two friends. "You don't want Sav to be late on her first day back, right?"

"Point taken," agreed Dustin. "Let's go, guys."

Savanna sighed and she took Kato's hands to squeeze them briefly. "I'll see you when school lets out." She bent down briefly to get her book bag.

Kato leaned down to give her a kiss on the mouth and he forced a smile, trying not to feel so naked. "I'll be here. Don't take any shit."

She smiled back, hazel eyes twinkling. "I won't. Promise."

"Come on Sav, we're running late!" Dustin was motioning for the girl eagerly and dragging Andrew by the shirtsleeve toward the building.

Kato released his lover, unable to fault Dustin for being eager to learn. He intended to stop by the library for a while himself, while Savanna was in school. "See you this afternoon."

He watched as Savanna and her two human companions joined the remaining students that were filing into the building. It came as no surprise that aside from a single, familiar avatar girl, most of the students either ignored their group entirely or cast disdainful looks at them. Kato sighed and suppressed a desire to throttle them and ask them who the hell they thought they were. From what he understood, Dusty and Andrew were relatively well-received by their peers when they weren't hanging around with Savanna. He wondered how long that would last if they decided to come out of the closet.

Once they vanished beyond the double-doors of the building entrance, Kato almost left. He looked at Howell again and decided to stay around for a few moments longer, at least. He walked up to the entrance, mindful to keep his poise un-threatening. Security usually didn't take well to an armed native strolling up to the school building, but Baxter recognized him and he called out in greeting. Seeing that they knew each other, the female MP on duty beside him relaxed and spared a little smile of greeting at Kato.

"Hey Sully, what's up?"

Baxter offered his palm and Kato automatically slapped it, smiling in spite of himself. "I thought the military was stretched too thin to keep an eye on the school?"

Howell shrugged. "Lt. Chacón changed her mind. She wants to keep this place under tight watch until she's satisfied there won't be any student violence."

Kato smiled a little. "I'm glad. I know you guys have other things to do but things were getting out of hand here."

"That's why O'Brien and I volunteered," Baxter explained with a nod at his human companion across the way.

"It's a volunteer job?"

"Yeah," answered the marine. "Lt. Chacón left it to us to decide who wanted to give up off-duty time to help out. We can't really afford to formally assign people, so some of us are using our off-days to work security here."

Kato felt humbled, suddenly. He was finding fewer excuses to dislike the man every day and hearing that he gave up his free time to do this increased Kato's respect for him. "Why are you doing this? After all the shit you've been through, shouldn't you be taking it easy whenever possible?"

Baxter snorted. "Taking it easy is the _last_ thing I need to do, man. Look, don't get the notion that I'm doing this for totally selfless reasons. I'm keeping myself busy, because if I stop and think..." He trailed off and cleared his throat, looking away. "I might not act like I've got a lot going on upstairs but my head gets too busy when my body's not moving, you know?"

"I get that." Kato meant it. He could relate and he felt a little sorry for the avatar operative. "Well, even if you're just here to keep your head clear, I appreciate it."

"Don't mention it." The bell rang and Baxter glanced over his shoulder at the shutting doors. "Hey Kato, what's your sister's favorite color?"

Kato raised a brow at him, taken off-guard by the abrupt question. "Why?"

Howell shrugged. "I'd just like to know a little more about her. I think she's interesting, is all."

Kato hid a smile. Of course, Baxter thought Karyu was "interesting". Most men would have written her off as a lunatic after the way she had treated him so far, but Howell seemed to be as helplessly drawn to Karyu as she was to him. The answer to the soldier's question made Kato want to grin even more. "Green. Her favorite color is green."

"Green eh?" Baxter didn't seem to make the connection, but then, he seemed preoccupied. "I'll have to remember that. Don't worry; I'm not trying to make the moves on your sister. I'm just trying to understand her a little better and I've learned that sometimes it takes baby steps to get to a goal."

"And what do you plan to do when you reach that goal?" A couple of weeks ago, Kato would have warned the other male to stay away from his sister. Now he was beginning to think they were destined to have some kind of encounter and he almost hoped they'd get together.

Baxter grimaced. "I have no idea."

Kato almost laughed. At least the man didn't pretend to understand a girl like Karyu. He had heard guys their age in their village speculating over whether she would settle down with the birth of her first child and he could have told them they were crazy for even considering it.

"Well, as long as you treat her right, you won't get any trouble from me."

"You wouldn't mind an avatar dating your twin?" Baxter grinned. "Not that I'm saying it's going to happen, but you never know."

"I'm dating a hybrid," answered Kato mildly. He almost said: "mated to" but he changed his answer just in time. "Maybe the clan expects her to get with someone from our village one day but I'd be a hypocrite to make that demand on her."

"I'd say that's reasonable."

Baxter seemed to remember something else and he started to speak with an inquisitive expression, but at that moment, Kato noticed one of the human schoolteachers hurrying toward the building. She looked to be in her early twenties and she was in a rush. She spotted him and her attention became so fixated on his appearance that she damned near ran into the other soldier that was guarding the school entrance.

"Excuse me," muttered the teacher hastily, picking up the textbook she dropped as she tripped.

Her eyes flicked to Kato again as if of their own accord and he found himself re-visiting the wish that he had a robe or something to put on. She tore her attention away from him, cleared her throat and went through the door. When she was gone, Kato decided he was going to go to the bio lab and ask Dr. Patel for some avatar clothes to wear.

"I've got to take care of some things," Kato said to Baxter. "Take care of my girl for me today, will you?"

Baxter nodded. "You bet."

* * *

_Three days later, near UNEC:_

West procured clearance to move Jake to the small compound located a few clicks to the north of UNEC. It was built around a water purification plant, with a guard building, a supply building and a basic recreation building. There was an open platform for aircraft to come and go and the compound was armed with a small crew of soldiers. West arranged for the replacement of the MP's previously stationed there and he hand-picked his own security team. This was where they would be keeping Sully, until his court date arrived. West arranged to take him out of the main compound for the sake of damage control.

By minimizing the number of people Jake came into contact with, he might prevent another attack against him. The general wasn't about to assume he'd rooted out every suspect from his team, though. He expected to eventually find that a couple of his trusted people were working with the conspirators, but he was confident that he could keep things under control in the smaller compound until the entire affair was finished.

Jake's family came to visit him as soon as West confirmed it was safe enough. Norm and Grace came with them, so that Jake could have the opportunity to feel his unborn grandchild move within Gracie's womb. As soon as they arrived, West had them escorted them to Jake's holding quarters—which were significantly larger and nicer than his previous cell.

"_Sempu! Sempu!_" Sylwanin ran to her father's arms as soon as they opened the door and she spotted him. Jake laughed and scooped her into his embrace, grunting dramatically as he picked her up and held her close. She was probably too big for this sort of thing at her age, but Jake obviously didn't care.

"Hi Sweetpea. You've got no _idea_ how glad I am to see you."

General West couldn't help but smile a little as the Na'vi child began to rattle off everything she'd been up to, gasping for breath between sentences. He couldn't comprehend all of it because she blended native words in with the English, but it was amusing and endearing, nonetheless. To the delight of the guards, Sylwanin demonstrated one of the dances she had learned from another clan during the Na'vi gathering. Jake smiled with pride and applauded her, granting her the fatherly approval she obviously craved so much. Neytiri and the others looked on with smiles, allowing the two of them to get re-acquainted before moving in for their own greetings.

"I'll leave you to it," West announced, not wanting to intrude upon the moment. He started to leave, but Jake called out for him to wait. West turned and looked up at Jake as the former chieftain approached, urging his daughter forward with him.

"Sylwanin, I want you to meet General West. I know you've seen him before but you've never really been introduced. He's the man that's trying to help me. He's the one that brought me here so I could see you again."

The girl looked at West curiously, examining his features through the clear cover of his exopack. "I'm taller than he is."

"Sylwanin," warned Neytiri with an embarrassed glance at the humans.

"Uh...you know humans don't grow as tall as we do, kid," Jake reminded her with an apologetic look at the general.

The guards chuckled and West gave the girl a reserved smile. "You're just an honest young lady, aren't you?"

"I try to be," agreed the girl. "Thank you for helping my _Sempu_, General."

"We're doing what we can," promised West. He looked at Jake and nodded. "If you or your family need anything, just ask one of my people."

Jake thanked him and West gave Neytiri and the others a polite nod before exiting the holding quarters with the two guards. When they were outside, Private Sanders spoke her thoughts aloud. "It's really strange to think of someone taller than me as a child."

"She's no bigger than a human kid that age would be compared to an adult of its own kind," replied Private Barry. "Just try to imagine it from their perspective."

"You can discuss biological differences between the natives and ourselves later," West reminded them. "I want someone on security and maintenance rounds, stat. Double the watch this weekend while Sully's family and friends are here. I don't want anything happening to them while they're here."

"Yes sir," the two privates replied immediately.

* * *

After he exchanged heartfelt embraces with his family, Jake turned to Norm and Grace. His eyes swept over the beautiful young huntress, settling on the roundness of her baby bump. "Look at you, kiddo. I can hardly believe you're this far along."

Grace smiled and rubbed her belly. "Time goes by fast. You look good, Uncle Jake."

"Not bad for a jailbird, huh?" He winked at her and gave her a hug. "At first I was against it when Norm said you wanted to come, but since I don't know when I'm going to be getting out of here, I'm glad you did." He placed his hand over her bump, happy for the opportunity to share a moment like this. Even if he got released without too much hassle, the baby was probably going to be born by the time it happened.

"Father made sure I was comfortable during the trip," Grace assured with a fondly exasperated look at Norm. "He practically built a seat on his poor ikran for me."

"I'm just trying to take care of you and the baby," Norm excused. "What really worries me is you coming to the trial to testify. I really wish you'd change your mind, Grace. You're going to be in the final trimester."

Jake pulled away from the huntress and frowned severely at her. "No, Grace. I don't want you putting yourself through that, so close to your due date."

"Too bad," she insisted stubbornly. "Tommy was my childhood friend, my mate and the father of my child. I'm going to testify against the people that killed him and none of you can change my mind."

Jake begged Eywa for patience. "Grace, the people that killed Tommy are dead. That's why I'm being put on trial in the first place. You don't need to—"

"The people that were in on that mining operation may as well have pulled the trigger themselves," Grace interrupted, her eyes flashing. "They did _nothing_ to stop that man from putting a bullet in Tommy's..." She blinked and looked away. "They just let it happen. They're guilty and they have to pay."

Sylwanin sniffled and Neytiri embraced her, gently shushing her. Jake turned to her hopefully. "Neytiri, can you talk some sense into her?"

The _Tsahik_ looked at Grace, then at Jake. The calm, sad gaze was resolute on him. "She already has sense, my Jake. A woman knows her own strength and I trust Grace to choose for herself when it is too much for her."

Tsu'tey placed comforting hands on Gracie's shoulders and looked at Jake. His eyes glistened with the threat of tears. "I shared what we saw with you, Dad. Neither one of us are going to back down on being there to tell them what those people did to my brother. Grace isn't going to change her mind and I won't try to make her."

"And my testimony will help build the case in your favor," Grace added, wiping her eyes hastily. "Everyone that comes forward in your defense is going to help, Uncle Jake. I've done my homework and I have a better understanding of how human laws work than I did before. We want you home again, even if it doesn't happen until after the baby comes."

Jake shut his eyes and unwillingly re-lived the horrible vision his son had shared with him, seeing Tommy's death in his mind as if he'd been there to witness it himself. He swallowed his emotions and sighed, looking at Norm helplessly. At least the scientist seemed to be on his side, but by the expression on Norm's face, he had given up trying to talk Grace out of it.

"All right. I guess I can't force you to stay away." He looked Grace in the eye and placed his hand over her belly again. "But I'm telling you right now as your godfather, your father-in-law, your former _Olo'eyktan_ and the _Toruk Makto_: you put yourself and this baby _first_, got it? Don't blow it off if you start feeling strained and don't push yourself. That's an _order_ and I don't care how damned patronizing you think it is."

Grace and Tsu'tey both shrank a little, intimidated by the commanding tone. "Yes sir. I promise, I'll take care of myself."

"I'll be at her side every minute," Tsu'tey added. "Even if it drives her crazy."

Jake's tension lessened and his features relaxed into a smile. "Good. Make sure it stays that w—"

He abruptly stopped talking when he felt activity beneath his palm. He looked down at Gracie's belly and went still, focusing on the feeling of his granchild kicking. "Neytiri, come quick! The baby's moving!"

"I have felt it," she assured him with an amused smile. "You enjoy it now, Jake."

Enjoy it, he did. Jake was totally unaware that the expression of wonder on his face made him look years younger to his family and Norm. The anthropologist was the first to comment on it.

"Wow. You look just like you did when you woke up for the first time in your avatar body and stood up."

Jake shut his eyes, hardly paying attention. "My son," he murmured. "That's my son's kid kicking in there." He felt like he might cry or laugh or both. Someone was patting his shoulder and someone else took his free hand and squeezed it. Jake took a deep breath, reveling in the moment. Right now, Tommy was alive again to him.

* * *

Later that evening when everyone else retired for the night, Jake and Norm went outside for some fresh air. Norm was surprised that the guards didn't try to stop Jake but the toruk rider explained to him that he wasn't "that kind of prisoner".

"It was different at the main base because it had to be," Jake said when they were far enough away from the guards to talk in private. "I can pretty much come and go from my quarters at will, here. Security is more to keep people from trying to snuff me than to keep me secured."

"That's really weird," Norm said bluntly, frowning. "I mean, you're going on trial for murder and they're treating you more like a...a VIP than a prisoner. Not that I want to see you in chains, I just think it's suspicious."

"You think _everything_ is suspicious," Jake snorted. "But don't worry; West told me from the beginning that my situation was going to be different from other prisoners. When I was at UNEC I had less freedom than most other inmates because they had to keep such a close eye on me. I spent more time locked up in my cell than anything."

"And they aren't worried about someone taking a shot at you here?" Norm looked around warily, his eyes settling on the nearby guards for a moment. He felt like they were too exposed and someone had already tried to kill Jake before—even if it was a clumsy attempt.

"West hand-picked everyone that's manning this facility," answered Jake. Sure, someone might be playing both sides but they'll have a harder time getting away with it here if they try to pull anything. There's a smaller list of personnel to keep an eye on and it's isolated from the main base. Anybody that tries to attack me is going to get caught before they can make it three steps to the gate, here."

"That makes sense," conceded Norm. "Nice quarters they gave you, too. It's practically an apartment."

"Well, it _is_ an apartment," Jake said. "That bunker usually houses staff. Since they don't have a jail in this little compound, West assigned me to it."

Norm smirked and shook his head. His daughter was sleeping in said living quarters now, along with Neytiri, Tsu'tey and Sylwanin. The guards had brought extra pillows, blankets and folding cots for them. It was almost like a slumber party, with all of them bedding down in Jake's quarters with him. Jake was enthusiastic about it. He said it felt a little like home, to have his friends and family sleeping close by again the way they did in the branches of the _keltural_.

Norm looked around again to be sure nobody was nearby. "Tom and I talked about the flux business and the missing UNEC equipment. He's started working with Jill Turnley over a private channel and they're going to try and develop something together. He plans on getting Max involved to help. They might even drag Dustin, Kato and Karyu into the project if they can confirm that it's feasible. "

"What kind of 'something'?" Jake asked.

"It started out as a plan to make a flux generation device," answered Norm, "but Tom thinks they might be able to put something together that could actually disrupt EM fields. The theory is that if a ship can make its own anti-flux zone, it can travel through a vortex without crippling the instruments."

"Like a shield," guessed Jake with a frown. "And who the hell would they be giving this thing to, if they succeed. I've got to tell you, I'm not comfortable with the UN getting their hands on it, even if I _do_ trust West and his people. There's too much corruption and the last time Earth forces brought in the pain, using the flux vortex was the only thing that kept our side from getting outright slaughtered."

"I know." Norm lowered his voice and gave Jake a meaningful look, silently reminding him to keep it down too. "The plan is to use the technology on Hell's Gate aircrafts, if they succeed. Trudy has already agreed to cooperate with UNEC in the search. They told her it was a search and rescue, but I've already told her the truth. If the people at Hell's Gate can fly through flux heavy areas without disruption, they can navigate places that were too dangerous before and they might find something that will lead to the smugglers."

Jake turned the information over in his head and Norm waited patiently, understanding that his friend didn't have his head for science. "And you think this is a good plan?"

Norm nodded. "I think it's the only real plan we have that might get some results, yeah."

"I'm kind of worried about Dr. Turnley though," admitted Jake. "I know the lady wouldn't hurt a fly, but she's with UNEC now and they've got the RDA poisoning their ranks."

"I worry about the same thing too," agreed Norm, "But Tom has known and worked with her for almost as long as he's worked with me. Let's try not to get paranoid."

"Great...I'm turning into you." Jake made a face as if he tasted something foul.

Norm couldn't help but laugh a little. "Don't feel too bad. Sometimes I have 'Jake moments' and my brain freezes. You're not a great influence yourself."

Jake laughed with him and when they regained their composure, they smiled at one another. The feeling of closeness reminded Norm of an Earth tradition he'd never completely given up. "You know Christmas is coming in a couple of weeks, right?"

Jake shrugged. "I forgot it was December. I've been going by seasons to tell the time of year since Tommy was a kid. Are you and Ni'nat going to do your usual this year?"

"I don't know," answered Norm. He looked up at the stars, thinking back to his childhood and the many holidays he'd spent around the Christmas tree with his family. "There's so much going on, I probably won't bother this year."

Jake watched him silently for a few heartbeats, thinking it over. "I think you should do it."

Norm looked at him uncertainly. "I don't know, it feels wrong to celebrate right now."

"It's the perfect time," insisted Jake. "Your family does this every year. It doesn't matter if it's meaningless to the clan—it's important to you and it gives you comfort. Celebrate with your girls, Norm. Family is important...especially now."

Norm considered Jake quietly, wondering where the old jarhead went. He was still Jake, but he seemed to have procured a kind of wisdom he hadn't possessed before. Norm smiled and nodded, lowering his eyes. "All right, Jake. We'll think of you."

* * *

_Hell's Gate, the next afternoon:_

They both knew that the intensity of their bond wasn't the norm. The average Na'vi couple described _tsahaylu_ as highly erotic experience that enhanced mating pleasure, but was not explosive on its own. Savanna and Kato, however, had something much more primal each time they linked their queues and it always overwhelmed both of them, leaving them panting and seeing stars when it finished. They thought it would settle down after the first few times and when it didn't, they decided to take advantage of it. They weren't ready to tell their families that they had gone behind their backs and become a mated pair. They agreed that the least they could do was wait to physically consummate their relationship, at least until Sav's eighteenth birthday.

_Tsahaylu_ was replacing lovemaking, in the mean time. The young couple snuck off together as often as they could to enjoy the neural bond. It was a lot easier to be celibate when all it took to have screaming orgasms was to connect the ends of their braids. Today, they were enjoying one such encounter before Savanna had to be home from school. They had chosen what would be one of the shower rooms in the unfinished recreation building on her street. Savanna was able to get into the building because her father was involved in setting up the computer system for the new building. She'd filched his key from on top of his desk that morning, before heading off for school.

She was seated on one of the tiled counters with her legs wrapped around Kato's waist. They were both buck naked and sweaty from the lack of air circulation in the hot room. They writhed against one another, stroking each other's most intimate parts and vocalizing their appreciation openly.

"Oh Eywa," Kato groaned, pumping his hips faster between his mate's parted thighs. "Sav...Sav-anna...unh!"

Her whimpers and moans of pleasure almost drowned out his as the bond they shared sent them both spinning into uncontrollable, intense ecstasy. His body tensed all over and his mouth sought out hers as he came in her stroking hand. Savanna clutched at his shoulder with her free hand and returned his kiss, groaning along with him. The circular motions of his fingertips remained steady until she whimpered and laid her cheek against his chest. He stopped fondling the tender little nub when she shuddered and he felt how hypersensitive it was through the link. He disconnected their queues to prevent the cycle from starting all over again.

"You okay?" His voice was uneven and breathless as he kissed the crown of her head and rested his hands on her naked hips.

Savanna nodded, opening her eyes to peer through tangled locks of hair that had fallen over her face. "We have to tell my parents, Kato."

He went still. "I thought we were going to wait."

"We're waiting until I turn eighteen to have sex," she murmured, leaning back on the counter to look up at him. "I don't want to wait that long to tell them the truth." She braced herself on her elbows and she flushed a little as his eyes immediately went to her shoulders, exposed breasts and stomach. He'd seen all of her now and though some maidenly modesty still remained, Savanna felt more sexy than ashamed when those hot amber eyes raked over her body.

Kato's jaw worked and he took a slow breath, dragging his gaze back to her face. "You're making it hard to wait."

Savanna smiled and glanced down, seeing his penis stirring to life again. She hadn't meant to strike a provocative pose but obviously, the sight of her propped back on the counter like this was provoking his mating urges. Her instincts begged her to wrap her thighs around his waist again and draw him close to encourage him, but she refrained. They were already walking a thin enough line of control and she wanted to at least keep _one_ promise to her parents.

"Maybe we should do this with our clothes on, from now on."

Kato grimaced at the side of the counter—which he'd inadvertently vandalized with the evidence of his pleasure. "Sure, that works for you. It could get messy for me, though."

Savanna bit her lip on soft laughter. "Okay, then you can go without pants, but I don't think we should both be naked anymore. We need a barrier, or it's going to be too easy to forget about our vow and go for it."

He stroked her hips possessively and pulled her closer. "Yeah, I know."

Savanna felt the silken knob of his arousal press gently against her sex and she shook her head and pulled away, flushing. Her desire spiked again but she ruthlessly squashed it down. It really would be so _easy_ to just let it happen. She couldn't, though.

"Behave, Kato."

He swallowed visibly and nodded, shutting his eyes. "Sorry. I think it's time for us to get dressed, Sav. I know we just finished having it off but I can't take much more of this. The things I want to do to this body of yours—"

"Okay, okay," she struggled into a sitting position and looked at the wall, blushing furiously now. Funny how Kato's dirty talk embarrassed her more than being naked and in a provocative position with him. "Um, I need to hop down."

Kato ran his fingertips up her spine and kissed her before obligingly stepping away. He turned his back on her and grumbled as he reached for the roll of recycled toilet tissue she'd had the foresight to bring. He held it out to her wordlessly and she quickly unwrapped some for herself to wipe her hand off. She watched Kato out the corner of her eye as she started putting her panties and bra on and she admired the strong lines of his back and his toned ass. She giggled in spite of herself when he pulled on a pair of boxer briefs and followed up with a pair of khaki pants, borrowed from the clothing supply storage and second-hand storage for avatars.

"I can't believe you're letting a few admiring looks turn you into a prude."

"I'm not turning into a prude," he objected, grunting as he hopped a little to get the pants up. "I'm just not comfortable wearing my regular clothes on base anymore. Aunt Neytiri was right: humans don't know what to do with their eyes."

"And avatars," reminded Savanna with a grin. She slipped her peasant blouse on and began to button it up. "I guess it's just the culture. You have to remember, people aren't used to seeing that much skin here except for when they go to the pool or when natives show up for a visit. Don't be too hard on them."

Kato zipped his pants and glanced over his shoulder at her. Seeing that only her legs were bare, he turned around to face her and bent over to retrieve his muscle shirt from the floor. "And you don't mind the way those girls were looking at me?"

Savanna shook her head, shrugging. "Why should I mind? You're my man and their envious stares don't change that. It _does_ give me a little satisfaction to know that some of the girls that want you so bad are the same girls that give me such a hard time. I hope the bitches turn green."

Kato chuckled and pulled his shirt on, watching her legs with admiration as she put on her jeans. "I guess we've got a different way of looking at it. I hate it when guys look at you that way."

Savanna buttoned her jeans up and approached him. She rested her hands on his shoulders and rose to her tiptoes, puckering her lips invitingly. He grinned and granted her silent request, kissing her lovingly. He felt her smile against his mouth before their lips parted again.

"You don't need to be jealous," Savanna whispered. "I'm yours. They can look, just like the girls can look at you. It doesn't mean they'll get me."

"I'll try to be a little less primitive about it," he promised. He brushed aside a drop of perspiration that rolled down her temple. "Your parents are going to know something's up if they come home and see you all sweaty like this."

"It's a hot day," she excused. "But I see your point. I'd better get to the unit and have a quick shower. You can go to the avatar lodge or the military rec center and have one too, and then come back to my place for dinner so we can break the news to my parents."

He made an unhappy face. "Can't I just let _you_ do that? You deal with your parents and I'll deal with mine."

"Kato, we started this together and we'll finish it together." She stroked his sweat-dampened hair. "I'll be at your side when we tell your parents too. It's only right."

"Yeah, but my parents aren't going to skin you and make a pair of boots out of you over this," he pointed out.

"No, but I'm sure I'll get some dirty looks from your mother," she countered seriously.

"And that's totally the same as getting shot in the balls by yours."

"Mama isn't going to shoot you in the balls," promised Savanna, fighting another giggle.

"You're right," Kato grimaced, "your father will probably pummel me to death before she gets the chance. Dusty told me what happened in the board meeting and I've heard other stories, too. Your Dad might be a little guy for an avatar but I know he can kick some ass when he wants to."

"Papa isn't going to beat you," she sighed. "Kato, just trust me. They're protective of me but they really _do_ like you. My father holds your uncle in the highest regards and he definitely won't kill the nephew of the man he still thinks of as a hero."

Kato seemed to calm down at the reminder. "I guess. It would be cowardly of me not to face up to this, anyway. I still want you to make sure your _Sa'nok_ doesn't have her gun on her first, though."

Savanna rolled her eyes, but inwardly she was dreading the encounter as much as her lover. She braced herself for the expressions of disappointment she knew she'd see on both her parents' faces.

* * *

-To be continued


	21. Chapter 21

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 21:...and mistletoe**

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_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Season's greetings to all and have a happy new year! **_

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***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

When he arrived at her house, Kato was relieved to see Savanna answer the door. She started to take his hand but she glanced at something behind him and frowned.

"Kato...de-fluff the tail."

He stared blankly at her.

Savanna pointed and compressed her lips. "Your tail...the tuft is...it looks like a puffball..." She trailed off and began to giggle.

Kato impulsively twisted around to look at his tail and he finally understood what she meant. When highly agitated, it wasn't all that uncommon for some Na'vi to experience the "hair standing on end" issue with the tufts at the end of their tails. Kato himself had never experienced it before now, but the sight of the thick hair puffed up in every direction assured him that it wasn't just a myth.

"I didn't know I was _that_ nervous," he muttered, grabbing the end of his tail to try and smooth the puffy tip back to normalcy.

Just when Kato had his tail back in order again, Sebastian came to the front door and greeted him. "Well hello there, Kato. We never heard you knock. What are you doing still standing at the threshold like that?"

The end of Kato's tail—still clutched in his hand—abruptly puffed up again.

Savanna evidently found it to be hilarious. She snorted and she covered her mouth with her hand, her own tail lashing as she struggled not to cackle out loud. She crossed her legs in place and bounced suddenly, shaking her head.

"I'm sorry," Sav snickered, "I've gotta pee...I've gotta pee!"

Kato was torn between amusement, concern and annoyance as his cute little hybrid mate twirled around and ran back into the unit, leaving him alone at the threshold with her father. It wasn't unusual for Sav to get the giggles when she was nervous but leaving him alone with Sebastian right now was practically criminal.

Sebastian watched his daughter go with a semi-bemused look. "I must have missed a banger of a joke."

Kato looked at Sebastian and he gave him a weak smile. At this point, the best that he could hope for was that he wouldn't throw up on Bastian's classy loafers. "Hi Mr. Thomas."

The shorter man's polite expression became faintly suspicious. His gaze swept over Kato and he raised a brow. "Finding terran fashion more to your liking, are you?"

Kato moistened dry lips with the tip of his tongue and tried to think of an explanation that wouldn't sound completely vain. "People here don't seem all that comfortable around people wearing native garb. Besides, I only brought a few changes with me and it takes some time for hides to cure just right for a good piece of clothing. I may as well dress common while I'm here."

"I see." Sebastian gave the ensemble of jeans and a t-shirt one more cursory glance and then gestured grandly. "Well? Katherine is setting the table now."

Kato forced a smile and walked through the door.

* * *

"Kato, would you like some yellow root?" Katherine offered the plate of steaming, carrot-like root vegetables to him over the table.

He nodded and thanked her in a low voice, using the tongs to select a couple before passing the plate to Sebastian. Beside him, Savanna picked absently at mixture of Na'vi and human fair on her plate, watching her parents from beneath lowered lashes.

Sebastian noticed their daughter's covert glances and lack of appetite. Combined with Kato's unexpected change in style and the way his tuft stood on end earlier, Sebastian knew something definitely wasn't right.

"How was school today, Sav?" Sebastian probed gently, hoping to figure out what the matter was without blurting out a demand.

"Good," she answered evasively. She dug tracks into her mashed potatoes with her fork.

Katherine paused in sprinkling some pepper over her steamed broccoli. "Savanna."

"What?" The girl looked up from her food and shared a brief glance with her boyfriend. "Everything is _fine_ at school, I promise."

"Nobody's been troubling you at all?" pressed Sebastian.

She shrugged. No more than the usual whispers and snide remarks here and there. I can ignore that stuff. The worst of it has stopped now."

"You would tell us if it started again, wouldn't you?" Katherine asked. "I don't want you to wait until it gets out of control again, sweetheart."

Savanna rolled her eyes with teenaged annoyance. "Yes, Mama. I swear, I'll tell you if it starts getting bad again. I don't want it to get the way it was before either."

Sebastian began to cut into his _Yerik_ steak. "Well, just so you don't hesitate again to come to us. By the way, thank you for providing us with fresh hexapede meat, Kato."

Kato nodded. "It's no trouble. I couldn't eat it all myself and it would have been a waste to smoke all of the tender cuts."

Sebastian watched the younger man subtly as he took a bite of the grilled meat. He savored the flavor and texture, silently giving credit to Kato for whatever technique he used to prepare the meat for cooking and consumption. It fell apart in his mouth and the gamey taste common in most venison brought into the market was significantly lessened.

"Savanna, you haven't touched yours," Sebastian observed, gesturing mildly with his fork.

Katherine paused in the act of cutting into her baked chicken breast and she gave their daughter a concerned look. "Are you feeling all right, honey? You look pale."

"Kato has hardly touched his either," Sebastian pointed out. "You two aren't coming down with something, are you?"

"No Papa," answered Savanna. She shared an uncomfortable look with Kato. "Let's just eat, okay?"

Sebastian sighed and shrugged at his wife, who was looking at him with her "I don't like the feel of this" expression. It was obvious that something was going on but the kids weren't going to tell them—at least not yet. They ate quietly and Katherine prodded Savanna several times when the girl poked at her food.

After dinner was finished and the dishes were put away for cleaning, Sebastian boiled some tea and Katherine set out small bowls of ice cream for dessert. When everyone spooned up the last of their frozen treat, Savanna put an end to the mystery behind hers and Kato's odd behavior. She scooted closer to her boyfriend and placed his hand over his, on top of the table. She bit her lip and looked at each of her parents in turn, taking a deep breath.

_~Oh God, here it comes,~_ thought Sebastian, bracing himself for heavens knew what.

"Kato and I are mated."

It wasn't exactly off the mark of what he expected to hear, but her choice of words confused Sebastian. "You eloped?"

Savanna looked up at Kato again, sitting quietly beside her. He was keeping his mouth shut, looking between Sebastian and Katherine with silent dread he couldn't quite hide. Savanna squeezed his hand and looked at both of her parents. "I guess you could say that."

"So the two of you decided to pair up without bothering to wait, as we asked you to," Katherine said tonelessly, her mouth compressing into an unflattering line.

"We love each other, Mama." Savanna spoke with youthful passion and her gaze begged forgiveness. "After everything that's happened, we couldn't wait any longer. We just want to be together."

Sebastian's gaze slid straight to Kato and he barely held his temper in check. "You made a promise to me. You swore you would honor it."

"Don't blame him!" Savanna inched even closer to her partner, practically climbing into his lap to shield him from her parents' glare. "Kato was just trying to do the right thing. If you want to get mad at someone, get mad at _me_. I'm the one that couldn't wait any longer."

"Sav," Kato murmured.

"It's true," she said stubbornly, "and I'm not letting you take the blame. Quit trying to protect me from everything."

Sebastian and Katherine looked to each other. She appeared as indecisive over how to react as he felt. On the one hand, the kids had broken the agreement that they wait until after Savanna's graduation. On the other, most boys didn't put a ring on a girl's finger before taking her virginity. Maybe they didn't exchange traditional vows but Kato made a lifetime commitment. That at least was worth some points in his favor.

"Savanna," Katherine said in a carefully controlled tone, "please, tell me you're taking your birth control religiously."

"I am," promised the girl.

"We...haven't had sex," Kato blurted. His face darkened as he blushed.

Sebastian frowned. "How can you be mated, then? I'm confused."

Katherine coughed behind her hand and spoke up. "_Tsahaylu_, dear. They bonded with their queues. They just haven't gone on their honeymoon, yet."

Sebastian felt no small amount of relief. "So, you haven't physically consummated the union yet?"

"We're going to _try_ to wait," Savanna said, stressing the word "try".

"If not until her eighteenth birthday, at least until she's graduated," agreed Kato. His ears were still drooping contritely. "I'm really sorry, but I love your daughter."

Well, there was really nothing left to do. What was done was done. Sebastian felt a little numb as he scooted his dining chair back and stood up. "I could use a drink. Kath?"

"Please," she confirmed with a nod. She seemed to be as dazed as he was.

"Kato, Savanna?" Sebastian looked at them expectantly.

The young couple traded an uncertain glance before Savanna spoke. "Are you offering a drink, Papa?"

"If you're old enough to take a life partner, you're old enough to have a glass of port with us."

"Oh...yes, please." The expression on her face said that she understood what a fine line she was walking with his good graces.

Sebastian nodded and went into the kitchen to retrieve Katherine's favorite bottle of port from the liquor storage cabinet. Ordinarily he preferred Na'vi moonshine, but he was all out and anything alcoholic sounded good right now. He paused after retrieving the port, spotting the rarely-used bottle of Vodka in the back of the cabinet, next to the gin. He grabbed it and took out a shot-glass with the small port glasses. He took a couple of shots himself and then he poured one for his wife, just in case. He situated the glasses on a round tray and carried them into the dining area. Katherine gave him a thankful look when he purposely passed the Vodka shot to her after setting the tray in the center of the table. She downed it with a grimace.

"Since we can't very well annul this union," said Sebastian as he took his seat, I'm going to give you three non-negotiable conditions. I can't speak for my wife but if you agree to my terms, I'll give you my blessings and you can get on with having a real partnership."

"Whatever you want me to do," Kato agreed eagerly.

"First, you do everything—and I mean _everything_—in your power to ensure Savanna doesn't get pregnant before she finishes school. If that means the two of you continue practicing celibacy, so be it. In all likelihood, the two of you will never be able to conceive at all but until you're in a position to be parents, don't take that chance."

Both of them seemed confused and Sebastian sighed, glancing sidelong at Katherine. "What I'm saying is you don't necessarily have to remain a virgin couple, but don't get reckless."

Both of them blushed. "I...I'll be careful, Papa," agreed Savanna in a small voice.

"Condition two," continued Bastian, "is that you have a wedding. I know Na'vi mating practices result in a bond stronger than any spoken vow but I just need to know my daughter is married to the man she may have children with. We have our traditions too and I'm sure you understand that, Kato."

"Yes sir," agreed the hunter readily. "I understand that. We already talked about maybe having a wedding later on and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to get your blessing."

Remembering the day Kato asked his permission to eventually pair up with Savanna, Sebastian relaxed a little and he even smiled faintly. "Your willingness to please us is a point in your favor, Kato."

"Just don't lay it on too thick," warned Katherine. "There's a fine line between a gentleman and a suck-up."

Kato visibly deflated and Sebastian felt a twinge of pity for him. He was certainly more honorable than most boys his age. At least Savanna chose a man that respected her and could provide for her if needed. Kato had been very good about supporting her and watching over her during his stay. He also provided for the family, though Sebastian told him he didn't have to share his kills with them. The freezer was almost completely stocked with native venison, fowl and even sturmbeest cuts. Bastian could only assume Kato was a crack-shot to have taken one of the latter animals down on his own. Then again, the boy was a daredevil. He always _had_ been.

Sebastian spoke in a kinder tone as he gave the kids his final demand. "Last but not least, I expect to be able to see my daughter more than once a year. I want you to at least attempt to stay here at Hell's Gate. She's the only child Katherine and I have ever had or _will_ ever have, and she's too young to be taken away from us yet."

Katherine reached under the table and took his hand, squeezing gently. She wiped at her eyes suspiciously with her free hand and averted her gaze. Savanna's eyes welled and she sniffed. "You aren't going to lose me," promised the young woman, "even if I don't live here on base."

"We'll stay for as long as Savanna wants," promised Kato. "I don't mind. I can always go and visit my family whenever I want."

"You're okay with trying to fit in with the population here?" Katherine looked him up and down dubiously, obviously taking note of the way he kept tugging at the collar of his shirt uncomfortably.

Kato shrugged. "I probably won't fit in, but I've never fit in at home, either. I'm used to it."

True, Kato and his sister had always been an odd pair. Still, this was a little more complicated than being a little misunderstood and Sebastian wanted Kato to understand that. "You've already begun wearing avatar clothing. My guess is you've started to notice stares, now that you're essentially alone on this base. You don't have your usual social group around you and the attention that used to be divided amongst all visiting natives now falls solely on you."

Kato stared at him. "You're _good_, Mr. Thomas."

"I have some experience myself with trying to fit in," replied the older man dryly. He shared a little smile with his wife. "I just think you should be aware that staying here for a visit and attempting to live here as a resident aren't exactly the same things. I realize this is an unfair burden on you, but we need time."

"I understand," Kato answered. "And I wouldn't try to pressure Sav into leaving if she really didn't want to. As long as she's safe here, I'm happy to adjust and live with her."

Sebastian nodded and looked to Katherine. "Are those terms acceptable to you, love? Would you like to add anything?"

"I think you've covered everything," answered the botanist. She sighed deeply and raised her glass of port. "To the happy couple. Treat my daughter well or I'll have your head mounted on my wall for a trophy, Kato."

Sebastian grimaced, thinking she could have practiced a little more restraint in her warning.

Kato seemed to get the message loud and clear, though. "Yes Ma'am."

* * *

It was time for another trip to the Ikran village for an exchange of supplies and medicine, as well as inspection of the nearby purification facility. Baxter Howell couldn't for the life of him explain what possessed him to volunteer so eagerly to take up guard duty for the trip. Well, that wasn't entirely true—he admitted to himself that he was interested in seeing Karyu Sully again. Maybe she was neurotic and she was possibly too young for him, but she sure was nice to look at. Some of her personality quirks were cute, too.

There was also the Dream, of course. What he had experienced in his sleep the week before surpassed anything he'd ever experienced while sober. His occasional flashbacks could be pretty vivid and frightening, but waking up finding things in his room disturbed where his dream visitor had interacted with them was almost enough to make him ask to be put away for a while.

His convoy landed outside the village and the trade operation began. Baxter kept a covert eye out for a familiar slender huntress with pouty lips and eyes like golden flame. When Dr. Sully came up the hill with a few villagers to bring supplies to the convoy, Baxter automatically searched for Karyu. He tried to pretend he wasn't disappointed when five minutes passed without any sign of her. Tom recognized him and he gave him a polite nod of greeting.

Remembering a request Kato made, Baxter nodded back and approached Dr. Sully. "Your son wanted me to say 'hello' to you and your family if I made this trip before he got the chance to see you again. He said to tell Karyu not to light any fireworks without him."

Tom smirked. "So how is he? I haven't gotten the chance to speak with him yet, this week."

"He seems okay. I think he spends a lot of time with his girlfriend and her family. He's started wearing human clothes, too."

Tom's eyebrows went up. "Kato, in human clothes? That's interesting. Has anything unusual been going on?"

Howell shrugged. "Not really. I think the guy just got tired of being stared at." He remembered the look on Kato's face the last time he saw him in Na'vi garb and a woman gave him a good eye-hump.

Tom chuckled. "He's definitely my son. I'll pass the message on to his sister."

Baxter nodded and tried to sound casual. "So she's not around to help like the last time?"

"She's out hunting with her mother," answered Tom. He lifted a square container off the ground and he grunted at the weight. "They probably won't be back until late this afternoon."

"Oh." So, he wouldn't get to see her this time. Bummer. "Here, I'll take that." He hopped up on the ramp and reached down for the container.

"Thank you." Tom studied him quietly between actions and Baxter began to wonder if the man could sense his attraction to his daughter. Considering that Tom caught the two of them flirting back and forth once before, it wasn't an unreasonable suspicion.

Baxter kept his mind on his job as much as he could, but his thoughts drifted back to the dream encounter between himself and Karyu. Soon he was so absorbed in recalling the details that he hardly noticed when one of the tech guys asked Dr. Sully to go and help him with something in the nearby purification facility.

"Keep it up," Tom ordered the crew, "I have to go further up the path to check on the sulfur filtering plant. I'll be back in a little while."

* * *

"See what I mean? The valve keeps coming loose."

Tom squatted beside the technician and he sighed. Sometimes he wondered why they bothered sending maintenance teams at all. He checked the small plant every week and he always ended up having to go behind the inspection crew and correct something they missed.

"I told Max about this a few days ago," Tom muttered. "You didn't bring a replacement part?"

"I can go back and check the bird for it," offered the maintenance man. "Maybe they loaded one up with the supplies and I just never got the memo. Would you mind waiting here?"

"No, I don't mind." Tom pulled the neck of his t-shirt up to cover his mouth and nose. "I can smell the sulfur dioxide leaking through and I'd rather not leave this unattended. Just hurry."

"I'll be as quick as I can," promised the technician. He left the small facility and shut the door behind him on the way out.

Tom decided it would be prudent to inspect the rest of the pipes, drains and pumps while he was waiting for the other man to return. He eyed the inner workings of the facility with a practiced, critical eye and searched for any other flaws or malfunctions he might have missed. The filtering unit was surrounded by chain link fencing on the outside, both to discourage wild animals from nesting in or around the facility and to contain shrapnel, should something go drastically wrong and an explosion occur. The idea was to prevent the spread of a forest fire and give the villagers and Hell's Gate time to bring it under control.

Tom's mind was on possible technical glitches or a sulfuric fume leak causing a combustion event. When he flipped open one of the filter hatches and found a curious device with a digital screen on it counting down red glowing numbers, he realized wear and tear weren't the only things likely to cause an explosion.

"Oh, fuck."

Tom didn't bother taking the time to try and disarm the thing. Despite his knowledge of how this facility worked—gained through years of living close to it—he was no engineer and no bomb expert. He ran to the exit and found the door locked. He cursed again and grabbed for the key card in his pocket, swiping it hastily. He only had seconds to get out of there.

The key card didn't work. The damning words: "ACCESS DENIED" scrolled across the digital screen on the lock and Tom knew someone—probably the so-called maintenance technician—had hacked the thing. He had no physical key with him for emergencies like this and he knew that if they'd managed to block his keycard access, they probably scrambled his manual code as well.

Tom looked around for some other solution, highly aware that the clock was ticking down.

* * *

"We're finished here," the tech said to Baxter's team. "We'll start heading back now."

"Alone?" Baxter frowned.

"There's still plenty of daylight and we have work to do back at Hell's Gate," insisted the tech. "We've got clearance to go; you can check with our pilot." He nodded at the pilot in question, who was just getting secured in the cockpit. The pilot gave the "thumbs-up" sign and motioned for the tech to hurry it up.

Baxter looked at the avatar officer that had come with the third Samson. "Sergeant Taylor, do you approve of this?"

Janet considered it for a moment and then shrugged. "If they've got clearance, I'm not going to argue. There's still plenty of daylight and we can catch up with them before they reach dangerous territory. Get your tiltrotor ready to go, Howler."

He saluted her. "Yes sir."

Baxter made his rounds and hustled his people to move faster. Just as Janet's Samson began to ascend, Baxter's transmitter went off and he frowned at it, noting that the frequency wasn't originating from Hell's Gate. Shrugging, he motioned his people to wait for him and he moved away from the aircraft to prevent interference.

"This is Howler," he said as he pressed the button on the device around his throat.

"Baxter? Oh, thank God."

He grinned in spite of himself. "Jill? Is that you? What are you doing contacting me on this channel? I'm kind of in the middle of an assignment."

"Bax, I need to tell you something," she said urgently. "I...mistake...need you to..."

"Wait, wait...Jill, I'm having trouble hearing you over the tiltrotor here. Hold up a second while I move further away, all right?" He jogged into the forest surrounding the clearing, staying within sight of his people as he moved away from the noise. "Okay, can you say that again?"

"I tried to contact Tom, but he's either not answering transmitter feeds or he doesn't have his communication unit with him. Listen Baxter; I think I made a mistake. I slipped up and mentioned a project I've started working on with Dr. Sully to someone I thought I could trust, but he transferred to Hell's Gate right away after hearing about it and now I think I've put Tom in danger. Is there a maintenance man by the name of 'Green' there with your team now?"

Baxter sobered and looked over his shoulder, toward the waiting Samson and the path leading further away from the village to the purifying facility. "There was a tech guy that came in on the third chopper with us, but I didn't catch his name."

"Where is he now?"

"He left," answered Baxter. "Jill, what the hell's going on?"

"I don't have time to explain," she said in a rush, "Where is Dr. Sully now?"

Howell's eyes followed the path further uphill, to where the human filtering plant sat nestled in the jungle. "Well, he should be at the purifying thing. I heard him say he was going with the tech guy to check something out...oh, crap." His eyes went wide as the implications sunk in. "Jill, is this other guy—"

_*BOOM!*_

Baxter lost his train of thought and crouched automatically as the explosion went off. He stared at the smoke rising from deeper in the forest, where the facility was located. Feeling the impending signs of a panic attack, he snarled and fought against his instincts.

"Jill, I've got to cut you off now."

He didn't wait for a response from her. He immediately switched to the channel his teams were using and the first thing he heard made the situation all the more confusing. Janet's voice was snapping orders over the frequency.

"Pursue! Do _not_ let that aircraft out of your sight! Howler, where the hell are you? Samson HG-27 is trying to defect!"

"We've got a situation here," Baxter announced, "there's been an explosion and I think Dr. Sully might have gotten caught in it!"

"We're losing a military aircraft," Taylor responded. "Your orders are to get back to your Samson immediately and assist in pursuit!"

Baxter's first instinct was to obey, but he thought of Karyu and he thought of Kato and he thought of the people he watched get sucked out into space. He shook his head. "I'm going to have to refuse that order, Sergeant; you can punish me as you see fit later. Samson HG-12, let me grab an exopack from your cabin and then you join Sergeant Taylor's tiltrotor and assist. I'm going to investigate the explosion here and help with damage control."

"Dammit, Howler," Taylor snapped, "You can't go into that without a fire squad backing you up! Get to your Samson now!"

Baxter didn't take the time to argue further. His people had their orders and every second wasted was a second Tom Sully might not have. He turned off his transmitter and took off running, drawing his CARB gun on the way in case he ran into a hostile.

* * *

Tanhi gave her daughter a subtle, proud smile. More and more these days, Karyu was the first to take down a fine kill for the clan. The hunt had ended early and the ikrans were weighed down by wrapped meat. Karyu's arrow had been the one to take the powerful sturmbeest bull down and that one kill would provide meat for the clan for a week. What wasn't consumed in the celebratory hunt feast this evening would be preserved or smoked for food wraps and chewy meat rations. The hide would provide new clothing and building materials, to make new dwellings or replace those that were worn down from years of usage.

"Good hunt, Daughter," called Tanhi over the wind, feeling that Karyu deserved some praise.

"Same to you, _Sa'nok_," answered Karyu.

The two women smiled openly at one another for a moment, sharing a silent bond they rarely expressed. The moment was spoiled when Tanhi felt a flash of heat all through her body that made her lose complete concentration. She cried out and her ikran shrieked in protest, wheeling in the sky as her directions lost all coordination.

"Mother!" Karyu directed her ikran to close in on the chieftess, along with a couple of the other hunters in their group.

Tanhi swiftly brought her mount and her senses back under control and she looked around urgently. "Your _Sempul_," she shouted, "Something is...there! Fire!"

Karyu twisted on her mount and looked where her mother was pointing. She saw a billowing mass of smoke coming up from the forest, just west of the village. Her heart stopped with the realization that the little processing plant was in that location. Tom was forever checking on it, worried that the maintenance people would miss something vital. It seemed he was right to be concerned. The flames and smoke left little doubt that an explosion of some sort had occurred.

"Daddy!"

Karyu directed her mount to dive and pushed him to top speed, urging him with all her heart. Her mother and the rest of the hunting party quickly followed but the sheer force of Karyu's urgency lent her already impressive banshee even greater speed.

* * *

Lunging against the door only resulted in a painful blow to the shoulder. Baxter started to look for something to use as a battering ram, but he heard Ellis' voice in his head telling him to think for once and remember his advantages. He had a keycard. Hoping the circuits weren't melted beyond the point of recognizing it, he swiped the thin object through the slot and waited. The light turned green and over the roar of fire, he heard a "click".

He nearly kicked the door in right away but his training reminded him of the dangers of doing such a thing. Baxter checked his emergency exopack and he took a slow breath, readying himself. He kicked out with his booted foot and he dove aside as soon as the door swung open. Fortunately, the inside wasn't yet an inferno so nothing got blasted out at him. When the way was clear, Baxter ducked into the open doorway and shoved the door aside again when it tried to swing back at him. The heat was intense and the door was quite solid, being metal. He grunted with effort and briefly wondered how he would have gotten through if his keycard hadn't worked.

"Dr. Sully, are you in here? Answer me if you are! It's Howell!"

He didn't hear anything, but he wasn't willing to give up just yet. Tom could be unconscious or pinned underneath something. Baxter staggered through the interior of the facility, his sweat drying up quickly from the waves of heat in the air. He called out to Tom continuously, checking every nook and cranny he could get to on the way. He was going to have to abandon the building soon or risk getting crushed when the roof came down. Another explosion would most certainly put his lights out, too.

"Tom! For fuck's sake, if you're in here _please_ answer me!"

Baxter's ears were flicking uncontrollably as the unbearable heat assaulted the tender skin. He thought he heard something when he reached the back wall and he paused, listening carefully. "Dr. Sully?"

"Here! I'm in here!"

Baxter traced the muffled voice to a supply closet in the south corner of the room. A large, broken pipe blocked the way. Howell ran and leaped over it with a grunt of effort. He groaned when he found himself faced with another issue.

A metal beam had half-fallen from the ceiling, to lay diagonal in front of the door he needed to pull open. "Dr. Sully, it's Howell," he called, "I've got to move this beam to get to you. Are you hurt?"

"No," coughed the voice behind the door, "not seriously. I can't...breathe..."

"I'll get you out of there," promised Baxter. "Just cover your mouth and nose as best you can and hold on, okay?"

He heard the other man hack and say something that might have been: "Okay" but he couldn't be certain. Baxter eyed the beam blocking his way and he reached into a pocket in his cargo pants, procuring a pair of gloves. They weren't fire-grade but they would provide _some_ protection. He looked at the angle of the obstruction and tried to judge the best way to move it without risking the roof caving in on top of them. He heard an alarming groan and the building shuddered. There wasn't much time.

"We're just going to have to go for broke, Dr. Sully," Baxter announced. There was no answer. "Dr. Sully? Tom?"

Still no answer. The trapped biologist was either passed out or dead from toxic fume inhalation.

"I'm getting you out of here," promised Baxter.

* * *

"We have to get my father!" Karyu shouted it over her shoulder without wasting a single moment to see if anyone followed her. She ran towards the blazing building, ignoring the shouts from her companions. The gate was hanging open and so was the door to the inside of the facility. She could make it...she could save him—

A figure staggered out through the open door while she was in the middle of planning her rescue attempt. At first, the smoke obscured it too much for her to see clearly but when the hot wind blew the smoke away, she recognized Baxter Howell. She realized he was carrying someone slung over his shoulders and she recognized the unconscious man as her father a split second later. Baxter was carrying him like a trophy buck strapped down on an ikran, which would have been funny to Karyu at any other moment. His eyes were streaming with tears from the smoke, the vivid green color of them briefly obscured by his blinking. Tom had an exopack strapped over his face.

"Tom!" Karyu hardly heard her mother's shout and she could only stare as her companions ran to help Baxter and Tom get away from the flaming structure. The marine's beautiful, tearful, reddened green eyes met hers through the smoke and the fire blazed behind the owner of them.

Suddenly, Karyu knew what her vision was all about and for the first time, she had no doubt that Baxter Howell wasn't a threat to her people. He had just saved her father's life. It was exactly like her vision, but she hadn't seen the reason for the explosion or the reason for his presence in it.

When they relieved Tom's weight from Baxter, the poor fellow fell flat on his face with exhaustion.

* * *

"Mom? Stop it, that hurts. I don't want any aloe Vera on my sunburn. It just makes it hurt more."

"I'm not your Mom. Shut up and quit complaining."

Baxter frowned and opened his eyes. They seemed to have a film over them and his next deep breath produced a cough from him. He blinked harshly and tried to bring the face hovering over him into focus.

"What happened?" Holy shit...was that croak his voice? He dreaded the thought of having his nickname changed to "Kermit".

"You've been injured," a male voice explained. It sounded much more patient than the young female voice from before. "You're going to be okay, Corporal. Your people know where you are and I'll give you the best of care while you're here."

The recent events with the odd transmission from Janet and the explosion came pouring back into Howell's mind. "Dr. Sully! Is he...okay?"

"He's looking over you right now," answered the male voice with calm, gentle amusement. "You just need to relax, son. I'm right here."

Baxter's eyes wouldn't focus and all he could see were blurs of white, blue and yellow. "I can't see straight. Tom, you're all right?" His hands hurt terribly and he groaned when he impulsively flexed the fingers.

"I'm fine, thanks to you. Howell, you got me out of that building. You suffered third degree burns on your hands and your eyes have been dealt some trauma from chemical exposure too."

Baxter swallowed and turned his sight to the blurred face he assumed to belong to Tom. "So are you saying I'm going to be blind?"

"No," Tom hastily assured, "but your vision is going to be impaired for a while, until you heal. I'm going to make sure you heal _fast_ too."

Baxter chuckled and shut his eyes. "Like I was going to leave you to roast. Get real, Doc." The pain was getting to be excruciating. His hands felt like they were raw and he vaguely remembered pulling the beam away from the door and ignoring the smoke rising from the gloves.

"Be that as it may, you went above and beyond, soldier. I'll make sure your superiors know it, too."

Baxter vaguely remembered what happened when the explosion went off. He felt a prick in his arm and he winced. "Wait...what about the other Samson? The guy that was on it tawked...er...talked to Jeel...man, I can't tawlk right..."

"It's okay," soothed Tom's voice, "they're dealing with that now. You just need to relax now, Corporal. We'll take care of you until they send someone to get you.

"Karyu," Baxter mumbled, hearing a buzzing sound growing steadily louder, "is she okay?"

"I'm okay," answered a familiar female voice. "At least now you aren't mistaking me for your mother."

"Okay," Baxter yawned. He felt someone stroking his hair and he let his eyes drift shut. "Cutie."

* * *

Max was the one to contact Jake with the news, the day after the incident outside the Ikran village. The first thing Jake asked was if his brother was okay and after that, he asked if they caught the Hell's Gate Sampson before it could get away.

"No, they never caught it. The Samson got into a flux vortex before Sergeant Taylor's team could catch them. The explosion at the facility caused a fairly impressive distraction."

Jake nodded and shut his eyes. "You're sure this transmission is safe, Max?"

"Sebastian made sure of it," answered the doctor soothingly. "But we should keep it short just in case."

"All right. How are Tom and Corporal Howell doing?"

"Tom is already recovered," answered Max, "and we have people cleaning up the area and rebuilding. Corporal Howell took some pretty serious burns to his hands, digging your twin out of that place. He took his mask off and put it on Tom when he found him, too. It was really noble of him but he took in a lot of toxins through his lungs while getting Dr. Sully out of there."

Jake shut his eyes and thought of the cheerful, determined young marine. "Jesus. Is he okay?"

"He'll be fine," assured Max. "His vision is temporarily impaired from chemical exposure but Tom thinks he'll recover full use of his sight again soon. He just needs some therapy."

"They haven't brought him to Hell's Gate for treatment?" Jake thought that was strange.

"Well, not yet," answered Max. "The guy isn't in critical condition and he seems to have a thing against hospitals. Tom is keeping him in his trailer and he's on twenty-four hour watch with us. He thinks he can treat him without sending him to the med facilities here."

Jake remembered Tom's miracle work with the dying Kilvan clan and he relaxed. "I trust my brother to know what he's talking about. I can't believe this shit though, Max."

"Yes, they've taken off with one of ours now too," sighed Max. "We're being infected, Jake. What I think you need to do now though is to not worry about the RDA or us and concentrate on clearing your name. The sooner you're free, the better off we'll all be."

"On that note, I almost wish you hadn't told me this at all," sighed Jake, "but I'm glad you did. You're clamping down on security, right?"

"Do you really need to ask? I had to convince Trudy not to waterboard the people that transferred here from UNEC."

Jake started to laugh.

"It's not _funny_, Jake. She was seriously ready to torture people." Max sounded genuinely distressed.

Jake sobered and cleared his throat. "All right, I'm sorry. I thought you were kidding. Tell Trudy the Jarhead says to chill out. Just keep it on lockdown and try to enjoy the holidays, okay? I want to talk to Tom as soon as he gets the chance, but we've got to keep it covert unless you can make another arrangement with Bastian to secure a private transmission."

"Of course," Max agreed. "I'm sorry all of this happened when you have so much to worry about all ready, Jake. I wish I could have just waited to talk about it."

"Someone has targeted my brother and it's partly my fault," Jake said grimly. "You should know by now that keeping something like that from me isn't a good idea."

Max heaved a sigh. "True. Well, we should end this transmission. I can already see that someone's tampering with the firewall."

"Holy shit...you can _see _it?"

"I'm getting breach warnings," answered Max. I have to cut it short now, Jake. Try to concentrate on getting through your trials, all right?"

"Will do," Jake replied. "And happy...uh...what do you celebrate this time of year again?"

"Trudy and I keep it simple. We add a little cultural tradition into it but we just share a generic Christmas. How about you, Jake?"

"I haven't done anything for Christmas since way before I even went to Venezuela on Earth," answered the warrior, "but I do have one little tradition I'd like to keep up with this year. I just have to get my woman here to help me do it."

"I think I'll refrain from asking for details," Max said dryly. "Season's greetings, Jake."

"Merry Christmas, Max."

* * *

December 24th arrived on Pandora. When the sun went down, people celebrated the eve of the 25th in various ways. Some celebrated their traditions early to match up with others. Some celebrated late. Some put their own personal spin on old traditions and some combined several different ones. Though the traditions varied from person to person, the spirit of the holiday season was more or less universal.

Katherine and Sebastian Thomas cuddled together on their couch and turned their television screen to "fireplace mode", which simulated a crackling fire to set the mood. They drank pink wine and listened to traditional Earth Christmas carols, while they waited for the Yule cake to finish baking in the oven.

Sebastian nuzzled his wife's hair and breathed in her scent, thankful to enjoy this quiet moment with her. Still, he couldn't relax completely. "Did we do the right thing, darling?"

"We did the only thing we _could_ do," she sighed. "The damage is done and he really _is_ a good person. Trying to keep them apart would have just made it worse."

They heard footsteps thumping overhead and they both looked up at the ceiling. Sebastian sighed and smirked. "Well, time will tell, won't it? Happy holidays, Kath."

She clinked her wine glass against his and kissed him. "Happy Holidays, Bastian."

* * *

On the roof of the apartment complex where the Thomas family lived, Kato and Savanna sat on a blanket and watched the fireworks display going off outside the dome overhead. She sat between his thighs and he embraced her from behind, rocking her gently in his arms.

"I could do that," Kato informed her when the next blossom of sparks burst in the sky.

"I'm sure you could," Savanna said patiently, turning her head to smile at him. "Hopefully without burning a whole village down."

"Hey, I'm really careful with my fireworks," he objected. "Karyu and I always shoot them over water, just to be safe." He goosed the hybrid and she shrieked and squirmed in his arms.

"Okay, okay! Don't tickle!" Savanna giggled and snorted against his throat, half-turned in his arms.

Kato smiled and stopped tormenting her. He held her close and kissed her on the shoulder and neck. "I can't believe your parents are being so calm about this."

"Only because you agreed to a shotgun wedding, I'll bet," sighed Savanna. "So, when do we tell your parents?"

"After things calm down," murmured Kato. "Dad almost got blown away. Mom's probably ready to go on the warpath as it is and Karyu sounded like a nervous wreck when I spoke to her."

Savanna sighed, feeling guilty for thinking of their situation when a good man was lying injured and Kato's father came close to death. "I hope they catch those evil jerks. Poor Mr. Howell. Tell your sister to try and be nice to him the next time you talk to her, will you?"

Kato smiled a little. "I don't think that's going to be an issue—not for a while, at least. The man got hurt saving our father's life and Karyu has _always_ been a 'Daddy's girl', whether she wants to admit it or not. Howell is going to get the royal treatment from Sis for this one...even if she's sneaky about it."

Savanna giggled and snuggled deeper into his embrace. "I'm just glad nobody got killed."

"Me too," agreed Kato.

Another series of fireworks went off overhead and the couple went quiet, enjoying it together.

* * *

Ramona finished lighting the seventh candle and she stood back to admire the soft glow of the ceremonial candle holder. She kept her hair pulled back in a hair band made to look like a holly wreath and she wore a red and white, short-skirted velveteen number. Behind her, Lee stood with a puzzled look on his face and a pair of blinking antlers propped on his head. Around his throat was a silken ribbon with a silver bell threaded through it.

"So what the hell is Kwanzaa again? Oof!"

Ramona nudged him in the stomach enough to make his breath explode. "I tell you every year. Quit baiting me and grab the bowl of veggies, will you?"

"Yes ma'am," he agreed wisely.

Mona grinned and watched him, admiring his butt while he bent over to retrieve the bowl of greens from the coffee table. He brought it over to her and held it out while she poured a cup of broth over the vegetables.

"This is for everything our ancestors accomplished and everything we're trying to do here," Mona intoned softly. "We have to remember that people before us won because they kept trying. We have to do the same." Technically, she was supposed to honor _her_ racial ancestors but Lee was her man and thus, she included his in it as well.

Lee smiled softly. "Happy Kwanzaa, baby."

Mona finished pouring the liquid and she smiled back at him. "Merry Christmas, sexy."

* * *

Norm smiled in delight as his mate presented the hand-made, hand-painted clay bauble to him. He kissed her, more thankful than ever to have her as his mate. "This is even better than the one you made last year," he approved.

Ni'nat smiled and watched as Norm hung the ornament on the small razor palm sapling. Ralu and Sylwanin were busy draping dyed bits of plant fibers all over it to make a natural sort of garland. Grace and Tsu'tey helped quietly, hanging shiny pebbles strung together and painted leaves on the branches. Norm stepped back when it was finished and he motioned his family to come and observe their handiwork with him.

"Great Christmas tree," he approved, hugging them all close—including Tsu'tey. "Let's all take a minute to think about what we're thankful for and ask Eywa to bless the people we care about."

They did so and when they finished, Ni'nat smiled at him. "I like this tradition, my Norm. You have brought us a taste of your home world and made it Na'vi. It is very clever."

He shrugged modestly. "It was one of the few things I missed about Earth. I'm just glad people stopped looking at us so funny when we dress up a tree."

She laughed softly. "They may find it strange, but it does no harm. The rain washes the paint away and the symbols degrade over time to fertilize the soil."

"I wish _Sempu_ was here," Sylwanin sighed, distracting the couple from their conversation. She pouted at the tree miserably.

"He'll be here next year," promised Tsu'tey with confidence. "And when he's home again, I can tell him how brave you've been through all this."

"But why couldn't we go with _Sa'nok_ to see him again?" demanded Sylwanin.

Norm took over. "Because after your Uncle Tom got hurt, your parents want to be sure it's completely safe before you visit again. They love you and Tsu'tey more than anything, Sylwanin. You have to trust them and know that they just want to keep you safe."

"It won't be like this forever," Grace added sympathetically.

Sylwanin sighed and stepped closer to her older brother when he hugged her around the shoulders. "I just wish things were the way they used to be."

Ralu came up to the other girl and hugged her. "You have us, until then."

Sylwanin managed a little smile.

* * *

In their home in Hell's Gate, Max and Trudy cooperated with their son to string popcorn garland together for their tree. Max paused for a second in thought when they finished the second string of exploded corn kernels.

Dustin noticed his father's thoughtful frown and he grew concerned. "Dad, what's wrong?"

Max looked at the artificial tree standing near the living room window, laden with candy canes and half-strewn with popcorn garland. "Am I the only one that's noticed this family seems to have an obsession with popcorn?"

Trudy nearly inhaled her cider snickering. "Only you would notice something like that, Maxi. Just help us get the damned tree dressed up and make sure that Menorah is set up for when Andrew and his folks get here."

"I never knew Joyce was Jewish," Max admitted. This was going to be the first time the two families shared the holiday together.

Trudy shrugged. "Potayto, potahto. As long as everyone has fun, right? Dusty, go check on the candy apples."

Dustin got up and brushed his pants off. "I still want to know how candy apples fit in with Christmas...or Chanukah. That's more of a Halloween thing, isn't it?"

"They fit in because apples keep well and I suck at making pie," Trudy grumbled. "Now get out of my face and do as you're told, kid."

Recognizing signs of hidden stress, Dustin didn't argue the semantics of proper holiday treats any further.

* * *

Neytiri blinked at her mate when he stopped her at the threshold and pointed up at the ceiling with a wink. She looked up and saw an artificial plant sprig that she recognized by now as mistletoe. He usually kept a plastic sprig of it in his little trunk with his military uniform for this time of year. His usual practice was to stick it in his wind visor headband and inform her that she had to kiss him every time he came close, because she was by default "standing under the mistletoe", since he was taller. Somehow, he'd procured one of the bothersome fake plants for his quarters.

"Jake, where did you get that from?" She started to smile, despite her effort to be serious.

"I pulled some strings," he answered, putting his arms around her to draw her close. He looked over her shoulder at the guards beyond the door, who were watching with amusement. "Don't wait up, guys. I've got an elf to kiss silly." He shut the door and lifted Neytiri against him.

"Jake, that was rude," she objected. The last part of her sentence was muffled by his kisses.

"No talking under the mistletoe," he muttered between smooches, "only kissing."

Neytiri laughed and returned his affections, putting all her worries behind her to cherish her mate's sweet, playful intimacy.

* * *

There were no holiday celebrations happening in the Ikran village. Tom wasn't much for holiday celebrations to begin with and he didn't feel very festive, with his son away at Hell's Gate and the young man who saved his life suffering in his trailer. Baxter got out of the incident without burns on other parts of his body, but he did a number on his hands even with the gloves. Tom literally had to peel them off of him when he started seeing to his injuries and some of Baxter's skin came with them. The pain would have probably been more than he could handle, if he'd been conscious. Tom dosed him as soon as he could determine it was safe to do so and he worked with the _Tsahik_ to salve the burns and wrap them while the marine was under.

Fortunately, Howell was seeing a little better each day. Saline flushes, antibacterial ointment and cool compresses seemed to be doing the trick to help Baxter's eyes recover from the chemical exposure. Tom tried several times to convince him to go back to Hell's Gate with his companions, once they returned to get him. Howell refused, insisting on staying put until he was well enough to go home without getting "prodded" by the doctors there. Janet softly explained that since he'd awakened from Cryo, poor Baxter really disliked doctors. For some reason he trusted Tom, though—possibly because he worked in a trailer by a Na'vi village instead of a hospital.

On Christmas Eve, Karyu sat beside the bunk in her father's trailer. She watched the sleeping avatar lying there and she couldn't help but admire him, even looking so ragged and used up. His lips were parted and he snored softly now and then. His eyes were covered with a compress and his breathing was uneven and troubled. Karyu watched his bare chest rise and fall in a broken rhythm and she frowned as she listened to him mumble something in distress.

"N-no...gotta stop it. Ellis, we have to go back...they're dying..."

Remembering what she'd been told about the Nova tragedy, Karyu guessed he must have been reliving some of it in his mind. Now that she knew what her vision of him meant, she believed everything Ellis had told her about Howell's determination to rescue people on that ship. He was just the sort of person that wouldn't leave anyone behind, if he could help it. Some would argue that was a stupid quality to have, but nobody could deny it was admirable, all the same.

"You're braver than you are smart," Karyu whispered to him, reaching out to stroke aside a few strands of hair that fell over his compress. "Shh, easy. You're okay."

He tried to sit up, horrified by something only he could see. "I've got to get them! They're being sucked out into space!"

Karyu glanced at the door as she placed her hands on his chest and pushed, trying to make him lay back down. Tom must not have been immediately outside, or else he would have heard the commotion and come in to see to his patient. She grunted and pushed with more force, speaking to Baxter in a commanding tone that she'd been practicing for years to prepare for the day she took up leadership of the clan.

"Lay down right _now_, Green-eyes. You're having a fever dream, that's all. You're here at the Eastern Sea village, in my father's medical trailer. You're completely safe, okay?"

"Karyu?" He allowed her to push him down and he started to reach for his compress with clumsy, bandaged hands. She stopped him with a firm hold on his wrist and she tugged the concealing item up for him, revealing his eyes.

"Shit, that's bright," complained the marine, squinting against the dim light overhead.

"Hold on," Karyu advised. She got up and went to the switch to turn the light off. With that done, she returned to his side and gave him an uncommonly charitable look. "Better now?"

He blinked up at her with hugely dilated pupils. "Yeah...I feel kind of cotton-headed. What kind of dope am I on?"

She bit back a smirk, telling herself he wasn't cute, lying there helpless and silly like that. "Good old morphine, for the pain. Is it working?"

"Well, I don't feel much pain," he conceded, still blinking at her in an effort to focus on her. "I can hardly feel my tongue, either. Can you lean closer? All I can see is a blur of glowing spots and four yellow eyes."

Karyu indulged him. "Give it some time. That's more than you could see this morning when you woke up for breakfast."

"I've eaten?" He seemed surprised. "Doesn't feel like it. Hey, your Dad's okay, right?"

"He's fine." She lowered her gaze and stroked his arm with her fingertips impulsively. "I guess I owe you. Dad was smart to jump in the closet and avoid the bomb concussion but he got trapped in there. If you hadn't barged in to save him, he would have burned alive, suffocated or died from poison inhalation."

"Guess you...do own me," he murmured sleepily, eyes blinking slowly.

"Uh, I said 'owe' you," she corrected. "Not 'own' you."

"Okay." He yawned and raised a bandaged hand to partially cover it. "Won't argue with a sexy princess. Hey, since you owe me, you should let me take you to dinner."

Karyu's nose crinkled. "Like one of those date things? But if I owe you, I should be taking you to dinner instead."

"You could make me dinner," he suggested, fighting another yawn. "I've never had a home-cooked native meal. You a good cook?"

Karyu bristled instinctively. "Do you define a woman's worth by her looks and how good she cooks a meal?"

He opened his eyes again and looked up at her with a heavy-lidded, puzzled jade gaze. "Am I saying things without realizing it? I thought I just asked if you cook good."

She pushed her irritation aside, realizing he was too doped up to have deliberately implied anything sexist. "I know my way around a fire pit. I'm not as good as my _Sa'nok_ but I've never gotten complaints over my meals."

He smiled in a lopsided, boyish manner. "Mmm, food."

Karyu fought another urge to smile. "I'll go and get you some soup, if you feel like you can eat."

A soft snore was her answer. Baxter was sound asleep again and his head had lolled to the side. She leaned over him and watched him for a moment, intending to replace the compress over his eyes. She ended up tracing his slumbering features with her fingertips and admiring his bone structure. The urge to kiss his parted lips was strong and she cursed softly, annoyed.

The man was recovering from painful burn injuries after saving her father's life. She had kicked him in the balls, treated him with nothing but contempt and spied on him. Even if it wasn't totally improper to kiss him, even Karyu could admit she didn't deserve the right to do so. She shut her eyes briefly and struggled with her feelings. When she opened them again, she cast a wary look around before deciding to cheat a little.

Karyu kissed the pads of her first two fingers and then pressed them gently against Baxter's mouth.

"Goodnight, Howler."

* * *

-To be continued


	22. Chapter 22

**"Tiger's hunt"**

Chapter 22: Greatly daring

* * *

**Author's note:** _See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. We have a house guest on an R&R break from Iraq for a couple of weeks. Because I have been extremely busy with leftover holiday mess, playing tour guide and everyday home maintenance, I really have very little time for writing. I hope everyone had an enjoyable holiday season and a happy New Year. Those who have expressed concern over the flooding in Australia needn't worry about me. We're on the central coast and the flooding didn't hit us. _

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

"Easy. You're taking it too fast."

Baxter caught himself with Karyu's help and he began to think that stumbling might be the way to go, here. He enjoyed the feel of her petite body pressing up against him far too much for his own good. It was the day after Christmas and she was helping him get some exercise and sunshine. He was forced to wear a blindfold outdoors, because his eyes were still unable to focus properly and they were very sensitive to UV light. Dr. Sully didn't want to risk complicating the recovery process.

"What's going on with that filtering plant?" he asked, trying to get used to relying on someone else to guide his footsteps. He could hear the sound of machinery from somewhere in the forest and he assumed someone was cleaning up the mess.

"They've got some people from Hell's Gate repairing it," answered Karyu. "Nobody else is allowed up there, in the mean time. We're about to start going downhill, so be careful."

"So, where is your Mom at?" Baxter reached blindly ahead of him as they walked, not completely trusting the unpredictable huntress not to run him into a tree or something.

"She's helping with lunch in the village," answered Karyu. "She sent me to come and get you. Stop flailing around! You almost poked me in the eye with your thumb."

Baxter hastily dropped his hand. "Sorry. I'm just not used to being blind like this. It's weird to rely on someone else to guide me around."

"I'm not going to let you fall or run into anything," she promised in a voice that was _almost_ sympathetic. "You're our guest and you risked your ass getting my father out of the building. I have _some_ courtesy, you know."

"Yes, you're being very sweet."

Karyu stopped abruptly, making him nearly trip over his feet. "What is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Baxter turned his head in her direction. "Uh, that you're being sweet. Am I not saying it right, or something? I'm sure I've been speaking plain English but somehow you've been hearing totally different things coming out of my mouth."

"I...I'm not sweet," she responded.

He could sense her tension and he frowned. Someone liked to keep people at a distance. He didn't need psychology training to figure that out. "Are you afraid I might start liking you too much or something?"

She snorted. "I don't care if you like me or not." Her gentle touch belied her cold words as she urged him to walk with her again.

He smiled, knowing he should just leave it at that but unable to resist pushing buttons. "Are you afraid _you_ might start liking _me_ too much, then?"

Karyu stopped again and this time, Baxter almost knocked her over. He hissed in pain as he impulsively held into her for support and his injured hands flexed. His expression of discomfort made the tension ease from her body and he had a feeling he might have gotten another knee in the groin, if she didn't feel pity for him. He could smell her hair and he lowered his head a little for a deeper whiff. He didn't know what she used as shampoo but it sure smelled good. He brought his mouth down to where he guessed her ear might be and he almost smiled when his lips brushed against the velvety tip, making it flick instinctively. He didn't know why he was putting himself in harm's way like this, but like she said: he was braver than he was smart.

"Have you ever been kissed, Karyu?"

Her response wasn't entirely unexpected. "Have you ever had your eyeballs ripped out through your nostrils?"

"No, can't say that I have." He fought a laugh, sensing that he'd gotten under her skin.

"Keep it up," she said sweetly. "There's a first time for everything. Now come on so I can feed you."

"You're going to feed me?" He smiled again, gamely following as she urged him along. "Wow, your clan knows how to pamper guests. I get to be hand-fed by the princess."

"Stop calling me 'princess'," she warned. "It's just as annoying as your other stupid little pet names and I'm a _huntress_, understand?"

Baxter's ears flicked forward with interest. "_Other_ pet names?" The only time he'd ever had the chance to use pet names on her was in the odd dream he experienced that night, when he woke up and found objects disturbed as if she had really been there. "Just when did I call you by any pet names before now, schnookums?"

"You...just seem like the kind of man that thinks it's cute to give women all sorts of fluffy little nicknames."

"There you go again, hearing things I'm not saying." Baxter's tone was light and he was actually enjoying the exchange. "I think _you're_ cute—with or without a nickname."

"Be quiet or I'll gag you until it's time to feed you," demanded the huntress.

Baxter chuckled, but he sensed she was reaching her limits, so he complied. He was slowly starting to understand this spirited girl and the more he learned, the more he liked her. He guessed Jill must have been right on some level; dangerous women gave him a thrill.

* * *

Tom watched with interest as his daughter hand-fed their guest his lunch. Howell was in a talkative mood and though Karyu tried to keep her actions purely clinical, Tom didn't miss the brief smiles his daughter couldn't quite hide or the way her gaze kept flitting over Howell's face. The marine was evidently a charmer. Tanhi came up beside him and watched as well, having finished her part in the meal preparation.

"Perhaps I should not have charged her with caring for him," murmured the _Olo'eyktan_ thoughtfully. "There is something between them, Tom. It grows with each moment. Am I the only one who sees it?"

Tom thought of the way Howell called his daughter "Cutie" just as he put him down for treatment when they brought him into the trailer. "No, you aren't the only one that sees it. Karyu is becoming a woman and it started happening months ago. I know you're hoping she'll choose a mate from the clan but this is the first man she's ever shown a real interest in."

Tanhi sighed. "I remember our last talk of this, my Tom. You know my feelings on the matter."

"I think we should just play it by ear and not jump to conclusions," Tom suggested. "They haven't known each other long and Baxter made quite a show of heroism, getting me out of that building. She might just have a little crush."

Tanhi looked up at him with somber golden eyes. "He saved the person Karyu loves most in this world. It is more than a 'crush'."

"Let's not exaggerate," Tom muttered, lowering his eyes. "Karyu loves her entire family and—"

"Tom," interrupted Tanhi in a stern, insistent tone, "don't play stupid. Everyone knows that you are Karyu's favorite person alive. That young warrior kept you from leaving us for the next life and for that, he will be honored." She took a sip from the wooden cup in her hand and eyed Baxter thoughtfully. "I would kiss him myself for that, if it were proper to do so."

Tom stared at her and he detected the smell of alcoholic nectar from the cup. "How much of that have you drank today?"

Tanhi looked down at the drink. "This is my second cup. Why?"

He put an arm around her, amused and endeared despite himself. "You're a lightweight. I'm sure you wouldn't want our visitors remembering you as the sloppy drunk _Olo'eyktan_."

Tanhi frowned. "Take the drink, Tom. I don't want to make a fool of myself."

He obligingly took the cup from her and kissed her on the cheek. His eyes went to their daughter and the injured marine. Karyu was wiping Howell's chin off after slopping a bit giving him a bite of banana fruit. It was doubtful that the young woman even realized how she was looking at him and Tom was sure she would deny it if someone pointed it out to her.

* * *

"This is the spiced _teylu_," announced Karyu as she lifted one to his lips. So far, Baxter had tried her mother's special rim fish, the salted and roasted root vegetables and some fresh fruit. She had prepared the food she was about to give him herself, and to her annoyance, she was a little nervous about it.

Baxter bit down and chewed, rolling the marinated food around in his mouth experimentally. "That's good," he complimented after swallowing. "It's like a spicy shrimp, but it's subtle."

"Here," she said, lifting a wooden cup full of milk from a tropical fruit similar to a coconut. "The spices have an after burn."

He smacked his lips and swallowed. "Yeah, it sneaks up on you. Thanks."

Karyu almost smiled as he drank from the cup and asked for another _teylu_. She obliged him and took another one from the bowl to feed it to him. It was difficult to reconcile the flattery she felt with the knowledge that he liked her food. Baxter seemed to like her _teylu _and her mother's fish the most. She noticed one of the village girls around her age giving her a sly, knowing glance and she glared at her, silently warning her to mind her own business. The young woman looked away hastily, knowing better than to test the future clan-leader's temper.

"So how much of this is your cooking?" Baxter asked after swallowing his last bite.

"The _teylu_ you just ate," answered the huntress.

He nodded. "I really like the _teylu_. See? You _are_ a good cook."

She shrugged, lowering her gaze unconsciously. "Mother is much better than I am. She prepared the fish you tried first."

"Yeah, that was yummy too," he agreed, "but I liked yours just as much."

Karyu swore inwardly as a flush of pleasure darkened her cheeks. What a quaint, stupid thing; to get flustered like this over a simple compliment. She wanted to put a sack over her head.

"I'm not a bad cook either, you know," Baxter supplied after eating a third _teylu_ she gave to him. "Maybe next time your family comes to Hell's Gate, I can cook something for you. My hands should be healed up by then."

Karyu couldn't quite contain her surprise and she was grateful that he couldn't see through the bandages covering his eyes. "You cook?"

He laughed and wiped his mouth clumsily with one of his bandaged hands. "Well yeah. What, did you think I live on instant meals or something?"

"I don't know," she admitted with a shrug. "You just didn't strike me as the cooking sort. I assumed you have all your meals in the military mess hall. So, what sort of food do you like to cook?"

"Nothing fancy," he answered. "But I'm pretty confident that I make the best hamburgers you'll ever sink your teeth into. Now that they've got real livestock in the bio-dome I can make real burgers. I couldn't do that before my little oops with the fence."

"Have you ever tried making them with hexapede or sturmbeest meat?" Karyu asked, curious about how a burger made with wild game might taste.

He shook his head. "No, I figured the meat would be too tough and gamey, but I don't think the butchers on base know how to prepare it like Na'vi."

"I'll bring some the next time I come to Hell's Gate," promised Karyu with intrigue. "We can grind it up and try it."

"Sounds like a plan," agreed Baxter. "I'll make some of my usual burgers too. You can bring your brother and Savanna. We'll have a barbeque and make a day of it."

Karyu realized that she had accidentally set up a sort of date with the man and she wondered how that happened. She also wondered how they were going to have a barbeque in close quarters. "Don't you live in the barracks?"

"Yeah, but there's a grill in the little park just a block away," he answered. "Or we could go to one of them in the bio-dome, if you'd rather breathe terran air."

"No, I'd prefer the fresh air," answered Karyu. "Not that recycled stuff the humans are forced to breathe."

He smiled. "Then it's a date. Cool."

She hastily grabbed up a few more _teylu_ and began to feed them to him, taking him by surprise. "Hold it," he objected around a mouthful, laughing, "I can't eat _that_ fast."

Karyu eased up, feeling foolish and nervous at once. She deliberately stuffed his face to keep him from talking, because he kept managing to say things that made her feel awkward. She had never been on a date before. She had never been courted before, either. Her knowledge of the world of romance was limited to TV, books and things she'd heard other women say. The only thing that made her feel a little better about accidentally roping herself in was the fact that her brother and Sav would be there, too.

* * *

Later that night, Karyu lay awake in the darkness of her small lodge. She could have slept in the family lodge with her parents but she made it a point to give them every other night alone, so that they could have the privacy to do the things mated pairs liked to do together. She thought of the marine sleeping in the trailer on the hill outside the village and she sighed. What was it about him that attracted her so much?

If she weren't so certain he would delight in picking on her over it, she would consider asking her brother for advice. She couldn't talk to Savanna because she might tell Kato. She supposed she could ask Gracie for more advice the next time she saw her, but she didn't think Grace could appreciate the position she was in. Or maybe she could. She was chosen to be the next _Tsahik_ of the Omaticaya, after all. Though she would have been mated to the _Olo'eyktan_ of her tribe if Tommy had survived, she was now with Tsu'tey—who was practically a _Tsahik _in his own right—instead of Emazu. Maybe she could understand what it was like to feel pressure to choose a man based on clan status, rather than desire.

"It doesn't matter," she grumbled, reaching for her bag unconsciously. "I don't need a man making my life more complicated than it already is and I can't have him anyway."

Her hand reached into the hidden pocket in her bag and she pulled out the framed picture. She dug out her little squeeze light and looked at Baxter's photograph for a while. It was strange, how little she noticed the human skin tone and features on the young marine in the picture. She considered the vivid dream she'd had of him before the explosion and she reckoned that he appeared human to her in it because she kept looking at his old military photo.

"I have to get rid of this thing," Karyu decided with a frown.

Keeping it around was like a crutch. It encouraged silly, girlish fantasies that she was better off without. Now that she knew Howell wasn't a threat to her people, she could stop obsessing over him. She put the picture frame away again, shoving it half-heatedly into the bag. The squeeze light soon followed it and she shut her eyes and rolled onto her back. She didn't need to be with a green-eyed marine to be fulfilled. There were plenty of eligible males for her to choose from some day and she could make herself like one of them enough to mate with them and get the council off her back. Clan leaders didn't always have the luxury of self-indulgence and Karyu knew she was better off getting used to that fact sooner, rather than later.

It seemed like a perfectly reasonable plan, but she'd already agreed to have the barbeque with him the next time she visited Hell's Gate. She could try to get out of it but she felt obligated to go, since he asked while recovering from injuries he got saving her _Sempul_.

"It isn't even a real date," she excused. At least, not the kind of date that ended with a kiss or sex. She could use her brother and Sav as a sort of shield, if she and Baxter started getting too friendly with each other.

When she finally fell asleep, her dreams were filled with Baxter Howell again. She moaned softly in protest, even as her dream-self kissed him heatedly and explored his gorgeous body with eager hands. She begged him to stay out of her dreams, even as she lavished her pent-up sexual desire on him. She woke up panting and trembling in the final stages of an intense orgasm and when the pleasure faded, she stared into the darkness for several heartbeats.

She thought wet dreams were something only boys experienced, until recently. Karyu decided that in addition to the photo she kept of him, the man himself had to go. Otherwise she might be tempted to sneak into that trailer one night and make her sexual fantasies a reality.

* * *

"When do you think he'll be well enough to go home?" Karyu asked as she walked the path with Tom.

He looked at her with a frown. "Without spending time in the hospital? It could be another two weeks, Starfish. Even with the tissue regeneration treatments, I can't speed the healing process up _that_ much. As far as I'm concerned, Corporal Howell is welcome to stay as long as he wants and your mother agrees with me."

"Oh." She sighed and looked up at the trailer at the top of the hill. "So you like him, huh?"

Tom chuckled. "He saved my life. That sort of thing tends to make it hard not to like a person." He tilted his head and stopped, observing her.

"What?" Karyu asked, averting her eyes. Now she wished she hadn't said anything. Her _Sempu_ could read her like no other person on Pandora, except maybe her twin brother.

"I guess it's hard for _you_ not to like him too," Tom guessed. "Am I right?"

She shrugged. "Like you said, he saved your life. I'm grateful. He doesn't belong here, though."

"Uh-huh." Tom smirked. "Do you mind if I give you a little fatherly advice?"

She rolled her eyes. "You'll give it whether I mind or not."

Tom gave her a one-armed hug. "That's all part of being a parent. Maybe someday you'll be giving unwanted advice to your own daughter or son."

She snorted. "Fine. What do you want to tell me?"

"Love isn't something you can turn on and off like a switch," Tom said to her gently. "You can't choose who you feel it for, understand?"

"Dad, I'm not in love with the marine," she grumbled. "I hardly know him!"

Tom smiled and stroked her hair. "I'm not accusing you of being 'in love' with him, but I know you haven't been the same since you met him and I know you're coming into womanhood. I also know you're under a lot of pressure to choose a mate from this clan or at least another Na'vi clan, if not."

She pursed her lips, thinking of the graphic dream she'd had of Baxter the night before. Would she ever feel that kind of passion for any of the men in her clan? She doubted it. "So what's your point?"

"My point is that you don't have to choose your future mate based on what _other_ people think. Whoever you pick is going to be your man for _life_, Karyu. Even if the council doesn't immediately approve of your decision, I want to remind you that I would prefer you follow your heart."

She managed a smile for him, loving him all the more for the thought. "That's sweet _Sempu_, but I think you're getting ahead of yourself and I know what's expected of me some day. You've already told me how you feel and I know you'd support me if I picked a man outside the clan." Her eyes went to the trailer again and she almost backed out of going with him to help with Howell's morning treatment and breakfast. She touched the basket of fruit she carried uncertainly.

Tom noticed her gesture. "I'll see what I can do, if his presence bothers you that much."

"It doesn't exactly _bother_ me," she said uncertainly, "But I think he'd be better off in a hospital. No offense Dad, but a lot of your equipment is outdated."

Tom smiled ruefully. "It's not _that_ outdated. I agree he would recover faster under more advanced medical care, though. I just hate to make him feel unwelcome and he's made it pretty clear that he doesn't like hospitals."

"I'm having a hard time believing that someone who would climb an electric fence and run into a burning building is afraid of much at all," she said dryly, "let alone a medical facility. I think he's making excuses."

Tom chuckled. "Maybe he is. It seems he's just as interested in you as you are in him."

Karyu fiddled with her basket again. "I didn't mean he's doing it to be near me," she muttered.

"Why not?" Tom looked amused. "It's pretty obvious he likes you. Men come up with all sorts of excuses to hang around with women they like. Trust me, I've done it before and so has just about every other guy I know."

"So you're really all that lame, huh?" She grinned at him.

"Yes, we are," he admitted. "But to be fair, women put a lot of effort into getting close to men they like, too. In fact, I don't think you have much room to be critical about other people's silly behavior around the opposite sex, young lady. I reserve the right to point out the way you attacked Corporal Howell and then ran into the village, shoved me down and ran back out before I could get back to my feet. Need I also remind you of your little flirtations—"

"Okay, I get it," she interrupted sourly. "I already told you why I freaked out though. At least I had an _excuse_ to act like that."

"Ah yes…you had a drug induced hallucination to excuse your behavior." Tom nodded sagely. "That's _much_ better than admitting attraction for someone."

"It was a vision from Eywa," she reminded him. "I thought you believed in the All Mother by now, Dad."

"I do," he agreed, "but I also believe in the mind altering effects of the toxins used in Dream Hunts. I can respect clan traditions and believe in Eywa without abandoning all logic, you know."

She sighed and she paused again as they reached the trailer. Tom noticed and his teasing demeanor dropped. "Karyu, if you don't want to go inside you don't have to. I can come and get you or your mother or the _Tsahik_ if I need any help with our patient, all right?"

"No," she denied, shaking her head. She set her shoulders stubbornly. "I'm okay. I volunteered to help look after him while he's here and that's what I'm going to do."

Tom smiled at her and he opened the door, calling out inside to let Howell know they were coming in. Karyu came in behind her father and she frowned curiously when she saw Baxter coming out of the lavatory, clutching his bed sheet awkwardly under his arm. Tom shared her puzzlement.

"Is there a reason you took half of your bedding into the bathroom with you, Corporal?"

Baxter squinted at them and he looked sheepish. The compress meant to stay on his eyes hung lopsided on his forehead, mussing his hair. "It was kind of stuck to me and I really needed to go. Sorry Dr. Sully…I got it a little wet trying to wash my hands in there-what little isn't bandaged up, anyhow." He gingerly lifted the corner of the sheet to present the evidence, using both bandaged hands. How he managed to handle his borrowed tracksuit pants by himself was a mystery.

The sight of his struggle was pathetic and amusing at once, to Karyu. She was again tortured by a desire to hug him, just like the day she watched him howl for that Jill woman. Her father evidently felt a similar wave of pity for the younger man, because he went to Baxter's side and took the sheet from him, urging him back to the bunker.

"Don't worry about that." Tom balled up the sheet and dropped it in the laundry bin he kept under one of his counters. "I know you have your pride, but I'd prefer it if you'd page me the next time and let me help you. Let's get your treatment taken care of and change those bandages, so Karyu can feed you and take you out for some exercise."

"You're the boss, doc," Baxter agreed. "I really thought I could handle it without making a mess. Sorry about that."

Tom smiled and shook his head benignly. "That's all right."

* * *

He watched her as he chewed, unable to help himself. He kept imagining what it would be like to hear his name gasped on those lips in real life, instead of the occasional wet dream. Sitting this close, he could see her almost clearly. The slight blur actually gave her a sort of ethereal look, like an angel—a fussy, easily angered angel with a potty-mouth, but an angel, nonetheless.

"Why are you staring at me?"

Baxter swallowed the bit of citrus fruit she'd given him and he shrugged. "I'm just starting to see straight again and I think the view is nice. Is that so wrong?"

She compressed her lips and picked up another segment of purple citrus fruit. "There's a window right here you can look out, if you want a view."

He shook his head. "No daylight exposure allowed yet, remember? Besides, I like the view in here just fine."

"Less talking, more eating. Open up."

He complied and she brought the morsel to his lips. She started to retract her fingers a bit too soon and the juicy bit almost slipped out of his mouth. Karyu quickly reached out to push it past his lips and somehow, he ended up sucking on her fingertips. She froze and so did Baxter. Their eyes locked and he was almost positive he wasn't just imagining the longing desire he saw in her gaze, echoing his. He traced the pad of her finger briefly with the tip of his tongue before pulling his mouth away and chewing up the fruit piece. Karyu swallowed and looked away.

She was blushing and it was on the tip of his tongue to say something teasing to her, but Baxter refrained. She was poised to flee or fight and he didn't want to push his luck. As she fed him his breakfast, Howell began to wonder if she ever fantasized about him the way he did about her. If so, he wondered if her dreams were anywhere near as vivid as his were. It wasn't like an imagined version of Karyu; it was like the real woman somehow found a way to come into his dreams—which was also funny, since she accused _him_ of invading _her_ dreams.

"Did you sleep well?" Karyu asked him after several moments of getting stared at.

Baxter almost froze; certain he detected some hidden meaning beneath the polite question. He was suddenly very aware of the wet spot on the sheet Dr. Sully had dropped into the hamper for washing. He hoped he had managed to rinse away all of the evidence of his night-time emission. "Yeah, I slept okay. You?"

Her mouth twitched and she focused her attention on peeling the skin off another piece of fruit for him. "I slept fine."

He nodded, wondering what she wasn't saying. He decided to bring his dream up—without going into the juicy details, of course. "I had a dream about you last night."

Her eyes lifted from the fruit and stared into his, looking almost startled.

"Don't you want to know what you were doing?" Baxter pressed, smiling softly.

Karyu shook her head and licked her lips. "I don't want to know what kind of perverted things you dreamed up about me."

"Who said it was perverted?" He fibbed, "Maybe we were making hamburgers together. You know, like we said we'd do when you go to Hell's Gate again."

"Well, were we?" She seemed warily intrigued and a little worried.

"Is that really what you want to hear?" He braced himself, never quite sure how to flirt with this little spitfire.

Karyu stared at him for a moment, her breath quickening slightly. Baxter stared back and his pulse quickened. He was in danger of getting a happy just from flirting with her. When she spoke, he ended up pitching a tent in his pants almost immediately.

"So making hamburgers is just a euphemism for fucking, right?"

"Uh…" Baxter shot a look at the window, hearing Dr. Sully's voice speaking to someone just outside. His face went hot as he looked at Karyu again, and then glanced down at the result of her blatantly sexual comment. While they hadn't gotten as far as intercourse in the dream, they had certainly come close to it.

"_One_ soldier in this room is standing at attention," observed Karyu in an amused whisper. "What's the matter, avatar? You're the one that started making insinuations. I just came out and said what you were hinting at."

Baxter blinked at her. "Earthquakes are more predictable than you are, do you know that?"

She offered another piece of fruit. "I'm not as easy to intimidate as you think, if that's what you mean. You were trying to make me uncomfortable and I turned the tables on you."

"That isn't what I was trying to do," he objected. "Why do you try so hard to see me as a villain?"

"I'm not trying to see you as a villain. I see you as a man that thinks it's fun to play mind games with me."

He groaned softly around the food in his mouth and he was forced to wait until he swallowed it to respond. "Okay, you want me to give it to you straight?"

She nodded and crossed her arms over her chest. "That would be nice."

Unfortunately, her motion drew his eyes to the pert little breasts concealed beneath the native beadwork hanging from her throat and Baxter was momentarily stupefied. He remembered how perfect their shape was and how she moaned when he pleasured them with his mouth and hands.

"I'm waiting," Karyu pressed. "You can stop staring at my boobs, too. It's not like there's a lot to look at anyhow."

He tore his gaze off of said boobies with difficulty. "There might not be a lot of cleavage but they're definitely worth looking at."

Her mouth fell open and her brows furrowed. "How would _you_ know?"

He could have kicked himself. He didn't mean to be quite _that_ open with his opinion. "I don't; not really. I'm just going by imagination and the rest of you is pretty perfect, from where I'm standing."

Now she was blushing. She averted her eyes again. "Well, your imagination is the only place you're ever going to see them."

"I don't think so." He smirked at her.

She gave him a warning look. "I do."

"You're wrong."

She huffed in annoyance. "No, I'm not. I decide who sees my tits, thank you very much."

"Okay, if you say so." He was enjoying himself too much, playing with fire. "But I'm going to enjoy saying 'I told you so', some day soon."

"You're a filthy pervert," she accused with a glare.

"I'm not the one with the mouth like a sailor," he countered. "I've been a gentleman compared to you, luscious lips."

"Stop…using…pet…names," she growled.

He knew he should stop but he just kept picturing the way she had writhed and moaned in his dream. What he wouldn't _give_ for the chance to flip her onto her back and give her a live demonstration of the things he wanted to do with his tongue and her lady bits.

"Do you ever dream about me, Karyu?"

"No."

He smiled. "You said that pretty fast. Are you sure? Not even just a little?"

She started to get up and she jostled the fruit basket on the bunk. Baxter impulsively grabbed for it and he groaned with regret as the move agitated his injured hands. They were already throbbing from being cleaned, treated and re-wrapped and it felt like he accidentally peeled off a layer of skin with his action. Karyu's apparent annoyance with him immediately faded and she took the basket and put it aside. She sat down on the edge of the bed and rubbed his back as Baxter sucked in several sharp, shallow breaths.

"I'll get your pain medicine," she offered.

"It's okay," he lied through clenched teeth. "I can wait."

"Bullshit," she snorted. "You've gone two shades paler and you've broken into a sweat. Just stay here while I get a dose of morphine ready for you."

He was hurting too bad to argue with her. He concentrated on his breathing until the pain was somewhat back under control and he watched her go through the supplies her father had set out.

"So, you never wanted to follow in your Dad's footsteps?" he asked, making conversation as much for the purpose of distracting himself as to learn more about her. "You seem to know a lot about medical stuff."

Karyu prepared the injection gun with a measured dose. "Kato and I grew up helping _Sempul_ around the lab and we both learned most of the basics," she answered, "We even know how to do minor surgery like removing an arrowhead or bullet, if it's not in a vital area. Neither of us want to do it full time, though. I don't have the patience for it and Kato is off in his own little world, most of the time."

Baxter smiled. "Good reasons. Hey, take it easy on me with that thing, all right?"

She paused on her way back to him and looked at the injection device in her hand. "Don't be a baby. I learned how to give shots by the time I was ten years old." She cast a look at the door, though. "But I'm not into traumatizing Father's patients, so if it really bothers you, I can go and get him to do it. He's right outside, talking to one of the construction workers."

He almost took her up on that offer, but he admitted to himself that she had taken really good care of him so far—even though he liked pushing her buttons a little. "Nah, that's okay. I guess I trust you." He dutifully gave her his arm and he watched as she sterilized a spot and gave him the injection. "Speaking of the plant, have they found the missing Samson?"

"Not yet," answered Karyu. "They'll probably tell you themselves if they find it. Dad cut off communication with that Jill lady. He's not going to work on the project with her anymore, because she's with UNEC."

"Jill didn't do it," Baxter said with certainty. "Tom is her friend and she'd never do anything to put him in danger on purpose. God, she's probably torn up with guilt and grief by now, thinking she got him killed."

"She almost _did_ get him killed, blabbing about the project like that," Karyu scowled and put the injector away.

Baxter got a horrible feeling. "Wait…if they came after Dr. Sully because of the project he was working on, that means they'll go after Jill too."

"No they wont."

He frowned. "Why not? If it's something they don't want people getting their hands on, they'd want to eliminate everyone that knows about it."

"Your ex was helping my father with the project," answered Karyu, "but she doesn't have a chance of finishing it on her own. Dad is the one with all of the core information. He's got the 'blueprints' in his head and the know-how to use them. Besides, that Jill lady can probably still be useful to them because people at Hell's Gate trust her."

"She's not a spy," defended Baxter.

Karyu looked at him again and something in her expression changed, revealing a brief flicker of emotion he couldn't quite identify. "Do you think she even cares about how quick you are to defend her?"

He lowered his gaze and stared at his wrapped hands. It still stung, being reminded of being dumped by her. The medicine was starting to kick in and it didn't occur to him to question how much Karyu knew about what happened between he and Jill. "Doesn't matter," he said sullenly. "I'm still going to stick up for her because I know she's not crooked. She's a good lady, even if she dumped me."

Karyu sighed, looking like an exasperated babysitter. "I'm not going to bother arguing with you. How is the pain now?"

"Better." Howell swallowed as his mouth began to feel dry. "Can you do me a favor, though?"

"Like what?"

"Talk to someone about confirming that Jill's okay. I understand communication silence and all but—"

"You can stop worrying," interrupted Tom's voice as he came back into the trailer. "That was one of the first things I did when I had the chance. Jill is fine. I meant to tell you that yesterday but it slipped my mind in all the activity around here. It's just too dangerous to keep working with her on this."

"I just gave him a dose of morphine," Karyu informed her father as Tom put together the supplies he would need for the noon treatment and covered the tray.

He nodded at his daughter and glanced over at Baxter. "How is it, Corporal?"

"I'm not feeling much pain now," admitted Baxter. "I think I might lay down, though. Room's spinning a little."

Tom nodded, unsurprised by the side-effect of the pain medicine. "Karyu, help him and get a vomit pan ready, just in case. The exercise will have to wait until later."

"Aww, I don't want her catching my puke if I get sick," complained Howell groggily.

"Too late," muttered the huntress. "You must not remember me doing it the first time you hurled."

Baxter groaned, but the morphine was quickly numbing his pride along with his pain. "Sorry."

Karyu and Tom exchanged a subtle smirk of amusement. "Morphine can unfortunately have that effect on some people. Now that I have your medical information, I can broaden my treatment without risk of triggering allergies. We can try something else for pain management this afternoon," Tom said. "I'm surprised you never asked for any during the night, in fact."

"I had a nice dream to make me forget about the pain," Baxter mumbled. He fell asleep then, overpowered by the morphine.

* * *

While Baxter was recovering from his injuries at the Ikran village, Trudy and Max were preparing to give their testimony on Jake's behalf. They were originally going to fly to UNEC to be there in person, but after what happened recently they opted for a live feed. They could have chosen a flight team they knew they could trust and they could have done a thorough inspection of the aircraft before going, but they weren't going to take any more chances. Norm was the one that pointed out it would be a disaster for Hell's Gate, if anything happened to them. Though they had everything in order for a chain of command should that occur, they agreed that caution was best.

"But what about Tsu'tey and Gracie's testimony?" Dustin asked his parents as he walked with them to the designated conference room. "And the other hunters that were in the party? Are you going to set it up so that they can do this from here, too?"

Max and Trudy paused and looked at each other. "That isn't a bad idea," pondered Max. "Especially concerning Jake's son and Grace."

"Yeah," agreed Trudy. "I'd rather not put them in a position where anyone can get to them and traveling to UNEC might stress Grace out too much, anyhow. Good thinking, kid."

"Well, I know I'd feel better about it," sighed Dusty, "but that doesn't necessarily mean either Grace or Tsu'tey will agree to do it this way. I have a feeling they'd rather be there in person."

"They're just going to have to put safety before personal feelings," Max insisted. "They have a child on the way to think about and I'm sure Jake and Neytiri will agree, they need to stay out of harm's way."

"Just be careful yourselves," Dustin warned seriously as they resumed walking.

Trudy laughed and shook her head at her son. "You're getting paranoid too, Dusty. What do you think they can do to us from a live feed monitor; send a bomb through the link?"

"I don't know," he grumbled, flushing a little. He stuck his hands in his pockets. "It just seems like someone is really determined to sabotage everything people have worked for on Pandora. It's like they're everywhere at once and their targets are usually people close to Jake."

"Good point," agreed Max.

"Probably because everyone close to Jake was involved in ousting the RDA and screwing up their operation," Trudy mused. "I always knew it might come back to bite us all on the ass some day."

"Starting with Jake," sighed Max.

"You guys did the right thing, exposing them," Dustin insisted. "This isn't your fault. Ma, you're always telling me if you don't stand up and do what's right, you might as well just bend over and paint a bulls-eye on your butt."

Trudy snorted. "Yeah, I do say that a lot. Well, let's get this over with."

* * *

It was all well and good in theory to provide a solid, calm testimony to the court. Trudy, however, started to get brutal when they started to question her base's efforts to bring Jake in peacefully. With Max fruitlessly trying to signal her with his eyes—incidentally making weird faces at her in the process—Trudy told UNEC where she thought they should shove it.

"All of this happened because of a security breach on your end," she informed them. "Your failure to detect and detain the mineral poachers led to the death of Corporal Sully's oldest son. Your cruddy protocol helped the smugglers get access to the equipment. Hell's Gate has done everything we agreed to do and that includes assisting with bringing in Jake Sully and investigating the thefts you people failed to prevent. I can go on, if you really want to make this a debate over where to point fingers. I thought you needed our testimony as character witnesses and to confirm communication transmissions between us, Jake and UNEC during the incident."

Max stopped trying to give her "cut" signals, admitting defeat. He rubbed his eyes and waited to see if Trudy's response to their accusatory insinuations would help or hurt Jake's case. There were murmurs of dissent amongst the UNEC jury and the next line of questions directed at Trudy didn't dance around the subject as much.

When it was Max's turn, he was much more polite and he kept his answers short, basic and honest. He testified that Jake was no cold-blooded killer and neither was his mate. He testified that he had known them both almost as long as he'd lived on Pandora and all they had wanted was to raise their children to maturity in peace and protect the native territories. He testified that they had no malice against Earth and through the years, they never failed to come to the aid of the colonists at Hell's Gate when there was some emergency.

"Jake is no traitor to anyone," Max said firmly in closing, "He's a soldier, a leader and a family man. The people at Hell's Gate have been living peacefully with the Omaticaya and the other clans on this continent for two decades now, in a symbiotic relationship that has never failed us. They aren't hostile people until someone gives them a reason to be, and killing the clan leader's son could have easily led to all-out war. Black market profiteers, conducting illegal mining activities and outright murder, violated the terms of the treaty. The native clans would have been well within their rights to declare your colony hostile and rise up against you. Try to keep that in mind."

"But Jake Sully is still a citizen of Earth," reminded the plaintiff. The camera focused on him; a lean, middle aged man in a brown suit with thinning blond hair. "He defected from the service—"

"He didn't 'defect', you—" Trudy began before Max could stop her.

"He wasn't officially serving," interrupted an unseen woman in the UNEC conference room, "He is a Venezuela veteran who was honorably discharged after being disabled in the line of duty. According to records we have on file from the RDA, his official position was in the AVATAR program—a separate department from military security under Dr. Grace Augustine's supervision. He can't be charged with defecting the service, Your Honors."

The plaintiff didn't back down. "He killed three service men with deliberate intent. According to Earth law, they were entitled to a trial. Sully murdered them—"

"Objection," interrupted the unseen female. The camera drifted to a copper-skinned human woman with dark hair and eyes. She addressed the tribunal with quiet dignity and calm. "Nobody has been charged with murder. The term doesn't apply to Mr. Sully's situation, your honors. We are here today to listen to the Hell's Gate leaders' account of Jake Sully's character and what led to the final incident. I believe it would be best to focus on that."

"Objection sustained," responded one of the three UN officials serving as a judge for the proceeding. She looked at the blond man. "Commissioner Lewis, we'll thank you to keep your questions relevant and save the rest for when Mr. Sully takes the defendant stand. Semantics regarding his past responsibilities have no place here now."

The plaintiff looked nonplussed. "Then I have no further questions at this time, Your Honors."

The judge on the left regarded the dark-haired woman serving as defendant. "Commissioner Archer, have you anything further to ask of either witness?"

"Yes, I do." She placed her holopad in its protective case and addressed Max. "Dr. Patel, as part of your medical training you took psychiatry, is that correct?"

Max inclined his head. "Yes, Miss Archer. For the core field I wanted to go into, psychiatric studies were a requirement. It's necessary to determine how well a subject is taking to an avatar body and whether there are damaging psychological side effects. If a driver can't focus or cope with operating the remote avatar body, it can be very dangerous—not just for the operator but for the staff around him or her, too."

"Can you tell us your impression of Jake Sully's mental state, when General West relayed the transmission feed to you that occurred during Sully's conflict with the smugglers?"

Max hesitated for a moment, recalling that horrible event. "Well, in my opinion, he sounded like someone gone mad with grief."

"And what did he say, in the transmission?"

Max exchanged a weary look with his fiancé. "He said: 'You killed my son', in Na'vi."

Archer's gaze softened. "And do you think he was in a rational state of mind, doctor?"

Max took a deep breath and wiped his eyes. "With all due respect to you and the court, I'd like to see _any_ loving parent retain a rational state of mind after burying a child that was brutally chased down and killed. No, my friend was not in his right mind; nor should he have been expected to be. People rarely are, under circumstances like that."

Trudy placed her hand over his on top of the table and squeezed it, offering silent support while Max sought to calm himself down.

Archer nodded. "Thank you both. Your Honors, I have no further questions for either witness."

* * *

"So what happened?" Dustin practically pounced on his parents the minute they stepped out into the hallway.

"They asked some questions, we answered them," answered Trudy.

"And your mother nearly leaped through the screen to knock heads together," finished Max with a wry glance at her.

"Hey, that slimy asshole was trying to draw attention away from the subject and turn it into a trial against Hell's Gate for not backstabbing our friends."

"That's what lawyers do," reminded Max. "It's their job to try and shift things in favor of the client."

"That's why I hate them," grunted Trudy.

"Even when they do it for a friend?" Max inquired. "I'm not fond of the role people take on when defending or attacking someone at court but I think Miss Archer was very refreshing. She stated facts, she didn't try to manipulate the tribunal and she was very well-poised."

Trudy huffed her bangs out of her eyes and grimaced sidelong at him. "Okay, so she was good. Why don't you marry her instead of me?"

"Ma, he didn't mean it that way," Dustin quickly intervened.

"He knows, kid." Trudy patted Max on the arm. "Your Dad knows when I'm blowing off steam, by now."

Max chuckled. "Besides, my life wouldn't be nearly as interesting, if I married Commissioner Archer."

"Darn straight," agreed Trudy.

Dustin shrugged it aside. "So do you think you managed to influence things in Uncle Jake's favor?"

"Dunno, brat," sighed Trudy. "It was kind of a nightmare. I really hope Jake has his shit together because he's going to have to testify against those scum that attacked his boy _and_ he's got to go on trial. What _we_ went through in there was cake, compared to what they'll put the jarhead through on the stand."

Dustin made a face at the thought. "We may not have to worry about someone trying to assassinate him. He could lose it and go for the throat if he gets cross-examined enough and they'll have every legal right to put him down. They can draw it up as a necessary casualty; especially if he goes for an unarmed man in a room full of witnesses."

Max looked at his son with a sickly expression on his face. He started to reply but instead, he bent over and puked on Trudy's boot.

"Ugh! Nice one, Maxi!" She instinctively stepped back, nearly slipping and falling on her ass.

Dustin caught her and he gave a couple of passing staff members an embarrassed look and a nod to go on when they asked if everything was okay. "Dad, I think you need to take something for anxiety or at least get some rest. Ma, you go with him, all right?" He urged his mother toward his pale, gasping father, who was averting his face and evidently trying to keep from vomiting again.

"I threw up on the floor," Max said redundantly.

"It happens," Dustin soothed. "Pretty regularly in the lab and medic wings, in fact. Don't worry, I'll get it cleaned up and sterilized."

"You're too young to have to deal with this much shit," Trudy declared unhappily as she put an arm around her betrothed.

"You two weren't that much older than me when you started your careers," Dustin reminded. "Just go home, get cleaned up and lay down. Let me take care of you guys, for once."

Max started to argue but Trudy chastised him and began to drag him along. "You're a good kid, Dusty,' she called over her shoulder as she led Max away. "You're just like your old man, you know."

Dustin watched them go and his smile faded into a sigh as they disappeared down a side corridor. "Maybe not _just_ like him," he muttered.

Max would never have contemplated going into military service or participating in a violent confrontation—except under dire extremes. Dustin, however, was starting to lean more towards his mother's "beat it into 'em if they won't listen to reason" approach. Andrew was right; he had a temper lurking inside of him and it was getting closer to the boiling point each day.

"Sorry Dad…helping Dr. Sully with his device might not be enough for me, if this keeps up."

Enough people had died or suffered injury at the hands of the RDA.

* * *

Parker shouldn't have been surprised to find Commissioner Archer in the VIP lounge of the UN government building. All too aware that Max and Trudy were testifying on Jake's behalf today, he was more stressed than he cared to admit. He came here for a little R&R with a side of whiskey himself. What he hadn't anticipated was for the court meeting to be adjourned already. He stopped at the entrance and looked across the distance of the fancy lounge at the lady, seated at the lacquered bar sipping a cocktail. She was wearing a dress suit of deep burgundy. It was becoming on her, complimenting her coloring and hugging her figure in just the right places.

"Sir, your usual table is available if you would like to have a seat there."

Selfridge noticed the waiter for the first time. He almost gave the nod, instinctively falling into habitual preferences. The table he always preferred was in the back corner of the room, where he could sit and enjoy his drink without drawing attention to himself. He paused before replying and his gaze went to Archer again.

"You know, I think I'll just belly up to the bar, this time."

The waiter nodded and stepped aside for him. Parker crossed the room, squeezing past several suites that had conjugated halfway between the door and the bar area. He gave them an annoyed look and upon hearing that the group was trying to decide on a place to sit, he almost told them to just pick something and get the hell out of people's way. He refrained, however. He needed to save his energy for confrontations that mattered, not waste it on idiots that couldn't decide where to park their butts.

Archer detected his approach when his steps took him within seven feet of her. She gave him an elegant nod and she gestured invitingly at the stool beside her. "Care to join me, Administrator?"

He eyed the stool and hesitated briefly before taking her up on the offer. "What are you having, Pamela?"

Archer raised a brow. "We're on first-name terms, now?"

He shrugged and waved the bartender over. "You've used mine a few times. I might as well start returning the favor."

"I see." A bare hint of a smirk curved her moccha-tinted lips. "Well then, you should call me 'Pam'. After all, we work closely together."

Parker cast a quick, careful look around before nodding. Her statement had deeper meaning beneath the surface and they had to be careful of how they spoke in public places. "So you're dressed to kill. Hot date?"

"This is my court uniform," she answered in a dry tone, "but then I think you knew that."

Parker nodded. "Try to give a lady a compliment and look at where it gets you." The bartender came and asked what he wanted to drink. "I'll have a scotch neat and give the lady here another...uh...Grasshopper."

"You know your drinks," observed Archer.

Selfridge gave her a humorless smirk. "When you've reached rock bottom you get familiar with your liquor. So, I guess you had a rough day at the office, to be in here. I never see you drinking."

"It wasn't the most relaxing affair," she agreed with a sigh. She finished off her minty-green cocktail and slid the glass away gently. "I sometimes have trouble distancing myself from the situation. Some of the things that have happened on this moon parallel the things that happened to my ancestors."

Parker lowered his gaze. "Yeah. Let me ask you something though: if the situation with the natives here gets you upset, why are you working with me? I'd have thought you'd rather slap my face than cooperate with my ideas."

Her dark gaze held his as she answered. "Because I know a person seeking redemption when I see one."

Discomforted by her observation, he shifted a little in his seat and grabbed a recycled serviette from the napkin holder. He folded it neatly in half and shot a quick glance around. "Well yeah...gotta redeem myself to the bigshots if I ever want to go home again."

She gave a single, eloquent nod and the look in her eyes told him she understood. "Of course."

Their drinks came and they clinked their glasses together for a toast to each other's health before having a swallow. Parker grimaced a little at the bite, wishing he had specified a brand when he asked for Scotch. It burned a bit as it went down but it was alcohol, so he endured it and made a mental note to insist on Johnny Walker when he got a refill.

Selfridge held up his glass and turned it in his hand, watching the way the light reflected on the glass and illuminated the brown liquid inside. "You know this is going to end in a shit storm, right?"

Pamela took another sip of her Grasshopper. "I'm prepared for that."

Parker looked at her sidelong, doubtful. "I was there for the last one. I thought I was prepared too."

She considered his advice and then nodded. "Point taken. Everything is in order. Are you still resolved?"

He took another swallow, grimaced and nodded. "If they give the word, I'm ready to move. We've got a couple of weeks before they put Sully on the stand, so make sure you tie up any loose ends while you can."

"Can you be sure you can trust me?" There was a twinkle in her eye, though her expression was serious.

Selfridge grunted. "If I'm wrong about you, I deserve to get caught."

* * *

A few mornings later, Grace awoke to the feel of her mate's lips caressing her temple and ear. She smiled and cuddled against him with sleepy enjoyment, appreciating the feel of his body spooned against hers. His hand settled on the mound of her belly and she rested hers on top of it, turning her head for a kiss on the lips. Tsu'tey obliged her and he whispered an inquiry between kisses.

"Did you sleep well?"

"Mmm. Better than I have for a long time," she agreed with a contented little smile. She pushed away the pillow he had tailored for her, made from soft leather stuffed with spongy plant fibers. He had the notion that if she hugged it through the night and rested a leg over it, the pressure on her hips would be eased and her head would get enough support to avoid a stiff neck. With his added support behind her, she slept comfortably supported on both sides. "What gave you the idea?"

He shrugged. "I remember hearing about 'pregnancy pillows' at Hell's Gate and I thought it wouldn't hurt to make one for you and try it out."

"I can't believe you went through all this trouble for me," she murmured, rolling a little to have a better look at him. The hammock rocked a little with her motions but they were both used to it and were hardly bothered.

"You're my mate," Tsu'tey said matter-of-factly, "and it's like Aunt Trudy says: 'if Mama's not happy, nobody is'. I want you happy and as comfortable as I can make you. It's no trouble."

Grace smiled at him. "Kiss me."

He lowered his mouth to hers without argument and their fingers entwined over her baby bump.

* * *

Norm paused on his way over to the young couple's sleeping hammock, seeing that they were engaged in a quiet, romantic little exchange. He sighed, his eyes going to the hand-tailored pregnancy pillow Tsu'tey was thoughtful enough to make for Gracie. Not many men would put so much effort into making a pregnancy easier on their partner—particularly a pregnancy not sired by them. Tsu'tey wasn't a strong hunter, wasn't a genius and he wasn't particularly ambitious…but he was deeply devoted to his family, the clan and Grace.

"People wonder why our daughter chose the quiet, shy Tsu'tey for her own," Ni'nat murmured when she came up beside her mate. Her eyes were on the couple and a fond smile curved her lips. "I think the answer is here before us."

Norm looked at her sidelong, remembering that Ni'nat could have had any man she wanted and yet, she chose a lanky, awkward scientist for her mate. It seemed to him that both mother and daughter had a soft spot for the underdog—for which he was thankful. "She takes after you in more than looks. I'm glad she has your standards."

Ni'nat laid her head on his shoulder. "There is more to being a strong man than battle aggression or perfect aim with a bow, my Norm. Grace sees that too, thanks to Tsu'tey's efforts."

He nodded. While her first choice had been a model hunter, warrior and leader, Gracie quickly learned that men could be just as strong in different ways when Tsu'tey stepped up to be her partner. It was a pity that such a tragedy brought them together, but as the saying went: when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Grace and Tsu'tey had done just that.

Norm glanced over his shoulder, across the many hanging hammocks strung through the massive branches to where Neytiri paced with the transmitter device. Sylwanin was just rubbing the sleep from her eyes and she watched curiously as her mother spoke with her father over the transmitter. Neytiri didn't look a bit pleased and she appeared to be arguing.

"We'd better get Tsu'tey," sighed Norm. "I hate to ruin their moment but the kids need to know what's going on."

Ni'nat agreed softly, just as reluctant to break up the tender scene before them. Together, they crossed the network of branches and approached Tsu'tey and Grace.

* * *

"What do you mean, we can't testify in person?" Tsu'tey looked back and forth between his in-laws, righteously upset.

"Dr. Patel pointed out that traveling to UNEC this far into her pregnancy wouldn't be good for Gracie," Norm explained, "and we agree with him. Trudy also thought it would be a bad idea to expose you to possible enemies, Tsu'tey. You're too important to risk and that place is riddled with corruption, like a log infested with termites. Jake doesn't want _any_ of his family or clan mates showing up at UNEC for the trial."

"I want to look those criminals in the eye," insisted Tsu'tey, "Dad may have killed the one responsible for shooting my brother, but the others are just as guilty and I want to see their faces when I testify against them."

"You couldn't do that even if you _did_ go to UNEC for the trial," Norm assured him. "Tsu'tey, this isn't a regular court proceeding. Jake is a political figure on this world and something of a celebrity, too. They aren't going to have the smugglers in the same room as Jake or anyone else testifying on their behalf or against them. It's all being done separately, to cut down on the risk of assassination attempts or misconduct in the court. This is a high profile case and if someone's out to get your father, you would make the perfect target."

"Losing another child would destroy him," agreed Ni'nat, "and the Sky People that wish him harm are cruel enough to do it, if they can."

"If you won't cooperate for your own safety, at least think of your father," Norm persuaded.

Grace stroked Tsu'tey's arm. "They're right. As much as I would love to look into the eyes of the people responsible for Tommy's death, I don't want to risk this baby...or you. Tommy died protecting us, Tsu'tey. If we go to UNEC knowing we could be making targets of ourselves, we'll be dishonoring him. He wouldn't want us in danger."

He looked at her, unable to conceal his surprise completely. His expression softened and he glanced down at her rounded belly, which seemed to grow more pronounced with each week. In approximately two months, his niece or nephew would be ready to come into the world. He couldn't bear the thought of something going wrong now. He loved this unborn being as though he had sired it himself and he loved the woman carrying it so much it hurt. Besides, he had made a promise to Gracie to be there for her and the child, and he intended to keep it.

"Okay," Tsu'tey murmured, taking Grace's hand in his. "I agree that there's too much at stake for us to go to UNEC, but how will we testify if we can't be there?"

"Yes, we have to testify somehow," agreed Grace with a pleading look at he parents. "There has to be some way. I want those people punished, even if I can't see it happen."

"We've already got a solution for that," promised Norm. "Max and Trudy testified from Hell's Gate, over a live feed. You and the rest of the hunting party that was there that day can do it the same way. Hell's Gate is closer and a lot safer than UNEC—and you'll get to see your friends while you're there, too."

Tsu'tey and Grace smiled at the mention of their friends. They hadn't seen Dustin and Savanna for a long time and they knew Kato was staying at Hell's Gate, too. Grace had concerns over it, however. "Isn't Hell's Gate dealing with security issues right now, though?"

"Yeah," Tsu'tey said with a grimace, "They had one of their Samson's stolen the day someone planted a bomb in the water filtering thing. They've got hidden RDA people on base, just like UNEC."

"We still don't know for sure that it's the RDA," Norm pointed out, "but you're right...they've got saboteurs in their ranks and they aren't going to flush them all out at once. I'll feel a lot better when they have the suspects in custody. Still, I trust the people at Hell's Gate with your safety a hell of a lot more than I'd trust anyone at UNEC."

"You almost sound like Uncle Jake," Grace observed with a wistful little smile. "Or Aunt Trudy."

"I do?" Norm scratched his chin and smiled with amusement. "I guess years of exposure to their military jargon rubbed off on me a little. The point is, I wouldn't agree to let you go to Hell's Gate if I wasn't sure our friends can keep you safe. I know General West has done a lot for Jake's situation but he's just one man and I don't know his people the way I know Trudy and Max's people."

Seeing that there wasn't much of a choice, Tsu'tey sighed and nodded in compliance. "I just wish I could talk to _Sempul_ again before this all goes down. If the situation is so dangerous, there's no telling what could happen between now and the court date. We don't even know if or when they'll release him. He could end up in prison for the rest of his life."

"I don't think that's going to happen," Norm assured him, laying a paternal hand on Tsu'tey's shoulder. "Everyone's on red alert because there's a really good chance your father is going to get a full pardon when this is finished, and if that happens, a lot of powerful people are going to be really steamed. Jake has caused a lot of trouble for the RDA and if they're the ones behind this like we think, they are going to want him dead or suffering."

"Is that why they went after Uncle Tom?" Tsu'tey queried, frowning. Killing his twin was certainly one way to make Jake suffer.

Norm looked a bit guarded and he studied the young man before answering. "I think the bombing at the plant happened for more than one reason. Hurting Jake is definitely one possibility, but the explosion also caused a huge distraction that helped them steal the Samson. On top of all that, Tom was working on a way to shield equipment from flux interference and he was on the right track. If he makes a working device, it's only going to be a matter of time before the authorities scan the right area and detect the missing aircrafts. Even without the on-board tracking devices, the broad-range scanners can find them. They just haven't been able to because the thieves are smart enough to stay in a heavy flux zone."

"But shouldn't the missing rotors show up on satellite images?" Grace asked. "The flux can't stop that."

Norm nodded. "True, but they've apparently thought of that already. They've always used canopy or weather to hide from view when they steal something. My guess is they only go out to do whatever it is they're up to at night, too. Satellite imagery can only do so much. Tom was working with Max and his friend Jill on the project and the wrong people got word of it."

"So they lured Uncle Tom into the rigged building to get rid of him before he could finish what he was working on," Tsu'tey deduced.

"It makes sense," Norm agreed. "That one action gave them a distraction, a chance to hurt Jake and a way to end the threat of getting caught. But they didn't succeed and Tom is just fine, so try not to focus on that too much. You said you wanted to talk to your father again before his hearing and that's part of the reason we came to get you."

"Neytiri is speaking with _Toruk Makto_ over the voice device now," added Ni'nat. "He wished for Norm and I to explain to you why you must not go to UNEC, and he wants to speak with you and your sister."

"He could have just explained to me himself," Tsu'tey grumbled.

Norm raised an eyebrow. "Really? You know, there's a reason Jake asks me to handle some things, Tsu'tey. Your father is an _amazing_ strategist in a fight but when it comes to explaining politics and technical information..."

"He lacks talent," sighed Tsu'tey, finishing the hanging sentence for Norm. Tommy would have said he sucked, but Tsu'tey had always been a bit more respectful and polite. His first thought was that Jake sent Norm to do the dirty work so he wouldn't have to deal with it, but he now revised his opinion. "I guess Dad has enough to deal with."

* * *

When he finished talking to Sylwanin, Jake spoke with Tsu'tey.

"Now I want you to listen to me," Jake said firmly, "I know you want to be here in person, but that's just not in the cards, okay? I don't want to hear any bitching, either. I've already had to fight your _Sa'nok_ about this and I don't want to fight you too."

"You won't have to," Tsu'tey replied. "Uncle Norm already explained why we have to do it this way. It's probably better for Grace not to travel that far anyhow, in her condition."

Jake relaxed, cracking a smile of relief. "Your mother said she's due in two months. You're making sure she's eating right, aren't you?"

"Of course," assured the younger man. "Grace really looks after herself without any of us encouraging her to. Her grief made it hard for her at first, but she's got a strong heart and she knows her limits."

Jake nodded. Grace was without a doubt the most physically stunning female her age in the clan, but she was so much more than beauty. Her name suited her in more ways than one. "She's an amazing girl, Tsu'tey. It's no wonder you and Tommy both fell so hard for her."

"She is," agreed Tsu'tey. His smile could be detected in his tone. "I guess I don't need to tell you how much she means to me."

Jake thought of his beautiful, unpredictable mate and he chuckled. "No, you don't have to tell me a thing, kid. But Grace isn't the only amazing one here. Your brother would be damned proud of you for everything you've been doing—especially with Grace and that baby."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the transmission, followed by a curious sniff. "Thanks, Dad. I just wish Tommy were—"

"He's not," interrupted Jake sternly. "It's time we all accepted that fact and moved on. Tommy and Grace had their time together and a piece of him is going to keep living because of that. What you need to hope for now is a safe, healthy birth for that kid and its mother. "

Ever the respectful son, Tsu'tey answered according to his nature. "Yes sir. I guess I still need to work on letting go."

Jake closed his eyes and resisted a sigh, empathizing with the young man more than he would let on. He swallowed and silently asked Tommy to forgive him. "I know, son. We've all held on and we all miss him. We're alive, though. Your brother is with Eywa and I think he would agree with me when I say that when this trial is over with, we have to let him go with her in peace."

Tsu'tey took a deep, uneven breath and Jake could imagine him nodding. "I know. I'll try. What else do you want me to do, _Sempul_?"

Jake glanced at the blue digital numbers on the clock in his booth and he realized his time was almost up. "I want you to visit your friends and give your honest testimony. Be polite like you always are, answer the questions that matter and don't let them drag you into emotional reactions. Other than that, just keep doing what you're doing now. Take care of the family and help the clan. That's what you're good at and that's all you should worry about."

"All right. Hey Dad, I've got to tell you something."

Jake smiled again, reminded of days gone by when Tsu'tey would come to him with those words as a boy with an excited smile on his little face. "What's that?"

"You're better at talking about things than you think. I mean, the important things."

Jake shook his head and smirked. "Some of that was borrowed from General West, but as long as the message gets through, I guess it doesn't matter. My time is up now, Tsu'tey. This is a secured transmission but we can't take any chances and keep it open for too long."

Tsu'tey took it stoically. "I understand. Don't worry, I'll take care of Sylwanin and help _Sa'nok_ with tribal matters as much as I can. Just don't let anyone kill you, okay?"

That made Jake laugh. "I'll try to remember that, kid."

* * *

Jake didn't go immediately back to his cell after cutting the transmission. Instead, he walked the perimeter of the facility with General West. Though it was risky in broad daylight, there hadn't been any attacks on him since he transferred and Jake wasn't one to stay cooped up inside all day long unless he thought it was really necessary.

"How is your family doing?" West inquired politely. They made an odd pair—the human general wearing his exopack and the avatar Omaticaya leader, twice his height. Despite physical differences, they shared a few things in common and had mutual respect for each other.

"They're fine," answered Jake. He kicked a stray pebble away and peered through the metal slats of the tall, heavily reinforced fence. "My grandkid should be coming along a couple of months—maybe less. I just hope testifying won't be too hard on the mother. Grace won't take 'no' for an answer and she wants to see this through."

West nodded. "With the arrangements we've made, it should be a lot safer and easier on her and everyone else involved in this mess."

Jake sighed. "I hope so. This baby means everything to my family."

"Well, I can't say I know what it's like to be expecting a grandchild but I understand how special this one is to you. My advice is to make sure that young woman is surrounded by powerful friends and guardians at all times, when she goes in for her testimony."

Jake looked off at the horizon and set his jaw grimly. "Oh, believe me; she _will_ be. My son worships the ground she walks on and her old man is about as protective as a father can get without being a tyrant. If anyone so much as _sneezes_ on Gracie, they'll be wearing their ass for a hat."

West responded with a rare chuckle. "Seeing how tight your family and clan are, I don't doubt that."

* * *

_A week later in the Ikran village:_

Baxter tried to assure Dr. Sully that he was all right to walk outside on his own, but seeing as this would be his first time to step into daylight without a blindfold since the explosion, Tom wouldn't listen. The micro-biologist crowded at the trailer doorway with the young marine as Howell prepared to open the door. Karyu huffed and rolled her eyes at her father, but she wasn't far behind him and her gaze kept straying to Baxter in a way that made him want to smile.

"Dr. Sully, I promise I'll come right back in if I can't handle the light," Baxter vowed. "You're kind of up my butt."

"No offense Corporal, but you have luck on par with my own," Tom said sternly with a small, crooked grin. "I don't want to risk my patient stumbling and taking a nasty fall."

Baxter returned the grin and shrugged. He already respected Tom for his work, but during his time under his care, he'd come to really like him. "I'm also kind of a klutz. I guess I see your point."

He offered no further arguments and he allowed the older man to step in front of him and go first. He grimaced against the wash of sunlight when Tom pushed the door open and he waited to adapt, blinking in pain. Tears formed in his eyes from the sting and they blurred his vision.

"If it's too much for you, we can give it a few more days," Tom said cautiously, stepping down to await him. "Don't let your pride hamper your recovery, Howell."

Baxter almost agreed, thinking the light was too intense and painful for him to endure for much longer. He felt a slender, calloused female hand settled on his shoulder and the touch renewed his determination. If Tom believed he was recovered enough for this, then he was recovered enough. He considered hamming it up a little for Karyu, just to encourage her to put her arms around him and support him. Thinking of how concerned Tom was for his safety, Baxter couldn't bring himself to do it. The man and his family took good care of him and the least he could do was resist the temptation to mack on his daughter.

"I want to try and take a few steps outside," Baxter announced. "You know, to give my eyes a chance to adjust a little before I decide."

"Maybe in the shade," suggested Karyu from behind him. She pointed in the direction of the nearest thick, leafy tree. "You've got the sun nuking you in the face right now."

Tom agreed. "Good thinking, Karyu. Baxter, just shut your eyes for a few seconds until we can get you under some shade. I should have considered a more gradual introduction myself."

Honestly, Baxter didn't consciously intend to play on her sympathies but somehow, his feet got the idea that he wanted to snuggle. He meant to take a step forward and take Dr. Sully's offered hand, but his feet remained stationary as he started forward. His balance was thrown by the clumsy action and Baxter damned near fell on his face. Karyu quickly caught him around the waist to steady him and he was treated to the moment of intimacy he had secretly wanted. Baxter took advantage of the situation almost instinctively and put an arm around her, briefly pulling her slender body flush against his as he righted himself.

"Thanks. It seems like my feet have a mind of their own, this morning." Baxter grinned contritely at the young woman and her father, hoping they didn't pick up on the fact that his stumble was at least partially planned. Reminding his body to behave, he reluctantly let go of Karyu and reached for her father's supportive hand. With Tom's help, he stepped down.

"I think I may have inadvertently jinxed you with my concerns." Tom smirked and shook his head. "Trudy always says I'm like a black cat...always getting into trouble or jinxing other people."

Baxter laughed, keeping his eyes shut while the biologist guided him over to the shade. "Don't take all the credit, Doc. Like I said: I can be clumsy. It's been worse since I woke up from cryo and sometimes I wonder if I've got some brain damage."

Tom stopped, making the young marine stumble a little. "Have they run any tests? Balance issues could be a harbinger of something serious."

Karyu came up beside them and she looked up at Baxter with a frown, unable to completely mask her concern.

"Dr. Patel ran plenty of tests on me," assured Baxter. "I felt like a lab rat, by the time he was finished. He said everything looked...uh..._'copasetic'_."

Tom smiled. "That sounds like Max. Well, if he says there's nothing wrong with your brain then it must be psychological. Have you been seeing a counselor at all?"

Baxter sighed and nodded. "Yeah. I go a couple of times a week and they gave me some anxiety meds to take when I get too stressed."

"You need to go to counseling more often." Tom guided him beneath the shade of a tree and he looked Baxter in the eye when he opened them. His tone was paternal and insistent. "I know tough guys like you don't like to admit you need a little help now and then and I know marines are crazy enough to throw themselves on a live grenade to protect their comrades, but—"

"_What_?" Karyu's shrill inquiry made both men jump a little. "Back up, _Sempul_. What's this thing about jumping on a live grenade?"

Baxter shrugged, squinting in the light but finding it bearable in the shade. "It's just part of being a Marine. Protect your brothers at all costs. We watch each other's backs and work together to reach a goal. If taking one for the team means the rest survive to meet that goal, that's what you do."

"Karyu, the man pulled hot shrapnel away with his bare hands to get me out of that plant," Tom reminded the young woman, "does it really surprise you that he'd muffle an explosive with his body to save someone else? Your Uncle Jake initially lost use of his legs going back for another man in a firefight, even though he knew there was a high chance of him getting killed in the process."

"Well, he and Uncle Jake are both out of their heads," Karyu grumbled, staring at Baxter like he was a mental patient—which technically, he was.

"Don't tell me you wouldn't take a grenade for your brother or parents," Baxter coaxed, grinning at her.

"But that's different," she sputtered, glancing at her father. "They're family!"

"So are the men I fight with," explained Howell. "Like I said, they're my brothers. When you're in the military, the people you work with become your second family. I'd defend any one of them with as much gusto as I'd defend my blood family."

Karyu looked at her father expectantly. "And this is normal?"

"According to Jake, yes," Tom confirmed with a nod. "Military branches are like clans, really. They treat each other like family and there's a reason the marines tend to be the most feared ground troops."

Karyu looked at him again, her golden eyes sweeping him up and down. "I can't tell if you're extremely brave or just plain crazy."

Baxter didn't take offense. He grinned sharply at her and for a moment, he forgot they had her father as an audience. "The marines are the ones that get things moving. We go in and do the work nobody else wants to do. You'd make a great marine, wildcat."

Tom's eyebrows went up. "I agree she's about reckless enough to be one, but let's not discuss recruitment into the Marines, all right?"

Howell winced a bit, remembering that for all his stoicism and bedside manner, Tom was a protective father. He should probably cease with the pet names around the man, too. "I was just kidding, Doc."

Tom patted him on the shoulder. "I know you were. Fathers don't have great sense of humors when someone jokes about their daughters fighting wars, though."

"Well, you may have to grow a sense of humor about that," Karyu said, "Because if there's ever another conflict that involves this clan, I'm going to be at the front of the charge with Mother...or as _Olo'eyktan_, depending on when it happens."

"It may not happen at all," Tom argued.

"Dad, I know you're against war but if those bastards that tried to kill you keep this up, you may as well face it that we're going to see another fight. UNEC obviously can't control their people and we can't expect Hell's Gate to fix everything."

"And that's why your Dad's working on that flux shield thingy," Baxter said hastily, trying to divert the argument that was brewing between father and daughter. "If he succeeds and we play our cards right, we'll have the criminals in custody before they can do much more damage. I don't think they have the manpower to start a war now but that could change if we don't close down their operation."

"Well, let's not dwell on that right now," insisted Tom. "Just enjoy being outside in daylight for now, Corporal. Here, try reading the fifth line on this chart for me."

Baxter dutifully peered at the eye chart Tom held up on the holo screen he had brought outside with him. "A, i, e, k, z, l, w."

Tom nodded. "Good. And the next one?"

Baxter was able to read the next string of letters aloud with only minimal added strain. Tom asked him to read the smallest print he could and he blinked when Baxter read the ninth line to him.

"You must have some excellent eyesight running in your family," Tom said after confirming that Baxter read correctly.

Karyu tilted her head and took a step back to peer curiously at the line Howell read. "That's even hard for _me_ to read."

Baxter shrugged modestly. "The USMC is kind of selective about who they let in. Good hearing and eyesight is part of the package."

"Yes, my brother has bat ears," sighed Tom. "Strange that I didn't inherit that kind of sensitivity."

Karyu reached up and rapped her knuckles lightly against Tom's head. "You got it all under your cranium, Daddy."

"Ow." Tom swatted half-heartedly at the girl. "Parent abuse is prohibited, young lady."

Baxter chuckled with amusement as Karyu stuck her tongue out at her father. She had cuteness down to an art, regardless of how gruff she tried to be. "Well, you might not have the combat senses of a marine but you've got something we need more, Dr. Sully. Like your daughter says; it's that brain of yours that's going to make a real difference."

"No pressure there at all," answered Tom dryly. "Luckily, I have people to turn to for help and to bounce ideas off of."

"Not that Jill person," Karyu said warningly, her eyes going to the bandages on Baxter's hands. "I know you both think she's an angel but it's her fault this happened."

"She didn't tip anyone off on purpose," Baxter tried to reason.

Karyu shook her head. "Doesn't matter. My father was nearly grub food because she didn't keep her mouth shut about the project and you could have gone blind and lost the use of your hands. You're lucky your hands are healing as well as they are."

Baxter fought another smile. She just admitted she had protective feelings for him and it only served to endear him further. "Okay, Mom."

She huffed with annoyance but she didn't retaliate. Strange, since Karyu was known for snappy comebacks and witty remarks, from what Baxter had heard. She looked at her father, who was pinching his lips between thumb and forefinger.

"He's all yours, Dad. This Jarhead jock is getting on my last nerve. I'm going to go help _Sa'nok _with her tanning."

Tom waved her away. "Tell your mother I'll be down to help her with lunch soon."

Baxter watched the slender huntress leave and he found himself unable to tear his gaze off of her smooth, pert little bottom. He caught Tom watching him from the corner of his eye and he cleared his throat. "Dr. Sully, if I'm stepping out of line just tell me, all right? I'm just teasing her but I don't want to be disrespectful."

Tom gave him a long, measuring look and then he shrugged. "You know what? I _don't_ mind. I think this is the first time my daughter has ever met her match. Come on, let's do your physical therapy now. Your eyesight seems to have recovered, but your hands need more work."

* * *

That night, Baxter had another one of his vivid dreams. This one wasn't steamy like the last one and at first, he thought that he had somehow managed to wander outside the trailer in his sleep and wake up on the path leading down to the village. He looked around cautiously at the surrounding forest, hearing the scampers, hoots and calls of nocturnal wildlife. When he looked down at himself and saw that his bare chest and arms were covered with pale human skin instead of the striped avatar variety, he realized the truth.

"Why do I keep dreaming that I'm human again?"

He scratched his head, puzzling over it. So far, every time he dreamed he was back in his human body, Karyu was there. He brightened at the prospect and looked around again. "Karyu? Where's my kitten hiding this time?"

There was no answer and no chieftess-to-be pounced at him from the shadows to lavish him with licks and kisses. He sighed with disappointment. Well, _this_ dream was turning out to be a bummer. He started to go back into the trailer and wait for the dream to end but the moss lining the path into the village began to glow. Baxter paused and watched the phenomenon with curious green eyes. Patches of the stuff was lighting up as if someone were walking on it. He could distinctly see the shape of footsteps, steadily tromping down the path toward the village.

"Uh...this is different," he muttered. "Hello? Is someone there?"

There was no verbal answer, but the footsteps paused and started back toward him. Baxter felt a chill go down his spine and he backed up a little uncertainly when the moss lit up a couple of feet in front of him. It was as if an invisible Na'vi were standing there before him, waiting for something. The footsteps turned around and began to head back down the path again.

"Let me guess; you want me to follow you." Baxter sighed, watching the footsteps slowly move away. He shrugged, figuring he might as well pass the time while he was there. "What the hell. It's just a dream."

He followed the glowing footsteps down the hill, between the towering ocean cliffs and into the Ikran village. The sea was turbulent tonight and thick clouds rapidly skittered over the night sky, obscuring the stars, moons and Polyphemus occasionally. Baxter could hear the crash of the waves against the cliff-sides and he could smell the salty water. The footsteps kept moving ahead of him, still glowing even when they left the bioluminescent moss and treaded into sand. He followed gamely, creeped out by the whole thing but too curious to ignore it.

Eventually, the footsteps took him to a familiar, large tent-lodge near the center of the village. The hide walls were painted with traditional clan symbols and dyed red, fading to brown near the ground. This was the personal dwelling of the chieftess and Tom Sully. Baxter supposed that for a big tent, it was an attractive home. The footsteps stopped before it and then moved on to a smaller tent beside it. Baxter frowned and followed, wondering what the phantom footprints were trying to show him.

"What's this about?" Baxter whispered when the footsteps halted outside the entry flap of the smaller tent.

Again, there was no answer from the ghost—or whatever it was. The footsteps faded, leaving him standing there outside that tent alone. Baxter shrugged, not one to be easily annoyed. Deciding that his strange friend must want him to look inside this tent for some reason, he pulled aside the entry flap and ducked in. He very nearly stepped on the person sleeping inside and he whispered a curse as he caught his balance. He looked down at the occupant curiously, trying to see details in the dark. The bioluminescent spot patterns allowed enough light for him to recognize the slumbering Na'vi.

"Karyu," he mouthed. Of course...he should have known. He didn't understand why but there was some correlation between his human form and the pretty huntress. He knelt beside her impulsively and he thought it was odd that she didn't sense his presence and wake up—until he reminded himself that this was a dream.

Daring himself to be bold, he squatted down beside her and stroked her hair. "I don't know what it is about you. You're nothing but trouble and I shouldn't be looking for someone right now anyway."

Then there was the fact that she and her brother were just babies when he had his accident with Phelps. His sense of time was still thrown off and things he remembered like yesterday actually happened years ago. He sighed and stopped stroking Karyu's hair. He had no business at all crushing on a woman like her. He reminded himself that she probably already had her future mate picked out and waiting for her. She was born to lead and her responsibilities to her clan probably didn't include fooling around with a confused avatar operative.

"Well, I guess we've always got my fantasies, sexy stuff."

Baxter smiled down at the young woman and stood up, deciding his subconscious was trying to tell him something. He started to turn and leave the tent, but he spotted something that gave him pause and he frowned. Her hand was holding onto something that was half-poking out of her hide travel bag and he caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a polished metal picture frame. Curious, he squatted down again and lifted the pocket flap that partially obscured the frame.

Looking back up at him was his own smiling face, topped with a formal uniform hat and decorated with the flag of the good ol' US of A in the background. Howell blinked and stared, hedging his eyebrows. He took Karyu's wrist and gently lifted it, depositing her hand a few inches away from the photo. Now that he had an un-obscured view of it, he was positive that the photo sticking out of her bag was the very same one that went missing from the walls of the military wing. According to Ellis, it just vanished one day and they never found it again. Baxter obligingly took a replacement photo at Darren's request and he never thought more of it...until now.

"What are you doing with my picture, huh?" He looked down at Karyu thoughtfully. "Are you the one that stole it?"

He couldn't imagine why she would...unless she was crushing on him as much as he was crushing on her. _That_ thought had some promise to it and he began to smile. He moved her hand back to the picture and leaned down to give her a kiss on the lips.

"Maybe this is all just a dream brought on by wishful thinking," he murmured, "but I sure like the thought, shnookums."

* * *

Karyu stretched lazily when the sound of early morning birdcalls awoke her. She heard activity going on outside and she knew that soon, her clan would begin cooking breakfast and socializing, as was their habit. As much as they annoyed her sometimes, she had to admit that she felt warmth for her people when she compared their communal way of living to the humans and their separate family lives. True, privacy was harder to come by in such a close-knit community but the clan was like a big family. What happened to one happened to all and their loyalty to each other was practically boundless.

She finished her morning stretches, put away Baxter's photo and selected a change of garments to wear for the day. When that was finished, she exited her tent and started toward the cooking hut to help with breakfast. She saw her mother stretching outside the family lodge and she smiled and approached as Tanhi finished loosening up.

"You seem very pleased this morning," Tanhi observed when her daughter came up to her and kissed her on the cheek.

Karyu shrugged. "I slept well."

Actually, she had a rather sweet, sentimental dream that Baxter snuck into her tent and gave her a chaste little kiss, but she wasn't about to inform her mother of that.

"Good," approved Tanhi. "You are always welcome to sleep in our lodge, but I am pleased that you are adjusting to keeping one of your own. Some day soon, perhaps we will build a bigger one for you."

Karyu understood the underlying implication that it was time for her to begin considering a mate and planning a family. "What about Kato?"

Tanhi sighed and looked off in the distance, toward the ocean. "I fear your brother may have chosen a very different path from yours, Karyu. He may choose not to return to the clan."

Karyu started to blurt a denial, but she remembered the determination and resolve in his eyes the last time she spoke with him in person. Kato would do _anything_ for Savanna...including giving up his way of life. She knew it and apparently, so did her mother. Really though, if she thought about it she couldn't see the difference between Kato giving up his way of life to be with Savanna and her father and Uncle Jake doing the same to be with their mates. As much as it made her want to vomit to admit it, there was something romantic about it all.

Karyu admitted her thoughts out loud to her mother, hoping for something she couldn't quite put a finger on. "Well, we can't _always_ expect the Sky People to drop their lifestyles and come wipe their butts with leaves, can we?"

Tanhi gave her a reserved look of perplexity. "That human slang...I understand it no better today than I did when I met your _Sempul_."

"Don't pretend you don't know what I mean." Karyu smirked. "I was straight forward with that one. Mother, don't you think it's a little presumptuous for us to think avatars and humans should always be rushing to adopt our culture? They've got one of their own."

"There culture is destructive."

Karyu sighed. "Okay, then maybe you should send Father back to Hell's Gate."

Tanhi narrowed her eyes. One of the villagers called out to her and she took a moment to give him a polite nod before addressing her daughter again. "Why do you compare your father to the people that tried to kill him?"

"He wears their clothes," Karyu pointed out archly. "He has his research trailer, he uses their technology. He lives with our clan but he doesn't dress the part most of the time. He's never fully embraced the Ikran people's ways like you would have wanted. Why stay with him?"

"We are mated for life," Tanhi said in a low, dangerous tone, "and your father is nothing like the Sky People. He is a good father, a good mate and a good provider for the clan. His choice of garments and his science don't change this. You are being foolish."

"Am I?" Karyu stepped closer to her mother, remembering to keep her voice down as she challenged her with her eyes. "You mated with the man you wanted, even though he wasn't Na'vi and he came from another culture. So what if Kato decides to live in the human culture?"

"As I told you, it is his choice." Tanhi replied evenly.

Karyu saw through it, though. "But you don't approve."

Tanhi compressed her lips. "Some day when you have children, you will understand the pain of being separated from them. I want you both to be happy, Karyu. I just wish that your brother could be happy closer to his clan and his family."

Karyu was stricken with an epiphany at that moment. For the first time, she realized that her mother's preference for tradition had less to do with preserving the old ways than it did with keeping her children close. Understanding what Tanhi had been through when she was her age, Karyu felt an urge to hug her.

"_Sa'nu_, no matter where he lives or what he wears, Kato won't forget where he came from. Neither will I."

Tanhi didn't look at her but she nodded. "Yes, I know. Come; the clan is hungry and we must do our part to feed everyone."

Understanding that the conversation was officially over, Karyu sighed and nodded. Her mother never liked to admit a weakness and she never liked to show emotion in front of others. If she would have bothered to evaluate herself, she might have realized that she was just like her, in that respect.

* * *

_Two days later:_

Karyu watched Baxter eat with a curious little pang. The injured wolf would soon have to be released, so he could return to where he belonged. He would have some scarring on his hands but with modern medical technology, it would be minor and he would regain full sensation and use of them. He was able to feed himself now and he no longer required a guide to lead him around. He spent more time outside than in and he wore his sunglasses as Tom advised during the day. Even though his Na'vi absolutely sucked, he managed to gain the friendship of several villagers during his time there.

Howell was chowing down on a wooden bowl of wild harvested grains, steamed and seasoned with fresh herbs and flower nectar. "Mmm, what is this? It's almost like honey and oatmeal but it tastes a lot better."

At least he had the courtesy to swallow before speaking. Karyu didn't even realize she was wearing a sad little smile as she answered. "It's nothing special. It's basically the native equivalent of your honey and oatmeal, I guess."

He paused and lifted his shades, since they were sitting beneath a hide canvas. "You made this, didn't you?"

She shrugged and looked away, more affected by his emerald gaze than she cared to admit. "Does it matter?"

"Well, for taste it does," answered the marine. He stirred the remaining food around a bit with his horn carved spoon. "Face it Karyu; you're a good cook. I can tell when I eat something you or your mother prepared. It's always better than the rest."

She didn't want to be flattered by the compliment. If she revealed pleasure over it then he might be encouraged to try and domesticate the hell out of her. She was tired of everyone trying to convince her she had a June Cleaver inside of her, waiting to come out and bake brownies for everyone. Still, Baxter _did_ offer to cook for her in return. Maybe he wasn't out to convince her she needed to settle down and be a good little mate and mother.

"When your hands heal up enough, you'll have the chance to prove you're as good as me."

He winked at her. "Can't wait." His expression went blank for a second after he spooned another helping into his mouth and he stared at her as he chewed and swallowed. "I'd love to show you my old Service photo too, but it's gone now."

Karyu's heart did a somersault in her chest.

"Gone?" She tried very hard to look ignorant.

Those mesmerizing, gem-bright eyes remained fixated on her as Howell nodded. "Mm-hmm. Gone, just like that. Maybe someone took my picture down after I got zapped, thinking I wouldn't be coming back. It's hard to believe though; seeing as we've got plenty of deceased MP's pictures lining those walls in memory."

She cringed inwardly and she thought of the photo she had kept for far too long in her backpack. "Maybe your old girlfriend took it." Oops. She hadn't meant to bring Jill into the conversation. She even managed to make the word 'girlfriend' sound like something gooey and disgusting.

Karyu quickly tried to correct herself. "I mean, she could still have feelings for you but she can't show it since she's married. Maybe she took it to hide away for herself."

Baxter watched her with intrigued eyes. "Maybe. How did you know Jill is married?"

For a moment, Karyu felt pure panic. She almost bolted but she yanked her reactions back under control and straightened her shoulders. "The woman almost got my father killed. I looked up info on her. Does that surprise you?"

A flash of amusement lit his eyes before he lowered them. "No, I guess not."

Before either of them could say more, Tom approached. He exchanged greetings with the other villagers before ducking under the protective hide canvas. "I've just spoken with your superiors, Baxter. They want you to return to the base for further treatment. I've done all I can do with what I have and they want to be sure you get the best of recovery care. I agree with them."

Karyu looked down—where it felt like her heart just plummeted. She half-expected to find the organ pumping at her feet on the woven matt. "He's almost healed, though. What else can _they _do?"

"They have up-to-date medical equipment," reminded Tom, "and they can reconstruct the damaged tissue a lot better than I can in that little trailer."

"Well, orders are orders," Howell sighed with a shrug. "I'm just thankful you saved me from the hospital for this long. Maybe I won't have to be poked and prodded there as much, since you've done so much to speed my recovery along."

"To be fair, I poked and prodded you plenty myself," Tom responded.

Baxter chose not to make a joke of that and he controlled his amusement. "Yeah, but it didn't feel the same as a hospital. There's something about that environment I just can't stand."

"As long as we've made you comfortable during your stay," Tom said with a smile. "I'll help you get your things together after breakfast."

"He's got nothing to pack," Karyu reminded sourly.

Tom shrugged. "Fair enough."

* * *

Baxter decided not to bring up the photo issue again, seeing as he was about to leave the Ikran village and there was no telling when he'd see Karyu again. Instead, he focused on courting her a little—within the boundaries of reasonable manners. If he couldn't be with her as a lover, he could at least try to be her friend. He teased her on the way to the landing point and he got a smack on the back of his head from her for his troubles.

"Wow, you're mean," he said, gingerly rubbing the back of his head with his fingertips. The palms of his hands were still messed up but at least he could use his fingers without pain now. "All I _did_ was ask if you like fries with your shake."

"And I know exactly what that means," Karyu snapped.

Baxter wasn't discouraged. He had her right where he wanted her. "You're the one that said you'd love a mocha shake the next time you visit Hell's Gate."

She bumped her hip against him in a manner that was both flirtatious and aggressive. "So? You're just using that as an excuse."

"You put your foot in your mouth and you know it," he countered, grinning down at her.

"Whatever. Look, there's the chopper. I see my parents standing there too."

Baxter looked and he sighed. His ticket home was indeed there and while he spared a smile and a wave to Harris when he saw that he was manning one of the door guns, he felt a wave of depression. Now he had to go back to his routine, except for the additional counseling he had promised Dr. Sully he would take.

"Back to detachment world I go," he muttered to himself.

* * *

Karyu again watched the tiltrotors leave with Howell and she tried not to look troubled. It wasn't like Baxter was her betrothed or even a boyfriend. With his charm and looks, he'd probably find someone more suited to him before she made it back to Hell's Gate for a visit. That was probably for the best...for both of them.

She watched Baxter exchange fond words with her father and more reserved, respectful words with her mother. Tanhi left the landing area once the passengers were secured, never fond of the sound of rotor engines. Tom stayed behind with Karyu and his larger hand sought out hers and held it as the aircraft lifted off the forest floor.

As the Samson flew away with Baxter Howell in it, Tom turned to his daughter. "I've spoken with Dr. Patel and he says that Tsu'tey and Grace are going to be flying in to Hell's Gate next week to give their testimony over a live feed. The rest of Tommy's hunting party will be there with them."

"Good," Karyu answered with feeling. "I hope they put those bastards away for life."

"I was thinking that this would be a good opportunity for us to support Jake's family and see Kato at the same time," Tom hedged, looking sidelong at her. "How would you feel about going for a week-long visit?"

Karyu smiled. "Let's do it. I'm a little worried about security, though. They've got people in their ranks that are involved in this smuggling issue and they might try to go after you while we're there."

Tom gave her a reassuring smile. "I'm not helpless and I'll have your mother watching over me while we're there. I can only feel pity for the idiot that crosses her."

Karyu nodded, her eyes going to the swaying canopy overhead. She could no longer see the Samson but she could faintly hear it, growing more distant by the moment. It was a given that a visit to Hell's Gate would give her the opportunity to spend time with her brother and friends. It would also provide her with the opportunity to return or get rid of Baxter's photo inconspicuously.

She chose to ignore the fact that the visit would allow her to have the "date" he'd set up with her as well.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

_**Sempu **_= Daddy

_**Sa'nok**_ = Mother

_**Sempul**_ = Father

_**Sa'nu**_ = Mommy


	23. Chapter 23

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 23: Poker face**

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Warning: Lemony scene toward the end of this chapter. There is a lot of focus on Karyu and Baxter in this chapter, but other characters will get more screen time soon...in a rather big way. I would like to assure readers that I do not take offence when people make suggestions about where they would like the story to go. Sometimes I respond to those suggestions if I agree with them and sometimes I don't, but they do not direct how I write and I don't feel like anyone is trying to do more than offer opinions. I appreciate all of the constructive feedback I have received._**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

Almost two weeks had passed since Baxter Howell returned to the base. After several skin repair treatments to his hands, he was almost back to normal and with Trudy's approval; Ellis was able to put him back to work.

"I'm putting you on light duty to start out," Darren said, glancing away from his computer screen to regard him. His business-like attitude dropped for a moment and he gave Howell a look of faint, brotherly concern. "Are you _sure_ you're up to this? Your injuries were pretty extensive when Dr. Sully started treating you, from what I hear."

Baxter pulled his army-issue gloves off and dropped them in his lap. He held both hands up for his friend's inspection. "See? Almost healed. Sure there's some scarring and I'm still regaining the strength back in my left hand, but I'm good to go. My eyes are still a little sensitive to sunlight but that's what shades are for. You've got to let me get back on duty, Top. I'm hurting for a distraction."

Sympathy and deeper concern bled into Darren's expression. "Let's go off the record and speak as friends, Baxter. Is it really so hard to be here? You make living sound like a chore."

The comment made something twist inside of Baxter desperately, like an animal struggling to get its head above water to breath. None of the anxiety showed on his face as he grinned at his superior and shrugged. "I guess I said it wrong. I just want to stay active. I cope better when I'm busy."

Darren regarded him suspiciously. "We've been through a lot together, bro. I know you're trying to cope with things that the rest of us have had more time to deal with. You're always making jokes and cracking smiles but the Howell I know doesn't like to bring other people down, even when he's feeling like shit. Tell me what's going on."

Baxter hesitated for a moment. "Is that an order?"

Darren sighed and shook his head slowly, keeping his eyes on him. His gaze told the younger marine that while he wanted him to tell him what was on his mind, he wouldn't pull rank to force the issue. Baxter considered it for a moment. Darren was truly like an older brother to him...especially now. This was off the record and he knew his friend wouldn't apply anything he said now to his ability to do his job.

Baxter relaxed in his chair and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the surface of Ellis' desk. "All right, I'll tell you. It isn't just the Nova thing or depression over my girl ditching me. I'm years behind everybody. I mean, I woke up and you were all old enough to be my parents, with kids of your own and wives and husbands. I don't feel like I belong anymore, because you've all moved on and I'm still back where I was before I zapped myself on that fence."

Ellis nodded patiently and threaded his fingers together on top of the desk. "And what can we do to help you feel differently, Howler? What would make you feel more included? You're still our brother and maybe we're trying to over-compensate, but we're all here for you."

"I know that," Baxter assured him gratefully. "It isn't your fault. Your lives just kept going while mine was in a standstill and I can't expect you all to act like you're twenty again to make me feel more comfortable. That's why I've kept it to myself, you know? You're my buds and I don't want to bum you out."

Ellis smirked. "You do a pretty good job of hiding it, but those of us who know you can see something isn't quite right. We've avoided saying anything because we knew you would need time to adjust and recover, but now I'm honestly worried."

Baxter grimaced. "You don't have to worry. I'm not going to pull a 'goodbye cruel world' drama and off myself. I just need to figure out what I want to do with my life and I need to keep busy, so I don't fall into a pit."

"You've started back up with therapy, right?" Ellis pressed.

"Now you sound like your wife," sighed Howell. "Yes, I'm going to counseling again. In fact, I'm going to start going more often, like Dr. Sully recommended. I don't want to be a head case for the rest of my life and you guys seem to have gotten over things with some help."

"It took time. We didn't recover just like that and some of us took longer than others. Don't expect a few extra therapy sessions to fix everything, Bax."

"I won't," promised Howell. "I think I'm doing better now than I was before the whole explosion incident in the Ikran village, though."

"Oh?" Darren scratched his chin. "I would have thought getting caught up in the middle of a terrorist attack would have made things worse, not better."

"Well, it kept me on my toes—that's for sure." Baxter laughed. "But a life was saved and they took good care of me after it happened, so it's all good. I even had some fun while I was a guest in the Ikran village and there's this girl..." He trailed off and thought of Karyu, with her pouty lips, slender figure and erratic temperament.

"A _Na'vi_ girl?" pressed Ellis with a slight, crooked smile. "You going native, Howler?"

"I didn't say she was a native," Baxter answered. "Maybe she's one of the crew sent to do repairs on the purifying facility after the explosion. Maybe she's one of the scientists. She could even be human."

Ellis sighed. "Okay, so you aren't ready to reveal her yet, for whatever reason. What's so special about this mystery girl of yours?"

Baxter looked out the window behind his superior and he tried to see the outside world through the horizontal metal security blinds on the other side of the glass. In the event of an attack, those blinds would slam shut and make it difficult for hostiles to break in through the windows. He spotted a colorful tetrapteron flock crossing the dawn-lit skies over the base and he tried to remember the word Karyu used for them.

_"Fkio_," he mumbled when it came to him.

Ellis frowned.

"Behind you," explained Baxter with a pointing gesture, "out the window. The Na'vi call those birds _fkio_."

Darren twisted in his seat to glance out the window. "Okay. So you took some language lessons while you were recuperating in their village?"

Baxter shrugged. "Not really. I'm the mayor of Fail Town when it comes to learning new languages, but I picked up a few words here and there. I just remember what they call those birds because they're delicious." He smiled as the flock flew out of sight. "I ate one while I was there. Did you know the Ikran people use little clay ovens to bake with? They even make their own bread from harvested grain."

Ellis stared at him.

Baxter cleared his throat and spread his hands. "I'm not going geek, I swear."

A bare hint of a smirk twitched at the corners of Darren's mouth. "Are you sure? Because you sounded like someone from the science department, just now."

"Nothing wrong with appreciating good food, man," defended Howell. "And that baked _fkio_ they fed me was to _die_ for. I mean, it was tender and moist and they have this kind of butter they make from squash plants that they basted it with. Damn, now I'm hungry."

Ellis held his hands up. "Okay, the subject is officially derailed. A buttery roasted bird is what makes this mystery woman of yours so special?"

Baxter laughed. "No, that's not it. I just miss some of the native cooking and the birds made me think of it. This girl is special because she makes me feel like I'm real...like I'm _really here_, you know?"

Darren's expression softened and he sighed. "Believe it or not, I think I _do_ know. Janet and I helped each other get through our problems. Sounds like you've found yourself a really special woman. Just make sure you don't rebound on her."

Howell's smirk was only skin-deep. "This girl isn't a rebound."

But she wasn't his. That was the problem.

* * *

Kato stared at his reflection in the mirror of the little bathroom within the avatar lodge. He took a deep breath and schooled his face into a calm, happy smile.

"_Sa'nok, Sempul_...Sav and I are a mated pair now and we're going to get married under human tradition, too. So, what's been going on with you?"

Kato's face fell and he groaned, ducking his head. "That will never work."

If his mother didn't shame him and proclaim his news to be an outrage, his sister would probably come up with something demeaning to say to him. If only everyone in his family were more like his father. Tom was the only one he didn't fear giving this news to. Kato raised his eyes and looked at his reflection again. Whatever he was going to say, he'd better come up with it soon because his family was due to arrive today.

His Aunt Neytiri, his cousins and the Spellman family arrived yesterday and they were currently outside, preparing breakfast with the hunters that came with them to testify. He should be out there helping them, instead of standing in the bathroom rehearsing what to tell his family. Kato grunted, annoyed with himself. He left the bathroom and went down the stairs to the main part of the lodge. He could smell roasting nuts and freshly peeled fruit as he approached the exit and his stomach growled. Grace and Neytiri looked up from the cooking fire as he walked down the steps and they smiled in greeting. Norm was nowhere in site. Sylwanin and Ralu were readying mats to sit on outside and Tsu'tey was preparing leaf plates and bowls for breakfast.

"I am sorry I took so long to come and help," Kato apologized in Na'vi as he approached the cooking fire. "It smells good."

"Your family is coming to visit," Neytiri replied in a kind, understanding tone. "No-one faults you for being distracted and we are almost finished with this. Come and eat with us, nephew."

Seeing that there was really nothing else for him to do, Kato joined Tsu'tey and helped him set out the plates and bowls. "Where is Norm at?" he asked when everyone sat down to eat.

"He has gone to speak with _toktor_ Patel and Trudy," answered Neytiri. "They are to arrange the council meeting with the UNEC people." Her eyes were darkened with lingering sadness and regret, but she was as lovely as ever and her strength of spirit still shined through in her gaze. She motioned Kato to relinquish his bowl to her and when he complied, she ladled up some of the mixture of roasted nuts and crushed wild berries from the pot hanging over the fire.

"Thank you," Kato said, taking the bowl of steaming food from his aunt when she offered it back to him. The huntress next to him passed the big tray of fresh fruit his way and he selected his share for his leaf plate before passing the tray on to Sylwanin. He held it steady for her solicitously while she and Ralu made their choices.

"You must be eager to see your sibling and parents again," Ni'nat guessed as everyone began to eat breakfast. "Your family has never been parted for long."

"Never," agreed Kato after swallowing a bite. "It's been strange, but I've adjusted to it." He looked at his aunt. "How is Uncle Jake doing?"

"He is in good spirits," answered Neytiri between bites. "Very confident, though I think he should not relax too much."

Kato nodded. "Uncle Jake has always been that way, though. He usually wins out."

"Let's hope he does it again this time," sighed Tsu'tey.

* * *

Kato got to feel Gracie's baby move and he spent the rest of the morning with his cousins and the others before excusing himself to go to the bio-dome. As was his routine, he intended to wait in the schoolyard for his mate to come out for her lunch break. He and Savanna would have a picnic under her favorite tree, like they did every school day. Dustin and Andrew might join them or they might opt to eat in the cafeteria, to give them a little privacy.

Kato decided that today, he might not eat much for lunch. As the hour of his family's estimated arrival grew closer, the butterflies partying in his stomach seemed to polymorph into stingbats. They weren't fluttering; they were _swooping_. It was almost as bad as when he and Savanna confessed the truth to her parents—except that he had no fear of anyone in his family shooting him in the face. He swallowed several times to calm his stomach as he approached the guards at the bio-dome entry. He no longer needed to explain where he was going to them; they all knew him by sight now and they greeted him and waved him through the arching tunnel.

Kato passed through it and the reinforced doors slid open for him automatically as he approached. He walked through and braced himself for the change of atmosphere. He was so used to going in and out by now that he only coughed a little when exposed to a different environment.

One of the MP's from the base slowed down and offered him a ride in her mini-rover when she spotted him on the sidewalk. Kato almost took her offer but he reconsidered it when his stomach rumbled warningly. Riding a machine could end in disaster and humiliation. He thanked her, smiled and waved. She shrugged and drove off, leaving him to walk the rest of the way to the school building.

A few more blocks brought him to the fence surrounding the school building. Kato approached his favorite climbing tree and just as he was reaching up to grasp one of the lower branches, a familiar male voice called out to him from the building entrance.

"Hey Sully! How the hell have you been?"

Kato stopped and turned, recognizing Baxter Howell jogging over to him. He smiled at the marine, pleased to see him again. Baxter glanced at his t-shirt, jeans and sneakers curiously but he didn't comment on the change of attire.

As the marine closed the distance, Kato's eyes dropped to his gloved hands. "I heard you were back but I didn't know you were back on duty so soon. I heard you got burned pretty bad."

"Well, it wasn't pretty but your Dad and the doctors here fixed me up pretty good." Baxter removed his gloves and showed the other male his hands.

Kato inspected them with a little frown of curiosity. While there were patches and streaks of scar tissue marring the skin on top of each hand, they were faint—as if they happened years ago. "Wow, did they give you reconstructive surgery or something? Karyu said your skin was practically stripped off when they got your gloves off and started treating you."

"Yeah, I've been getting skin grafts. Dr. Sully did an amazing job with what he had but I guess they were right to make me come home for full treatment. They cloned some new skin for me in the labs and smacked it right on."

Kato grimaced at the description, knowing it was more complex than "slapping on new skin" but too grateful to the marine to contradict him. He patted Baxter's arm and smiled. "I'm glad they could fix you up. My family and clan owe you a lot, Corporal Howell."

"None of you owe me a thing," insisted Baxter with a shake of his head and a grin. "But there's something you could do for me if you don't mind."

"Sure. Whatever you want."

"I promised your sister I'd grill some burgers for her, the next time she came to Hell's Gate. Find out when the best day would be to do it and bring Karyu and Savanna. We can do it in the bio-dome park or we can do it in the avatar compound—whatever works best for you guys."

Kato was a little surprised to hear that his twin agreed to such a thing, given how adamantly she denied any attraction or fondness for Baxter. "We're really just here to visit family and friends while our cousin and Gracie give their testimony. Any day other than Monday would be good."

"Then how about Sunday?" offered Baxter. "Weekend barbeques are the best and it will give everyone a chance to get over their jet lag."

Kato snorted. "Ikran lag would be more accurate, but okay. You've got a deal."

"Cool." Baxter looked up at the tree Kato had been ready to climb a few moments ago. "If you want to get into the court yard to have lunch with your girl, I could probably just let you in through the gate."

Kato shrugged and smiled. "It's okay. I wouldn't want to risk getting you in trouble. I'm used to doing it this way and the school kind of overlooks it as long as I'm discreet."

"Probably helps that you're wearing more clothes," guessed Baxter. "You were getting a lot of attention there, for a while."

Kato flushed, remembering the admiring stares he discovered just before he decided not to dress like a native on base any longer. "Uh, yeah. Impressionable girls and stuff, you know? Well, I don't want to be late to meet up with Sav. Thanks for the barbeque invite."

* * *

"You're not hungry?" Savanna looked at her boyfriend with concern and a little disappointment. After all, she had made the _yerik_ sandwich especially for him, using some of the meat he had provided for her family.

Kato seemed to pick up on her feelings and he gave her an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry. I'm just feeling a little queasy." He took a bite of the sandwich and nodded as he chewed it. "This is good. Did you use that Miracle Dip on it?"

"It's 'Miracle Whip'," corrected Savanna with amusement, "and yes, I put some on the bread. I remember how much you liked it the last time. You don't need to force yourself, Kato. I know you're nervous about telling your parents what's going on with us."

He swallowed and nodded, reaching for the bottle of banana fruit juice she had brought for him. "I just don't want to be a disappointment. I've already given the finger to Dad's dream of me following in his footsteps and poor Mom tries so hard to preserve clan traditions."

"This is _your_ life, not theirs," reminded Savanna gently. She laid a lilac-striped hand on his knee and gave him a loving, sweet smile. "Everyone disappoints their parents now and then in life, at least a little bit. Once I heard Lt. Chacón say that there's no such thing as a perfect kid and any parent that says differently is a bald-faced liar. I think she's right, Kato. Our parents may not be happy with our choice for a while but they'll come around eventually. They _know_ that there's a lot worse we could have done than share a mating bond in _tsahaylu_ and get married."

Kato grinned. "Yeah, we could have done a lot worse. I just wish I had the will to wait a little longer."

"Well, you've been really good," insisted the hybrid with a wink. "You've had plenty of opportunities to...um...finalize things with me, but you haven't tried to do it—even after my parents basically gave us their blessing."

"I think that was a loaded 'blessing'," replied Kato after another cautious bite of his sandwich. "They're testing me. Just because they gave us permission to consummate doesn't mean they approve. If I make one wrong move you're mother will blow me away."

Savanna almost inhaled her chocolate milk and she quickly averted her face as she coughed and giggled. She slapped him lightly on the knee when she regained control of her mirth and she made a "tsk" sound with her tongue. "Stop being so dramatic. Mother didn't approve just so she could catch you with your pants down and shoot you. She's pretty direct and she wouldn't give her consent if she didn't mean it."

Kato smirked and took a sip of his drink. "Even so, I'm not going to push my luck." He sobered and lowered his gaze. "Besides, you deserve to be treated right."

Savanna took his hand and squeezed it. "Thank you. You're really sweet when you want to be, Kato."

"Or really self-preserving," he mumbled.

She laughed again.

* * *

When his family arrived in the Avatar compound, Kato was there to greet them along with Neytiri and Norm's families. Tanhi gave her son an uncommonly unrestrained smile as she dismounted Tìlor and approached him, beating everyone else to it. She cupped his face and looked up at him, taking in the subtle changes that had nothing to do with his odd choice of clothing and everything to do with growing inner maturity. He was truly becoming a man.

"_Oel ngati kameie, ma 'itan._" She gazed into his eyes after scanning his face and re-committing it to memory.

Kato smiled and put his arms around her. "_Oel ngati kameie, ma Sa'nok._ I've missed you."

Tanhi didn't resist when her son hugged her close. Being amongst friends, she felt no need to keep a dignified appearance and she returned Kato's embrace with a mother's love. For many moments, they just held each other. When they broke apart, Tanhi's gaze roved over him from head to toe and she decided the first thing she would ask him was why he was dressed like his father, after he had the chance to greet the rest of the family. Tanhi stepped back and allowed Tom and Karyu to take her place. She smiled a little as the reunited twins fell into old habits and exchanged teasing banter while they hugged.

"I see you've been domesticated," Karyu observed with a mock-disdainful look at his attire. "Can you even shoot a bow straight anymore?"

"Bring it on," Kato answered evenly, shrugging. "The clothes don't make the hunter, brat-face."

Tanhi winced inwardly. No, the clothes did not make the hunter. Tom proved that each time he brought home a kill or a catch to share with the clan. Still, Tom was human once and he was still quite active in his biology career. Nobody thought much of his choice to favor the attire of Sky People. His son was raised amongst the People, though.

"But why are _you_ dressed this way, Kato?" asked Sylwanin, evidently deciding it was time to ask now that someone else brought it up. "Don't you like being Na'vi?"

Tanhi glanced at the child and silently blessed her for saying out loud the questions that were in her own mind. She looked at her son quizzically, hoping he would give an honest answer so that she would not have to be the villain and seem like she was accusing him of abandoning his people's ways.

"Sylwanin, that is not an appropriate question," Neytiri admonished, giving her nephew an apologetic look. "As Kato said; the garments do not make the hunter."

"I'm proud to be one of the People," Kato assured, glancing at his mother briefly in a way that told her he was onto her. "I always will be. It's just easier to live here if I don't stand out so much. Being the only resident in a loincloth kind of draws attention, you know?"

"You make it sound like you're going to be living here permanently," Tom said in a cautious tone, finally showing a hint of the anxiety that Tanhi was secretly feeling. "I thought you just wanted to stay until you were sure Savanna's bullies weren't a threat to her anymore."

"Well, there's more to it than that," Kato said. "And they can't keep those punks out of school forever. The school board is trying to work out a home schooling program for them but their parents have the right to push the issue, if they want them to go back to school."

"These parents are a disgrace," Tanhi said with a scowl. "They have no sense of loyalty to their community. No discipline."

"They do their sons and daughters no favors," agreed Ni'nat softly, sighing.

"Well, some kids are harder to keep in line than others," Tom offered graciously. His gaze flicked to Karyu.

"Hey, I _saw_ that," protested the young huntress, giving her father a scowl to match Tanhi's. "Don't compare me to those prolemuris droppings, _Sempul_. I may be rebellious but I've never stalked or harassed anyone."

Tanhi managed a little smirk her daughter's way. "No, you have gained a sense of honor as you have matured, Karyu." She turned to her mate. "My Tom, there is no excuse for what these parents have allowed their children to do. They traded with the leaders of the school to escape punishment. They have no honor themselves and they will not teach it to their children."

Tom conceded the point with a sigh. "You're probably right about most of them. I refuse to believe that not even one of those kids' parents had a sit down with them and tried to set them straight, though."

"That is because you wish to see the good in people," Tanhi replied with a subtle smile for him.

Tom smiled back at her and took her hand in his.

Kato disrupted the silent exchange of mutual affection with an uncomfortable announcement. "Well, even if those people never bother Savanna again, I need to stay here. There's more going on here than prejudice."

Everyone stared at him. Norm was the first to catch the hint that this was a family matter. "Uh...girls, how about we go to the recreation building on the avatar grounds for a swim? It's good, safe exercise for Grace and the baby."

"Yeah!" Ralu answered happily. "I love to swim!"

"We will join you," Neytiri said tactfully, gently nudging Sylwanin away from Kato before the girl could finish braiding his tail tuft. "Come, daughter."

Tsu'tey patted Kato on the arm and exchanged a hug with Karyu before joining the others. When they were alone together, Tanhi mentally prepared herself and faced her son.

"Tell us what else there is to know, Kato."

* * *

"Okay, you need to promise to keep an open mind," Kato demanded. He addressed both of his parents but his eyes remained on his mother.

His family exchanged looks between them before Tom compressed his lips and spoke up, beating Karyu to it. "What did you do, Kato?"

The young man cringed inside, knowing that he had "GUILTY" written all over his expression. He didn't even try to deny his father's assumption that he had done something wrong. "Savanna and I need to get married. Fast."

Tom and Tanhi stood there blinking at him, while Karyu's quick mind went to the nearest possible conclusion she could surmise. "Did you get her _pregnant_?"

"He couldn't have," Tom hastily announced. "Na'vi women aren't receptive without a mating bond."

"But Sav's a hybrid," reminded Karyu, still keeping her suspicious gaze on her twin. "She's more than half human and human women get knocked up by accident all the time. At least Kato isn't trying to run out on her."

Kato tried to correct the error. "Wait—"

"Is this true?" Tanhi stepped closer to him and stared into his eyes, searching them. He didn't dare look away. "Are you expecting a little one,_ ma 'Itan_?"

"No!" Kato shook his head in denial, taking a step back to get some breathing room as his family unwittingly closed in on him. "Would you all just _listen_, please?"

Tom gently shushed Karyu when she opened her mouth to say something saucy. "Go ahead, son. Explain what this is all about, if it's not an accidental pregnancy. Why do you 'need' to marry Savanna?"

"Because, we're mated before Eywa," answered Kato. He braced himself, expecting a backlash of shaming and lecturing from his mother. Tanhi only stared at him in a way that suggested he had just gotten confirmation for something she suspected to begin with. Kato swallowed, looking at each of them in turn. "We haven't...uh...consummated the union yet, so you don't have to worry about a surprise pregnancy. We bonded through _tsahaylu_ but we've decided to wait until after marriage to do the rest."

"You...you _what?" _Tom showed a surprising lack of patience and he looked like he was about to go livid. "Kato, how could you _do_ that? After the talk you and I had about being responsible and waiting until she was older...how could you be so reckless? Do you know what her parents could do if they find out about this?"

"They already know," Kato assured him, flinching under his thunderous gaze. In contrast, his mother was unexpectedly calm. "We told them the truth and they haven't tried to break us up. I'm sorry, Dad. We love each other and things were getting kind of intense. I didn't want to let it go too far without committing to her, so one thing lead to another and now we're bonded."

"And Eywa has blessed this union?" pressed Tanhi suspiciously.

Kato thought of the intense, orgasmic link he shared with his mate each time they connected their queues and he nodded. "Oh yeah...Eywa approves."

Karyu raised one eyebrow and shot him a look that said she expected to hear some juicy details later. "So if you two are already a mated pair, why the hell do you need a wedding ceremony?"

"To respect the Thomas family's wishes, I presume," Tom guessed, looking his son up and down. "Sebastian and Katherine have always struck me as a little old fashioned. They wouldn't want their daughter living with and sleeping with a man without a wedding ring on her finger."

Kato nodded. "That's right. They took the news a lot better than I expected, but they want us to respect Earth tradition and get properly married. I waited for you to come here because I thought it was something I should tell you in person."

"Is _tsahaylu_ not enough to satisfy Savanna's parents?" Tanhi demanded.

"Humans can't link the way Na'vi can," Tom reminded her patiently. "Marriage is their way of joining together as a mated pair. How would you feel if Kato and Savanna were mating without ever establishing _tsahaylu_ together?"

Tanhi's expression fell and Kato silently applauded his father for using that angle. He and Karyu were aware that their parents were lovers in a volatile relationship before they became a committed, bonded pair. Sex without mated commitment might have been good enough for Tanhi, but it clearly wasn't good enough for her children and the sour look on her face showed it.

"Some Sky People traditions are still strange to me," Tanhi said after a moment, "but Savanna is partly from that world and if this ceremony is the human way of bonding, then you are right to do it, Kato."

Relieved that she seemed to be giving her approval, Kato felt some of his tension bleed out and he smiled at her. "I'm glad you understand, _Sa'nok_. Oh and Karyu...Sav wants you to be her Maid of Honor."

Karyu shrugged, evidently not surprised by the request. "Okay, but if she thinks I'm going to wear some hideous, fluffy pink dress she's out of her mind."

"What is a '_Maid of Honor_'?" asked Tanhi with a puzzled frown.

"A dear, trusted friend," Tom explained with a proud little smile Karyu's way. "She's the one the bride turns to for help with planning and moral support if she's nervous. I'm really not surprised that Savanna chose Karyu."

Tanhi looked at Kato. "Does our son get to choose a Maid of Honor too?"

Tom put an arm around her and chuckled, apparently finding her questions endearing. "No, he's the groom. He'll get to choose a Best Man. Have you decided on someone yet, Kato?"

"Yeah, I want Dustin to do it. He's been really supportive of us and he's earned it."

Tom nodded. "Good choice. When is this wedding going to take place?"

"As soon as possible," answered Kato. "We wanted to do it while you're here. I would have liked for Uncle Jake to be here too, but I don't know when he's going to be released and we don't want to put it off for too much longer."

Karyu's knowing grin warned him of exactly what she planned to say before she began to speak, and Kato promptly covered her mouth with his hand and grimaced at her. "Don't even say it, Sis."

"Mphbt...fmap!" Karyu squirmed limberly and she was too nimble for him to hold onto for long. She extracted herself from his restraint after a few moments, biting his hand just enough to sting in the process. He gave her a warning look as they stepped apart, shaking his hand to ease the pinch from her teeth.

"I was just going to say you're smart to get it done fast," Karyu said with a sullen expression, pretending hurt feelings even though her eyes remained crafty. "Who _knows_ what Mrs. Thomas might do to you if you...ahem...pick the flower too soon."

"All right, that's enough you two," Tom smirked when Kato bristled. "I'm sure Katherine is being as reasonable as a mother could be in this situation."

"This is not easy for me to understand," confessed Tanhi. "But it is done and Kato and Savanna have made their choice. Where is Savanna now, Kato?"

"She's at home," answered the young man. "Waiting for me, actually. We were supposed to tell you about this together, but I didn't want to put her through anymore stress. Telling her parents was hard enough on both of us."

Karyu sucked in an exasperated breath and shook her head. "You shouldn't have done that."

Kato cocked his head inquisitively—an expression of curiosity that seemed to come naturally to all of the Sully males. "Why? I was just sparing her the anxiety."

"By not including her in an important discussion about her future," Tanhi chastised, apparently siding with her daughter. "Kato, this was not a wise thing. She wished to support you and speak her own mind to us. You disrespect her."

Kato looked to his father helplessly, at a loss. "Dad, a little help here?"

Tom glanced at his mate and daughter. "Sorry Kato, but you're on your own. If there's one thing I've learned about Na'vi women over the years, it's that they hate chivalry."

"We don't 'hate chivalry'," grumbled Karyu, "We just hate being patronized."

"You can protect and cherish your woman without treating her as a child," agreed Tanhi, giving both males a long-suffering frown. "Why is this so difficult for some men to understand?"

Kato opened and shut his mouth, glancing at his father again. Tom stepped closer, shook his head and muttered to the younger man. "Just nod and agree, son. Trust me, it's less painful."

Kato almost did just that, but he was _tired_ of being lectured about it every time he tried to protect his beloved Savanna from something. Men protected what was theirs and he knew for a _fact_ that women weren't much different when it came to defending their territory and families.

"No, I'm not backing down this time," Kato finally said, crossing his arms over his t-shirt clad chest. "Dad might be a pushover but I won't be emasculated."

"Whoa, hold it right there," protested Tom. "Just because I try to compromise doesn't mean I'm a pushover."

"I have not removed your _Sempul's_ manhood," objected Tanhi a second later, understanding Kato's meaning well enough. "It does not weaken a man for his mate to be his equal."

"Wow, I can see the grooves in the dirt where your knuckles have been dragging," Karyu said, peering at the ground as if studying tracks.

Kato ignored his twin's not-so-subtle insinuation that he was acting like a Neanderthal. "Men need to feel like we're keeping our women safe. That's part of our instincts, dammit. Even aunt Neytiri understands that and she's one of the last people on Pandora I'd want to mess with. Why does it have to be demeaning? I don't see Dad getting offended when you try to protect him from something, Mother."

Tanhi looked up at Tom. "Your father is a...what is the word Trudy uses? Jinx. He needs protection."

"Now you're just making excuses," Tom murmured. "Kato's right, though. I don't like arguments, but I like to wear the pants now and then."

Tanhi's eyes went to the loincloth Tom was wearing for travel. "Your pants are in your supply bag. I am not stopping you from putting them on."

"It's a figure of speech," Tom said, coughing into his hand to hide amusement. "I just mean Kato has a point. We have a right to be protective of the women we love."

"I don't _believe_ this," Karyu griped, rolling her eyes at Kato. "You're not really _protecting_ Savanna from anything by leaving her out of this conversation, dumb-ass. Defending her against a wild animal isn't the same as keeping her from talking to her in-laws."

"Why don't you let _her_ be the judge of that," insisted Kato, even though he admitted to himself that she made a good argument. "I was just trying to give her one less thing to stress over and you two went into 'girl power' mode and attacked me for it."

Karyu sighed and shared a glance with her mother, backing down a bit. "Fine. We'll see who's right and who's wrong."

Kato smirked. "I know my mate. She'll understand."

* * *

"Kato, how _could_ you?"

He watched her slack-jawed as the young hybrid paced the confines of her bedroom angrily. Realizing he had a very short window to explain himself and avoid the meltdown his sister and mother predicted, he nudged his brain into action and forced words to come out.

"Don't jump to conclusions, okay? I was a wreck when we told your parents and I wanted to spare you that. That's what couples do, isn't it? We look out for each other."

She sighed and reached up to rest her hands on his shoulders, gazing into his eyes earnestly. "Yes, that's what couples do. We support each other and we face troubles together. That's why I'm upset. You were there beside me when I told my parents, even though you were scared out of your wits that Mama might shoot you on the spot. I should have been there for you too. Do you know how _bad_ it makes me feel that you suffered through telling my parents but I didn't do the same?"

He bit his lip and shrugged. "It's okay, Sav. I got through it okay and I wanted to spare you all that. You don't have to feel bad."

She grumbled in her throat and pushed at his chest, hard enough to make him stagger. "You're being a big dummy. Kato, I didn't _want _you to 'spare me'. I wanted us to tell them together, as a couple. It was unfair to both of us that you told them without me."

"Damn it," he swore impulsively, looking away.

"Hey, you don't have the right to be angry, here." Savanna put her hands on her hips and glared up at him.

Kato shook his head and rubbed his eyes, even as he chuckled. "It's not what you think. I'm just sick of Karyu being right all the time."

Savanna frowned and dropped her hands to her sides. "Karyu? What does your sister have to do with your bad judgment?"

"She said I was making a mistake when I told her the original plan was for both of us to talk to Mother and Father. I thought for sure this time I made the right call."

Savanna took his hands and smiled gently at him. "Kato, you've been right about plenty of other things before. Karyu isn't 'always right'. Stop competing with her."

He gave her a sullen glance and he shrugged. He knew he was being childish about it but he really thought that this time, he knew his mate better than his twin. "Seems like she's always right when it comes to you."

Savanna barely hid a smile. "She's a girl, Kato. Sometimes she has a better understanding of how I'm going to feel about some things. She's not always right about how I feel about you protecting me, though."

He perked up. "Yeah? You get annoyed when I act possessive or jealous, though."

"Only when I'm afraid you're going to punch some guy out for looking at me," she assured him, caressing his face. "Or when you take it to the extreme. I know what you're capable of and I respect that. When you're being reasonable about it, I think it's kind of romantic for you to be protective of me."

He began to grin and he peeked at her almost shyly. "You're not just saying that, are you?"

Savanna giggled and rose up on her tiptoes, drawing his head down for a brief kiss. "No, I mean it. Just don't let it go to your head. I like feeling protected, not babysat."

"I'll try to be more careful from now on," he promised.

Their lips met again in a kiss and this time, it lasted until they heard Sebastian call inquiringly from the other side of the bedroom door. With reluctance, the couple pulled out of their embrace and they left Savanna's room to discuss wedding plans with her parents.

* * *

That night, Savanna joined Kato's family and the Omaticaya visitors outside the avatar lodge for dinner. She excitedly felt Gracie's extended belly and the adults ate a short distance away to give the young people a chance to catch up with each other. Tsu'tey explained that Emazu was growing into his leadership role better than expected and he seemed to have gotten over Grace, more or less. Grace said that the young _Olo'eyktan_ sometimes mentioned the girl from the Mune'tsyal clan that he had met at the great gathering.

"What was her name again?" Grace pondered after swallowing a bite of teylu.

"Alyara," supplied Karyu. "I guess there's nothing like another girl for him to crush on to keep Emazu off your back, Gracie. It's too bad she lives on another continent."

"But don't clans have cross unions all the time?" Savanna asked. "For alliance purposes and to keep new blood coming in?"

Grace shrugged. "Well, the Omaticaya already has plenty of variety, with the Kilvan members and Ikran clan exchanges that have happened over the years. Our population is strong again and the birth rate is slowing down."

"That doesn't mean Emazu and this Alyara couldn't eventually get together, does it?" Savanna looked up at the partially cloudy night sky. "Imagine what it must be like, pining for someone so far away."

"They hardly knew each other," reminded Kato.

"Sometimes it doesn't take long," offered Tsu'tey. "Gracie's parents didn't know each other very well before they fell in love."

Karyu gave him a sly look. "You're just hoping that foreigner will come back and claim your clan leader as her mate, so he'll stop eyeing your territory."

"Everyone eyes my 'territory'," sighed Tsu'tey. "I'm used to it."

"Even with her waddling along about to drop her baby?" Karyu seemed torn between amusement and pity. "How about that Grace...you can't escape their lust even now."

Tsu'tey gave Grace a sheepish grin that suggested he was as guilty as other males when it came to tossing lusty glances her way. Grace smiled fondly at him and stroked his hair. "Not all of it is unwelcome."

"That is sooo sweet," Savanna gushed, smiling at the two of them.

Karyu grimaced. "Well, I'm done eating. Picturing you two going at it destroyed the last lingering threat of my appetite."

Savanna glanced at her friend's leaf plate and blinked. It seemed Karyu had been contemplating a second helping before Grace and Tsu'tey's affection allegedly destroyed her appetite. Before she could ask the slender huntress where she put it all, one of the younger girls spoke up.

"Going at what?" asked Ralu with a curious look at her sister and brother-in-law. Beside her, Sylwanin also looked curious.

"Nothing," Tsu'tey quickly answered, glancing at the adults warily. "Karyu, would you be more careful?"

The Ikran huntress had the grace to appear slightly chagrined. While the girls were old enough to know some things about the facts of life, it was a safe bet that their parents didn't want them learning the details for at least another couple of years. Karyu had a tendency to be a bit too candid and the look on her face suggested she was aware of that fact. She cleared her throat and got to her feet, taking her empty leaf plat in one hand.

"I'm going to go for a walk through the compound while my meal settles," she announced. "_Sa'nok_, I'll get breakfast started in the morning."

Tanhi nodded at her daughter, accepting the offer. Savanna pouted at her friend as Karyu prepared to carry her plate to the designated spot for washing. "You're just taking off? What about spending time together tonight?"

Karyu paused and bent over the hybrid, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "I just want to get a little after-supper exercise. I can stay as long as I want now, so we'll have plenty of time to catch up."

Savanna heaved a sigh, but she didn't argue with her. "Okay. Just remember; you're my Maid of Honor for a reason."

Karyu grinned wryly. "Meaning you'll find a way to shame me publicly if I disappoint you. I suppose I should try and be on my best behavior 'till your wedding day." She ruffled her twin's hair roughly and gave a wave to the others before walking away.

* * *

Karyu saw a Valkyrie shuttle come in from the northeast and she watched without any real interest as the aircraft descended to the landing pad in the distance. She knew that Hell's Gate flights were grounded except for emergencies for now, so she presumed that the shuttle was from UNEC, possibly coming in for a trade mission between colonies. She shrugged, writing it off as uninteresting and none of her concern.

Her excuse to Savanna about getting some exercise was just that: an excuse. She really needed to clear her head and stop thinking of Baxter Howell. Knowing he was somewhere within the protective walls of this base just made it more difficult on her. She wondered how he was doing and if the doctors here had really done more to help him than her father could. She wondered if he was back on active duty and if her brother had spoken with him recently. Karyu had deliberately avoided mentioning Howell yet, figuring that doing so this soon after her arrival would only give Kato fuel to tease her with. She could slip his name in casually sometime tomorrow perhaps and ask her twin for an update on his health. It was reasonable for her to be interested, after all. The man saved their father's life.

As Karyu walked the concrete, broad streets of Hell's Gate, she considered how inappropriate the name of the base was. Maybe Pandora could be like hell to the unprepared, but everyone she knew described it as paradise—even if it was full of danger. She wondered if Max and Trudy ever considered renaming the colony to something a little more fitting, even as she drew a blank on what that could be.

While she was thinking of paradise, a sudden image flashed in her mind that was reminiscent of the beer commercials she had seen from Earth—the ones that usually featured some Average Joe being transported to a tropical paradise after opening a beer, to be pampered by a flock of giggling, lobotomized females wearing bikinis. Her sudden fantasy was somewhat different, however. Fantasy Karyu was relaxing on the beach near her village. Standing beside her was a certain young marine clad in a skimpy loincloth—even skimpier than usual, since Karyu imagined it to be semi-transparent. Baxter's skin was shiny as if oiled up, highlighting his physique in all the right places. Fantasy Karyu smiled up at her male servant, allowing her gaze to rove over him as she took the bottle of hops and barley drink from his tray. The warm tropical breeze stirred the tassels hanging from the big umbrella shading her from the sun. The wicker lounge chair creaked a little as she sat up straighter to enjoy her beer.

Fantasy Karyu sipped her beverage and reached up to run her fingertips over the treasure of toned muscles and smooth skin. Baxter stood quietly—for once—and allowed her to explore him at leisure. He was wearing a collar with a metal tag on it, inscribed with the words: "Property of Karyu Sully" in English. She touched the strings of his scant garment and with a smirk of sensual intrigue, she began to tug at them with the skill of one who had worn such attire her whole life. The loincloth didn't have a chance. It fluttered to the sand, exposing Howell completely for Karyu to—

"Oh, come _on_!" Karyu hissed, shaking herself out of the ridiculous fantasy.

Her face burned and she looked around at the people passing here and there on their evening errands, hoping nobody could see her blush. She always got so annoyed with those stupid ads, finding them demeaning to women. She always complained that the men of Earth seemed to think women existed just to be their cock socks and the women themselves perpetuated this stupidity by agreeing to objectify themselves and each other for male pleasure.

Now she was doing the same thing she complained about; mentally objectifying an attractive man as some kind of pet to serve her at leisure. Her own hypocrisy was like a bitter film in her mouth and Karyu impulsively spit on the ground, trying to banish the sour taste of shame. A passing MP gave her a quizzical look and Karyu cleared her throat and blurted the first excuse she could think of.

"Dip."

The human paused uncertainly and he had a look on his face that was half insulted and half confused. Realizing he might have gotten the impression that she was calling _him_ a dip, Karyu elaborated. "Tobacco snuff," she lied. "I use it."

He looked dubious and he glanced at the spot where she had expectorated. He continued walking and he glanced at her one last time and shook his head.

"Don't you give me that disapproving look," muttered the huntress under her breath. "If I want to smoke or chew tobacco, that's my business."

Never mind that the chastising look was based on a lie and she had never touched a tobacco product in her life. It was the principle of the thing. Karyu sighed and resumed walking, hoping nobody else would trouble her. Most of the residents she passed by knew her or were so accustomed to native visitors, they hardly gave her a second glance. A couple of young men stared, though. The first one was obviously involved in the science department and he was an avatar. He wore a lab coat and he paused in the process of hurrying by her to ogle her. Karyu stared right back at him until he cleared his throat and moved on. The second gawker was a human she assumed to be in the maintenance business, going by his attire and the tool case he carried. He whistled behind his exopack and Karyu asked him if he'd lost his dog or something. He hastily went about his business when he realized that some Na'vi women understood what a cat call was and would not put up with it.

"Fools," sighed Karyu. Some boys in her village gave her appreciative glances now and then, but none of them would have dared to whistle, hoot or proposition her in any way. Earth people—for that included the avatars as well as humans—simply lacked self-control in that area.

It made Karyu wonder what would happen if she tossed away her inhibitions and acted more like a human girl with Baxter. What would he do if she stared openly at him or gave him a caressing touch to show interest? How would he react if she told him he had beautiful eyes?

She briefly considered the idea before vetoing it and she remembered the picture that was hidden within the backpack she had brought. She needed to return that damned photo, get through his little barbeque and then forget about him. The sooner she did that, the better off they both would be.

These thoughts lasted until Karyu spotted the object of her frustration coming out of the barracks, heading straight for her. He walked with his head down and his hands in his pockets, as if deep in thought. The streetlights highlighted his perpetually tumbled-looking hair and it occurred to Karyu that it was probably time for him to have a trim, unless he was planning to grow it all out to braid into his queue. She doubted he could have gotten away with the collar length style if he were human, but the security branch at Hell's Gate wasn't as strict about making the males keep a buzz cut as the armed forces of Earth and UNEC were. She was glad he didn't wear his hair ridiculously short, even though he could go bald and still be attractive.

Realizing that she stood the risk of getting spotted if she didn't move, Karyu made a quick decision and sprinted gracefully to the storage building on the left. She stuck to the shadows and chewed her lip as she tried to decide what to do. She had been curious to see how he was doing, but she wasn't quite ready to speak to him again. She needed to armor herself more and review what she was going to say. She peeked around the side of the building and she hoped nobody on the watchtowers would spot her and ask what the hell she was doing, lurking in the shadows.

Baxter paused in the street and greeted a fellow soldier. The other man said something friendly in return and patted him on the arm before going on his way. Howell watched him go and he pulled his hands out of his pockets. As the Ikran huntress watched, he pulled his gloves off and studied his hands beneath the streetlights. She narrowed her eyes and peered across the distance, trying to see more details. From her vantage point, it looked like his injuries were healed, but she noticed a faint grimace on his face as he flexed the fingers of the left one. He reached into one of the pouches on his cargo pants with his right hand and retrieved a blister packet. As she watched, he popped out a little white pill and tossed it into his open mouth. He swallowed the tablet dry and she made a face, wondering how he managed to do that without choking.

Karyu's concerns over the pill getting stuck in his throat dropped when she saw a woman approaching him from the direction of the Valkyrie landing area. Her jaw dropped when she recognized the avatar female and Karyu unconsciously squeezed her hands into fists.

"What the hell is _she_ doing here?"

* * *

Baxter was just about to continue his evening inspection rounds when he heard that voice...the soft, sweet voice he was once so enamored with. "Baxter?"

He turned to see Jill Turnley—or rather, Jill Calhoun—approaching him. He swallowed, aware that a UNEC Valkyrie arrived earlier to exchange goods with Hell's Gate. He just hadn't expected Jill to be part of the crew. He thought for sure after what happened with the most recent aircraft theft and sabotage, she would be lying low and avoiding the risk of getting caught up in another smuggling attempt.

"You should be at home," he responded mechanically. "With your husband. You never did tell me his name, by the way."

"Richard," supplied the woman softly. "His name is Richard, and contrary to what you may have heard, married people don't spend every waking moment together. We have our separate careers and we're both fine with that."

Jill stepped closer to him and her eyes went to his hands for a moment before she searched his face. "I didn't expect to run into you, actually. I'm just on my way to drop off some data to the lab and I planned to go straight to the guest quarters for the night after that. How are you, Baxter?"

He shrugged and averted his eyes. "I'm okay. Are you? Has anyone been bothering you?"

She evidently understood his meaning. "No. I feel like someone is watching my work, however. It's probably for the best that I don't participate in certain projects anymore."

He nodded. "Yeah. It's too dangerous. I don't know why the hell your husband even let you come here, after what happened to Dr. Sully. If you were _my_ wife, I'd...well, I'd argue a little, at least."

She smiled and her mouth trembled a little at the corners. "He understands how important research and cooperation is to the future of our colony and Earth." Her gaze flitted to his hands again and she frowned upon seeing the healing scars. "Baxter, I'm so sorry about what happened. When I heard you were injured saving Tom, I just...both of you could have..."

Baxter knew this encounter would be nothing but trouble when her soft hands cupped his face. He took a step back and caught her hands in his, shaking his head. "Look, you didn't set out to hurt anyone and nobody died."

"But they _could_ have," she insisted in a whisper, her eyes soft with feeling. She stroked his bangs away from his forehead. "That's twice I nearly got you killed. I need you to forgive me."

"It's already done," he assured her with a grin. He did his best to hide the growing discomfort he felt as she closed in on him. "People make mistakes and you just trusted the wrong person with the wrong information. Stop kicking yourself and move on; I'm fine and so is Dr. Sully."

"Baxter," she sighed. A glistening tear etched a trail down her cheek, sparkling in the artificial light from the streetlamps.

The expression on her face was Bad News and he knew he wasn't reading her body language wrong. He was still attracted to her despite the years now separating them, but he was finally getting over her and he was treated to a moment of sheer frustration as she tried to kiss him. Howell held her back and shook his head, holding her eyes grimly. He wanted to ask her why she insisted on sending him mixed messages, but it occurred to him that perhaps she had never truly been sure about what she wanted to begin with. It was too late to go back now.

"I think you'd better go, Jill." He gently pushed her away. "People might get the wrong idea if they see us like this."

Her cheeks darkened with mortification as she came to her senses and she stepped back and smoothed her clothing self-consciously. "I...I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry. Seeing you safe and recovering made me feel such _relief_. I've put you through a lot and I think I'll always feel guilty for that."

His first instinct was to make more excuses for her, but he remembered something that Karyu said to him during his stay in the Ikran village and he snapped his mouth shut.

_"Do you think she even cares how quick you are to defend her?"_

He remembered the look in Karyu's eyes and the way her long lashes guarded her gaze from revealing too much. She cared about him—at least enough to try and protect him from what she saw as a threat. He felt a brief surge of warmth for the petite huntress, even as he felt more doubt about Jill.

"Baxter, please say something."

He looked at her again and he sighed. "You're still doing it."

"Doing what?" She looked terribly mortified and confused at once.

"Sending mixed messages," he answered with a painful little smile. "You know how crazy I was about you and on some level, I think you take advantage of that. Maybe you think if you leave me believing there's a chance for us, you can have me as a backup if your marriage doesn't work."

She stared at him and the guilt on her face melted away to be replaced with umbrage. "How could you think something like that? Yes, I have my regrets over ending things with you but I'm not trying to leave you dangling!"

"Not consciously," he agreed. He held onto her shoulders and he silently willed her to understand where he was coming from. "I've learned a few things in therapy. People don't always admit how they really feel or what they really want. You never seem sure, Jill. That's why I kept pestering you when you broke up with me—because you acted like there was still a chance. You're doing it now and you're _married_."

She looked as though she was struggling with herself and her lips moved in silent denial. Baxter felt sorry for her and he stroked her hair. "This guy you married...did you just settle or did you really fall for him?"

"I don't think it's appropriate that you're asking me this," she said, stiffening.

"More appropriate than you trying to kiss me," he shot back.

She looked supremely hurt and he cursed under his breath as she turned to march away from him. "Jill, I just meant—"

"I know _exactly_ what you meant," she called over her shoulder. "I'm sorry for bothering you, Corporal Howell. I'll leave you alone, now."

* * *

Karyu watched the doctor go and she couldn't decide whether she was more inclined to follow the woman and kick her ass or go after Baxter to comfort him. Of course, either option was an extraordinarily bad idea and she had no intention of acting on her urges. When she looked at Baxter standing there in the street with people pausing to stare at him, however, she changed her mind. Before she knew she was moving, Karyu's feet began padding after Jill, swiftly and silently. Her instincts told her she needed to catch up to the woman before she reached the research building, if she was going to say anything to her. Her father would have warned her to let it go and mind her own business. Her mother would have said the same, but for entirely different reasons.

Karyu thought of Baxter's heartbroken green eyes and she decided that some things simply _couldn't_ be let go. She hastened her footsteps and kept to the shadows, closing in on her prey silently.

* * *

Jill nearly screamed when a sleek Na'vi form stepped out from between a couple of storage buildings to block her path. She put a hand over her heart and stared, realizing that her unexpected companion was just a young woman, no older than twenty by her estimation. The huntress wore the symbol of the Ikran clan on her leather armlet and her thick, dark hair was separated into multiple locks and segmented by leather ties, decorated with beadwork. Her bangs hung over her fierce golden eyes. She was slender and pretty, with delicate facial features and plush, bow-shaped lips. Despite her petite frame and shorter stature, she was a Na'vi warrior and Jill had little doubt she could seriously harm or kill her before she could do much more than scream for help.

"I don't know what you want, but—"

"Stay away from Baxter Howell," interrupted the younger woman in a low, warning tone. Her English was perfect, with barely an accent to show for her apparent wildness.

Jill didn't think she could look more surprised if she tried. "Pardon me?"

The girl gave a single nod. "You heard me. You nearly got him _and_ my father killed. Stay away from him."

It dawned on Jill then why this girl was so familiar looking. "You're Karyu Sully."

"That's right."

As intrigued as she was wary, Jill was too inquiring-minded to just let it go at that. "I'm very sorry for what happened with your father. You have to know that I didn't intend to put him in harm's way. Tom and I are old friends."

Karyu shrugged. "That's what he says too. I don't care. I want you to stay away from my father and my...uh...and Howell."

"I see," Jill replied, taking note of her little slip and wondering if there was something between Baxter and this girl. "I understand why you feel the way you do."

"If you understood, I wouldn't have to tell you at all," answered the huntress coldly.

Jill stared at the girl, trying not to notice the formidable bow strung at her back or the hunting knife sheathed on her weapon harness. She knew she was taking a gamble but she _did_ once date Baxter and she had the right to speak with him when she saw him. "May I ask what interest you have in Corporal Howell's personal life, Miss Sully?"

The girl faltered for a split second before shaking her hair back from her shoulders and eyeing Jill off boldly. "He saved my father from the explosion _you_ helped cause. The least I can do is keep a man-eater like you off his back."

Jill sucked in a sharp breath and felt a rare moment of temper arising. "I am _not_ a man-eater."

"No?" Karyu gave her a feral smile that wasn't a bit friendly. "You're right. You didn't eat him; you just chewed him up and spit him out. Everyone's heard about the marine that electrocuted himself on a security fence trying to defend your honor. Everybody knows he ended up in a coma because you broke his heart and played with his emotions."

"I did no such thing," Jill defended, even as her eyes welled with tears. "I broke things off with Baxter because it was better for both of us!"

"Then why do you keep going after him?" demanded Karyu. "I saw the way you tried to kiss him."

Jill wisely kept her suspicions over why the younger woman was really "watching over" Baxter to herself and she sighed, her heart aching with what might have been. She knew what Karyu Sully was capable of and she wouldn't put it past the dangerous girl to harm her despite her friendship with Tom Sully.

"I suppose a part of me is having trouble letting go," Jill finally admitted in defeat. She sniffed and tried to contain her emotions. "I've always had feelings for Baxter, even though I broke things off."

Karyu snorted. "If you loved him so much, why the hell did you snub him?"

"I didn't snub him," insisted Jill, losing patience again. "And I'm not sure what I felt was truly love."

"Then what was it?"

Jill thought about it for a moment. If she were still human, she would probably be wearing her prescription glasses and she would have pushed them up on her nose a little in thought. She finally admitted to herself and Karyu what first infatuated her with the persistent marine.

"When I was in school, I could only _dream_ of getting a guy like him." Jill looked at Karyu somberly, completely serious. "I used to watch the popular girls with their hot boyfriends and I envied them. Guys just didn't go for mousy, ginger nerds like me. When Baxter started hitting on me, I thought _he_ was the one playing with _my_ emotions. A touch or a smile from him just made me giddy, like that shy teenager I used to be. I don't suppose you can understand that."

Karyu's hard expression had softened somewhat. "Maybe...a little. Go on."

Jill sighed and tugged on a loose thread she found on her blouse. "Well, it was a thrill. I had a hot marine hitting on me—who happened to be the only avatar I had ever seen with green eyes. It was like someone was making up for all those years I stood in the hallways, watching other girls with their gorgeous boyfriends. I know it's shallow but a part of me always wondered what it would be like to have a man like that. Someone that would make other women look twice and envy me for my fortune."

Karyu's eyes narrowed dangerously. "So he was just a trophy for you."

"Maybe at first," agreed Jill carefully, "but that didn't last long. I got to know him and I found out there was a really, truly nice guy underneath those good looks and that body. I probably don't need to tell you how extraordinarily _rare_ it is to find a man that's both sweet and handsome."

Karyu made a swishing gesture with her hand and looked bored, though Jill thought she saw a spark of something like empathy in her yellow gaze. "Anyhow," continued the doctor, "I fully expected him to dump me as soon as I let my guard down and allowed myself to believe it was real. The more time I spent with him, the harder it was to convince myself he wasn't really as nice as he seemed. The truth is, I got scared. People like Baxter and I don't usually fit together. Some couples can make it work but I've seen what happens to most of them. I enjoyed our time together but ultimately, I knew it wouldn't last...so I got out."

"So it was self-preservation," reasoned Karyu. "You weren't actually doing it for _him_."

"I thought I was," protested Jill, "at least partially. I thought he'd be happier with a woman more his type, and I wasn't it. As much as I was in love with the idea of being with him, I was afraid of what it would do to me if I fell any harder for him and he left me. Yes, I still find him very attractive and yes, I do still have feelings for him."

"Then you have to leave him alone and let him go for real," insisted Karyu evenly. "I don't want to throttle you anymore but I haven't changed my mind about that. You've tortured him enough, whether you meant to do it or not. He's in a recovery process and he needs negative things like _you_ out of his life, so he can finish getting better. If you really care about him you'll keep your distance."

Jill almost tried to argue, but she recognized the urge as something brought on by what was essentially lingering infatuation. Tom's daughter was right. Jill wasn't a confrontational woman and she knew she was allowing her feelings of regret to get out of control. She took a steadying breath and closed her eyes, willing her emotions to settle.

"Okay," Jill said when she trusted herself to speak evenly again. She opened her eyes and looked at Karyu, studying the younger woman with covert interest. It wouldn't come as a surprise to her at all if Baxter had some interest in her. "I suppose I should thank you."

"You can thank me by doing what I ask," Karyu said, unbending. "At least until Corporal Howell has his shit together enough to keep a clear head around you."

"I can do that," agreed Jill, ever diplomatic. "For what it's worth, I'm really sorry that I hurt him and I'm glad he has a friend like you looking out for him."

Karyu looked a little startled by the comment. She shrugged. "Like I said, it's the least I can do for him."

Jill didn't try to correct her. "If you'll excuse me, I have data to drop off to the research department. Have a good evening, Karyu."

She turned to leave and she only made it a few feet before Karyu called out to her. Jill paused and turned to regard the other woman curiously, half expecting to find her threatening to shoot her with her bow. "Yes?"

"Baxter might be handsome but he's got plenty of faults," Karyu said. "He's a klutz, he still thinks _hawnu_ is some kind of cheese, he's full of himself most of the time and he slurps when he drinks. Maybe you've made him out to be more of a prince than he really is."

Jill managed a soft chuckle and she turned to face the huntress fully. "True, Baxter isn't sophisticated, intellectual or particularly graceful at times, but he has plenty of qualities that make him a unique catch. He's kind, he's brave, he's _incredibly_ tenacious when he sets his mind to something and he has his own charm that's difficult to deny. Surely you've noticed."

Karyu shrugged again. "Maybe a little."

Finding the younger woman's denial almost endearing, Jill relaxed a bit. "Take care of him, Karyu. I would ask you to say hello to your father, but..."

"I will," agreed the huntress, surprising Jill.

The doctor left again and this time, Karyu didn't stop her. As she walked into the lab building and collected an exopack for use in the pressurized sectors, Jill wondered if Karyu Sully was prepared for the ride she was in for, should Baxter take too much of a liking to her.

* * *

Karyu wasn't the only one to watch Jill go. Much like the young huntress had earlier, Baxter was keeping to the shadows of a building. He couldn't bear to leave things on a sour note with his ex—not after seeing the hurt in her eyes from his observations. He honestly believed she never meant to hurt him and he had known it would hurt _her_ for him to say those things. He went to follow her and to his surprise, he found Karyu Sully in a confrontation with her, just outside the lab and medic building. His first impulse was to interrupt their conversation, because he saw the look on Karyu's face and he knew Jill didn't stand a chance against her if she decided to start speaking with her fists. Seeing that Jill had the sense to try diplomacy with her, he waited and watched.

When the two women parted ways, Baxter slumped against the wall and stared up at the night sky. The last faint traces of sunlight were gone and the blue glow of Polyphemus had taken its place. He tried to understand what he had just heard. He had never thought of himself as a "hunk" and the flattery of hearing it from his ex was only outdone by the excitement he felt over Karyu defending him like that. He didn't mind so much that she basically accused him of being a sloppy moron. She cared enough to try to protect him when she thought he couldn't do it for himself. That was progress.

Yes, he was tenacious. As soon as he was sure he was ready to start a relationship with someone, he intended to show the little spitfire just how stubbornly he could pursue a woman—when she returned his attraction, of course. He already had his evidence that she did, so he was almost positive it wouldn't be stalking. She just needed...incentive. But first, he had to confirm that he could pursue a relationship with her without risking court martial.

He began to leave before she could spot him skulking about in the shadows. He made it onto the street and took about seven steps toward his intended destination, when one of the laces of his combat boots unerringly chose to come loose and drag the ground. Baxter didn't notice it and he stepped on it with his other boot, throwing his balance off instantly just as Karyu caught sight of him. He didn't know that she was about to go the other way until he tripped himself and sprawled on the concrete. He was too absorbed in the pain of skinning his freshly healed hands to notice her hurried footsteps coming toward him.

* * *

"You idiot," Karyu sighed as she caught up with Howell and helped him to his feet.

"Where did you come from," he grunted, hissing in pain as he examined his skinned palms.

"I was taking a walk to help my dinner settle," she answered easily, "I just happened to see you trip over nothing and I thought I'd better come help you. Here, let me look at it."

"It's my shoelaces," he muttered, glaring down at his feet accusingly. "I swear I've got a fucking gremlin following me around. Sorry for the language."

She clucked her tongue and looked up at him with a dry smirk. "Or you just don't tie them right. I can see that much already."

Her eyes dropped to his palms again and she gently traced the outer edges with her fingertips as she assessed the damage. She could see where they had restructured the skin and the scarring wasn't bad. The tissue was delicate right now, though. It was newly grown and it hadn't had time to toughen up. Fortunately, he only did minor damage to the meaty part of his palms when he broke his fall but she knew from personal experience how much scrapes could sting. She smelled something then that made her inhale curiously. She recognized the scent from the first vivid dream she'd had of him. It was his aftershave—which he didn't really need to wear, since he had no reason to shave.

She found those jade eyes staring at her when she looked up at him again and she forgot what she meant to say. "Umm..."

"So how does it look, Doc?" Baxter whispered the question and he graced he with one of his boyish, charming smiles.

Warmth blossomed in her cheeks and Karyu clamped down ruthlessly on her reactions, forcing her expression to remain clinical and uninterested in his flirtation. "I'm not a doctor."

He shrugged. "Nurse, then. Do you think I should go to the medical ward to have it looked at?"

She looked down at the slight injury again and she shook her head. "Not unless you want to sit there waiting for an hour or so, just so they can dab it with some medicine and pat you on the back. You have medicine for your hands at home, right?"

"Yeah, I've got some antibacterial ointment and some cleaning solution they gave me. Want to help me take care of this?"

She glanced at him sharply, her suspicions boiling to the surface. "You didn't fall on purpose, did you?"

He frowned. "What, do you think I like pain or something?"

"Sometimes I wonder." She banished the idea that the marine fell on purpose to get her to nurse him again. He didn't act like he knew she was there until she went to his side and the laces of his right boot _were_ loose and dragging. Deciding he would never do it right if she left him to fend for himself with his hands still uncoordinated, she sighed and agreed to go with him.

"All right, I'll come and help you with this." She squatted down before he could answer and she tied his bootlaces securely. "Maybe you should ask for shoes with Velcro or snap buckles, if you can't tie them on your own yet."

"Hey, I'm still getting the coordination back in my hands," he argued. "I can tie my own shoes."

She finished up and rose from her squatting position, brushing her hands off on her thighs. "From what I've seen, you're barely able to walk without causing a disaster."

* * *

Baxter noticed Karyu's hesitation when he opened the door for her. She had a very odd look on her face as she examined the interior of his personal quarters with wide eyes. Despite her saucy nature and innate sensuality, he was sure she had never been in a man's private room before. While liberal in many ways compared to humans, the Na'vi people encouraged their sons and daughters to avoid sexual contact until after passing their rite of adulthood. Guessing her hesitation was due to maidenly concern, he tried to reassure her.

"Hey, I'm not going to try and jump you," he promised with a smile. "We can leave the door open if you want. I just need a hand with these scrapes and I promise to keep my distance."

She licked her lips and looked up at him searchingly. He frowned, unused to seeing such an uncertain expression on her face. "What is it? Is it too tight in there for you? We can stand in the hallway and do this, if you think you'll feel claustrophobic. I know it's a hole in the wall but—"

"No, it's okay," she interrupted. "Stop talking."

He held his hands up and took a small step away from her. "Oo-kay."

Karyu seemed to steel herself before marching through the open doorway. Baxter came in cautiously behind her and he tried not to admire the sight of her tight little bottom or the graceful sway of her slender hips. It was impossible, and he found himself mesmerized by the way the colored beads tied into her rich, dark hair swung back and forth with her motions, just above her mid-back. The end of her queue brushed against her buttocks as she walked and Baxter's injured hands itched to push the braid aside and cop a feel.

She walked through the narrow space between his bunk and his desk, heading straight for his little bathroom without question. Baxter's eyebrows went up. "I guess you've been in one of these bunkers before after all."

Karyu stopped, her spine stiffening. She glanced over her shoulder at him, looking at him from beneath the veil of thick lashes framing her eyes. It was difficult to tell what she was thinking and Baxter wished he could read that hooded amber gaze and understand her behavior.

"I've been in one or two of them," she answered.

"Yeah? Who with?" Jealousy crept into his heart at the thought of her making out with some other guy in one of these bunkers.

"Why do you care?" Her expression was subtly guarded but it still revealed nothing.

He shrugged, trying to force his voice to sound neutral. He thoughtlessly braced a hand against the wall with the intention of leaning against it casually and instead of giving her a cool reply, he yelped.

Karyu bounded to his side nimbly, knocking his desk chair askew in passing. "Stop _doing_ things like that! What do I have to do, put you on a leash?"

Baxter grinned despite the discomfort in his hands. "If you want to."

Karyu rolled her eyes and grabbed each of his wrists. "You should be wearing gloves when you're out doing things. Come on, klutz."

He followed gamely as she walked backwards and pulled him along toward the bathroom, holding onto his wrists to keep him from touching anything else. "I have gloves I keep with me," he informed her, "I just took them off for a while to let my hands breathe."

"What if there was a breach in the parameter fence?" she pressed. She nudged the bathroom door open with her shoulder, let go of his wrists and slapped a palm against his chest. "Don't move. What would you have done if you had to draw your gun?"

He clucked his tongue. "Look, I've only got to wear the gloves when I'm working with my hands, until they toughen up again. You make it sound like my skin's going to peel off the minute I touch anything."

"I'm just saying that since you have a knack for finding ways to hurt yourself, you should be more protective of your hands until they are finished healing."

He smiled and watched as she opened the medicine cabinet to rifle through it for his medication. She really seemed to know her way around his bunker and his thoughts went to the dream he'd had when she showed up in there and looked around at his belongings. "You're sweet to be so concerned."

"I'm not sweet," she insisted absently. "I'm just repaying you."

"Right." He decided to tease her a little. "You really seem to know where everything is in here. If I didn't know any better, I'd swear you've been sneaking into my quarters."

He wasn't prepared for her reaction. Karyu dropped the tube of ointment she had just liberated from the cabinet. It fell into the sink and she stood stiff and unmoving. Baxter's humor vanished. _Could_ she have snuck into his quarters? She was a stealthy little minx but he couldn't imagine when she would have had the opportunity to come in there and go through his stuff. She hadn't left the Ikran village at any point during his recovery and as far as he knew, she had just arrived with her family today. He thought of the dream again, remembering how he had woken up to find his bunker door wide open and his picture disturbed.

Was it possible that she had actually come into his room that night and he was just so out of it he thought it was a dream? Or was she reacting this way because she took his teasing remark as an accusation? Having come to know her a little better, he thought the latter possibility was much more likely. Besides, she hadn't been anywhere _near_ Hell's Gate the night he had that dream.

"Hey, I was just kidding around," Baxter said, trying to ease her tension. "I wasn't accusing you of breaking and entering, if that's what you think."

Her guard went down a little and she picked up the ointment, setting it on the sink before seeking out the saline solution to clean his wounds with. "It's been a long day. Hold your palms out."

Howell obeyed her instructions and he studied her face as she rinsed out his scrapes thoroughly and checked them for any debris she might have missed. He thought she would make a good mother some day, if she ever had kids. He was smart enough to refrain from saying so out loud, however. The truth was, he liked being nursed by Karyu. She made a witty conversationalist and despite her gruff manner, she was very gentle and thorough. The urge to kiss her grew stronger and stronger as she finished applying ointment to the scrapes and wrapped his hands lightly in gauze.

"There," said the girl in satisfaction, nodding at her work. "I could have put one of those sticky band-aids on them, but it can breath better through the gauze and it'll heal faster. Try not to decapitate yourself the next time you're on duty, Green-eyes."

"Thanks, I owe you one," he murmured. Deciding he had the perfect excuse, he closed in on her and planted a wet one on her mouth. He didn't linger for long; just enough to let her feel the pressure and texture of his lips against hers. He broke the kiss after two seconds and gave her an engaging smile, hoping his actions wouldn't earn him a slap on the face.

Karyu stared at him with a slack mouth and dilated pupils.

Baxter almost asked if she wanted him to escort her back to the avatar compound, but he was sure that she would see that as an insult to her ability to take care of herself. Instead, he patted her on the shoulder and reminded her of the agreement they had made while he was a guest in her village. "Don't forget, I'm expecting you to come with your brother and Savanna when we have our barbeque."

He could see her throat work as she swallowed. She moistened her lips with her tongue, inadvertently tempting him to kiss her again. She schooled her expression back into that mysterious mask and she took a slow breath before answering him. "Just make sure you don't schedule it on the same day my cousin and Gracie go to testify. We've got to be there for them."

"Scout's honor," he promised. "I've got to go and report in, but if you want we can walk together until—"

"No," she said hastily. Her cheeks were darkening with color. "I should be getting back to my family. Just make sure you clean your scrapes again tomorrow and don't do anything that requires a lot of use of your hands, for Eywa's sake."

She turned and left before he could respond to her final advice. Within seconds, she was out the door and down the hall. Baxter sighed, staring at the open doorway and relishing the lingering feel of her plush lips against his for the first time outside of his admittedly vivid dreams.

"Well, she didn't slap me, kick me in the balls or point a weapon at me. That's a start."

* * *

When Karyu returned to the avatar compound, she immediately dove into chores to get her mind off of that kiss Howell gave her. Her thoughts kept going back to it and she could still feel the pressure of his mouth against hers. She drifted off into la-la land whilst in the middle of helping her brother finish cleaning the remaining cooking utensils and he voiced a sharp complaint when she poked him by accident with a wooden skewer.

"Damn! Watch what you're doing with that thing, Sis!"

"Sorry," she said automatically. "I wasn't watching what I was doing."

Kato stared at her with furrowed brows. "No shit. Are you okay?

"I'm fine," she insisted, resisting embarrassment with all her might. "I'm just a little travel weary."

He still watched her with suspicion but he didn't argue with her. The others had finished doing their part in the cleanup. Ralu and Sylwanin were cuddled up with Tsu'tey and Grace. The young couple treated the girls almost as if they were their children instead of their younger siblings. Perhaps they were trying to get some practice in for when the baby came. Norm and Ni'nat bade everyone goodnight and they headed into the cabin. Neytiri sat quietly beneath one of her favorite trees growing by the lodge, meditating. Tom and Tanhi were discussing clan affairs and Jake's trial together in low voices, a short distance away from the fire.

Karyu joined Savanna by the fire and she retrieved her half-finished instrument from her pouch and resumed working on it. The embers were slowly dying out. They would provide no more fuel to the fire tonight. If it wasn't dead by the time they all retired, the last to seek rest would put the fire out.

"What's up with you?"

Karyu glanced at her hybrid friend for a second before returning her attention to the flute she was carving. "What do you mean?"

Savanna shrugged and poked at the fire with a stick. "You're off in another world tonight. Is it because of the wedding?" She looked at Karyu with an expression that was somewhere between pleading and worried.

"Don't be a fool," Karyu snorted. She softened her comment with a brief, one-armed hug around the other girl's shoulders. "I'm happy you and Kato are committing to each other. You're my sister, even if it isn't by blood."

"As long as I know you mean it when you say you approve," Savanna murmured seriously. She glanced at the others nearby and leaned closer. "Are you sure nothing else is going on, though?"

Karyu stubbornly denied it. "What makes you think that?"

Savanna seemed to consider the question for a moment. "Well, I've seen that look on your face before...in the mirror. I'm usually wearing it after Kato gives me a really great kiss."

Karyu didn't quite have to feign the cynical glance she gave her friend. "Well, I can tell you right now that whatever look I'm wearing isn't a result of Kato sticking his tongue down my throat."

"Ew!" Savanna swatted playfully at her. "That was _not_ what I meant!"

Karyu grinned. "Haven't you learned better by now?"

Savanna sighed, her gaze going to Kato. He was speaking with his parents for the moment—probably discussing wedding plans. "I just want you to have what your brother and I have found together, some day."

Karyu _almost_ weakened at that moment. Savanna was the one person on Pandora she thought she could share things like this with. She would never judge her or tell her how to feel or remind her of her duties to her people. Sav would have just squealed with maidenly delight and hugged her, if Karyu confessed to her that she was stupefied over her very first kiss.

But Karyu chose not to speak plainly to her friend about it—not because she was afraid or anything—she was just being practical. Howell was a flirt and his charm would surely wear off eventually.

* * *

That night, Karyu tossed and turned in her narrow bed. Ordinarily, she found the bunks in the avatar cabin more comfortable than the pallets she was used to sleeping on at home but tonight, it seemed like she managed to find every lump, every hot spot and every course patch of material. She finally fell into a fitful sleep, only to find herself in another dream sequence.

In this dream, she was in a dim, smoky room and she could see Baxter sitting at one of the small round tables, holding a hand of cards. This time, he was in his avatar body and he appeared to be gambling with some of his fellow MP's. He was wearing one of the kaki colored caps that were commonly used by military personnel and he had a tumbler glass of brown liquid sitting on the table before him. There was music playing in the background and the sound of clinking glasses. The smell of whiskey and rum reached Karyu's nostrils and she sneezed.

It was then that she realized she wasn't in her clan garb any longer. She looked down at herself with confusion. She was wearing what appeared to be a long green dinner gown. It was satin and there was a slit up the right side to allow easier movement and to show off some leg. Thankfully, her feet were bare instead of crammed into those awkward looking high heels human women favored. The sleek dress was so alien to her that even though it seemed tailored specifically for her body, it felt constrictive. She realized that her head felt odd too and she reached up to find that with the exception of her queue, her hair was coiled into elegant twists and piled on her head.

She blurted her thoughts without hesitation. "What the _hell_?"

Baxter looked up from his cards and his eyes swept over her. He grinned. "Wow, you wear that look _good_, Peaches." His fellow card players didn't seem to hear or notice the exchange. They continued playing as if she weren't there patting herself down frantically.

Karyu leveled a narrow-eyed, accusing glare at Howell. "What's going on?"

He looked at the cards in his hand. "I'm playing Texas hold 'em. I can show you how to play if you want in."

"I know how to play poker," she fumed. "I'm not talking about the card game, I'm talking about this...this _dress_ I'm wearing."

He took a card from the community pile and studied it. "Like I said; it's a good look for you. Tasty."

"So now you're trying to domesticate me?" She stepped closer, pausing as a woman carrying a drink tray passed before her.

Baxter chuckled. " You wouldn't be _nearly_ as much fun if you were 'domesticated', Lollipop. Besides, I happen to like your regular clothes. They show off a lot more of that sleek little body of yours. What makes you think I have anything to do with what you're wearing?"

"Because it looks like you were here first," she insisted, "so you must have dragged me into your dream. Besides, the color of this getup is the _exact same_ color of your eyes. I think it's obvious."

"It is?" He revealed his hand to the table and dragged a small pile of chips to sit before him. The eyes that matched the dress so well looked up at her craftily. "Maybe you barged into my dream uninvited. Maybe _you_ picked the dress. You sure that little detail about the color doesn't say more about you than it does me?"

She parted her lips to argue, but she hesitated. She thought of his ex girlfriend and how ladylike and classy she seemed despite what she had done to him. Even in a lab uniform, Jill had an air of femininity that Karyu always felt she herself lacked. She could easily picture Jill dressed up like this and it made her jealous to think that Howell might prefer that over a Na'vi huntress in leather and beads. The color was indeed suspect, too. It really did match the green of his eyes—which incidentally happened to be her favorite shade of green. Did she subconsciously dream herself into this outfit—perhaps to imagine herself as 'his girl'?

"I'm going," she finally said, confused and annoyed.

"Well okay, but I was hoping you'd sit down and play a hand with me." Baxter waved his fellow card players away and they left the table. They evaporated like smoke on the breeze and suddenly, he and Karyu were the only people in the phantom room. He gestured invitingly at the chair across from him. She noticed that his hands were uninjured in this dream.

She was intrigued in spite of herself. She and Kato used to play now and then with the gang when they visited, betting little things like native jewelry and human candy for ante. Kato was the one with the sweet tooth and Karyu always ended up giving him her winnings, finding more enjoyment out of seeing the way his face lit up with pleasure as he ate a piece of chocolate or sucked on a hard piece of confectionary.

"What would we be betting?" She cautiously approached and eased down in the chair he offered.

Baxter shrugged, his eyes roving over her in thought. "I'll wager a kiss. If I win the hand, you have to let me lay a smakeroo on you."

She smirked. "A kiss? That's all?"

"For the first hand, yeah." He winked at her.

"So what do I get if I win?"

Baxter spread his hands. "That's up to you. It has to be reasonable, though. Something worth the same value as a kiss."

She thought about it for a moment, eyeing him up and down before nodding. "That sounds fair."

He smiled and started shuffling. "Let's play three hands."

"Why three?"

"Because everything interesting happens in threes."

She snorted. "I think you mean everything _bad_ happens in threes."

His smile didn't waver and he shook his head. "Interesting doesn't always have to be bad, Princess. Are you in or not?" His eyes dared her refuse.

Karyu's pride wouldn't allow her to back down. "Deal the cards, bonehead."

* * *

A few minutes later, Karyu was sitting sideways in Baxter's lap, lip-locked with him. She wondered how in the hell she managed to get herself in this position. His hand burrowed into the slit in her dress and he slid his palm sensually up her bared thigh. His tongue caressed hers with steady, skilled insistence and his other hand pressed against the small of her back, supporting her. This was nothing like the kiss he'd given her in reality, earlier that evening. It was hot and passionate, like the kisses he gave her in the last intimate dream encounter they had shared. She thought that if he kissed her this way in real life her knees might just buckle.

Remembering some of the things they had gotten up to the last time, Karyu gathered the wit to place a hand over the one gliding up her thigh, stopping his exploration from going any further. "You only wagered a kiss," she insisted breathlessly against his lips.

"Okay, you got me," he agreed huskily. His lips and tongue worked their magic for a few heartbeats longer before he broke the kiss and took a steadying breath. "I can behave."

Karyu swallowed, squirming a little as she felt the evidence of his arousal pressing intimately against the back of her thigh from beneath her. She had to give him credit for being a gentleman. She was a hair's breath away from tearing his clothes off and lavishing his body with kisses. Damn, he was good with his mouth. Remembering just _how_ good he was with said body part and where he had demonstrated his skills to her the last time, she groaned softly. Reality couldn't possibly be as good as fantasy.

"Time for our second hand," Baxter reminded her, smiling. The twinkle in his eyes suggested he had an idea of where her thoughts were going.

She cleared her throat and got out of his lap with his help. Flushed with both passion and embarrassment, she took her seat again and prepared herself for the next hand. "What are you wagering this time, since you got your kiss?"

"A longer kiss," he answered with a wink. "With a little groping on the side. What about you?"

"I'll tell you when I win," she said in a tone of bravado.

* * *

Once again, Karyu ended up in his lap with his mouth ravishing hers. She was certain now that he had somehow managed to pull her into his dream, because the odds seemed to be stacked in his favor. He slipped the spaghetti strap of her gown over her shoulder and she debated whether she should allow him to "collect" his side order of groping or not. He purred in his throat, his tongue thrusting slowly and insinuatingly in her mouth. The combination of masculine noises of arousal and sensual kisses did away with her senses.

She half-expected him to slip his hand under the material but he didn't. He teased her nipple through the cloth and it tightened into a hardened bud in response. The tingling pleasure of it made her moan into his mouth before she could stop herself. He shifted beneath her, pressing the bulge in his pants intimately against her to leave no doubt he was just as turned on as she was. Her tail flicked and curled with growing agitation as Baxter took his time kissing and fondling her. He gave her other breast the same treatment and his lips left her mouth to kiss a trail of fire down her throat.

"Okay, that's enough," Karyu gasped when he slipped the other strap over her shoulder and began to pull the top of her dress down.

"Spoilsport." Baxter dutifully replaced her straps to their original position and he rubbed his nose against hers in an affectionate manner. "If I win the next hand, it's going down."

"You'd better be careful," she warned, "every time you up the ante, it applies to both of us. You may not like what I ask for if I win the next hand."

"I'll take my chances."

She went back to her chair and muttered to herself, certain that she was going to end up in his lap again—this time with her dress tugged down and her breasts exposed. Like most Na'vi women, she'd spent her whole life with little chest concealment and her boobs were small enough not to attract much attention. Something about being bare-breasted in Howell's lap made her suffer uncommon shyness, though. Despite the things they had done in their dreams, she had never been completely bared to his gaze and knowing it was just a dream didn't ease her anxiety.

She decided that if he won again, she'd just leave. She considered her hand and she drew from the community pile. Baxter did the same, his eyes meeting hers across the table. Karyu silently asked Eywa to let her win this hand, if for no other reason than to save face. Walking out instead of paying up wasn't a particularly honorable thing to do, but the bet itself was rude. She told herself that he didn't deserve to collect a winning like that and she was well within her right to refuse it to him.

Eywa evidently heard her plea and agreed to answer it. When it came time to show her hand, Karyu was shocked to find that hers beat Howell's. The marine looked disappointed for a moment but he shrugged with good humor and smiled at her.

"So, what'll it be, little lady? Oh, and don't tell me you want to knee me in the crotch. Hurting me isn't an acceptable wager."

"You should have specified that from the beginning." Karyu stood up, still hardly believing she actually won a hand. Maybe this was her dream after all.

She almost laughed at the wary look on Baxter's face as she circled around the table to stand before him. "Oh relax, I don't want to kick you in the balls. I'll settle for this."

She snatched his hat off his head and she reached up with her other hand to remove the pins holding her hair into place. When the twists fell free, she shook her hair out and dropped Howell's cap on her head. It was a little big but she didn't mind. She stuck her tongue out at him.

Baxter laughed in delight and he combed his fingers through his hair, loosening it where the cap had flattened it. "All right, so you look cute in the cap. Put that tongue away before I grab it."

Karyu would have responded by sticking it out even further, but he reached for it and she ended up yelping and hopping away. "Quit that, you weirdo!"

Baxter stood up, chuckling softly. "I warned you. Well, that's two out of three for me. Want to play another hand and give me a chance to win my hat back?"

"Nope. I like it too much." She smirked in triumph and adjusted the headwear. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to leave this dream with my new cap. See you later, Green-eyes."

With that said, she turned and walked out the door, taking her swag with her. She felt the heat of his gaze on her the entire way. Female instincts urged her to entice the male's gaze and without even thinking about it, she added a little more sway to her hips and a little more grace to her steps.

* * *

When Karyu woke up the next morning, she was grinning. Her poker dream had actually been fun and she replayed it in her mind as she stretched leisurely in her narrow bed. Her smile turned into a frown when she realized that something was resting askew on her head. She reached up impulsively and froze when her hand contacted something that felt like a cap. She grabbed it and held it up before her eyes, staring with disbelief.

She held in her hand the army cap that she won from Baxter in her dream.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

_**Fkio**_ = Tetrapteron; the colorful flamingo-like birds of Pandora

_**Tìlor**_ = Beauty

_**'Itan**_ = Son

_**Hawnu**_ = Shelter


	24. Chapter 24

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 24: Angels watching over us

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. I was unable to fit everything into this chapter that I intended to. I don't like overuse of cliffhangers if I can avoid it, but the word count was getting too close to exceeding the upload limit. I would also like to make readers aware that along with the obnoxious formatting issues this site has with document uploads, every chapter I have attempted to upload lately has taken several tries to make it through. This means that in addition to having to re-edit everything for this site's special needs, I also must spend my time re-trying to upload. This usually results in one of two things: I keep trying until my vision is blurred and I give up or I luck out and manage to get the chapter published after an hour or so of repetitive clicking. This also means deeper proofreading, because when I miss a typo, it's too much trouble to try and go back to fix it. The decreasing functionality of this site is partly to blame for the increasing length of time between my updates. _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

Baxter grumbled in annoyance when his alarm went off, rudely disrupting his slumber. He yawned, stretched and sat up groggily in his bed. Scratching an itchy spot on his lower back, he swung his legs over the side of the bunk and set his feet on the cool tiles. He glanced down at the slowly deflating tent in his boxers and shook his head, sighing. Lately, the common symptom of "morning wood" was even more common for him and more pronounced. It seemed like he was dreaming of Karyu almost every night now and some of those dreams were phenomenally hot.

After stretching a bit more, he stood up and began his morning ritual. First, he got his uniform ready for the day. He frowned when noticed that one of his caps were missing. He searched for it briefly, but he had no time for an extensive investigation so he shrugged it off and figured he'd just misplaced it and would find it eventually. He undressed and had a quick shower, checking the time to be sure he was on schedule. It was a little awkward with his scrapes but he managed. Afterwards, he medicated and re-bandaged his palms, combed his hair into order and made a mental note to get another trim. He used a gauze square to dab on some of the aftershave Karyu seemed to like so much, just in case he ran into her.

He was just about to change into his clothes when someone came pounding at his door. Baxter paused with his hand reaching for the folded garments and he frowned, wondering who would be knocking so urgently at this hour without announcing themselves. His associates and superiors would have called out to him, so he could only assume his visitor was a civilian for some reason.

"Hold up," Baxter called, forgetting his clothes for the moment. Clutching the towel around his waist to keep it secured, he unlocked his door and opened it a crack. His surprise was complete when a pair of familiar amber eyes stared up at him from the other side. "Karyu? What are you—"

She forced the door to slide open enough to squeeze her slender body through. Howell took a step back, bewildered by the unexpected visit and the somewhat crazed look in her eyes. She marched straight into his room without explanation, carrying a leather satchel slung over one shoulder. After dropping the satchel to the floor, she shut the door and he suddenly had the urge to cover his groin with both hands, just in case. He started to do just that out of sheer impulse but the towel immediately slipped and he barely caught it in time before it would have dropped to the floor.

"Karyu, what the hell?" He tried to maintain some dignity while he struggled to secure the towel and hide his junk from her eyes.

Karyu opened her mouth to answer, but then she seemed to realize the precarious position he was in and her eyes traveled his body. Her mouth snapped shut and she slowly raised her eyes to his face again.

Howell watched her expectantly, raising his brows. When those high, sculpted cheekbones bloomed violet with mortification, he started to smile.

* * *

Karyu swallowed and for the life of her, she couldn't remember what she had come here for. She _almost_ caught a glimpse of the area Baxter was trying so hard to keep covered when the towel slipped and her stupid eyes wouldn't stop roving over him. His hair was damp, curling slightly at the ends to give it that natural wave that made it looked charmingly mussed half the time. His vivid, leaf-green eyes watched her warily at first, and then with subtle amusement as the seconds ticked by with her gawking. His tail swished behind him and his ears swiveled with curiosity.

"Come to give me an examination before the day starts, Nurse Sully?" He grinned, evidently getting over his surprise enough to gather his wits. He tucked the towel in on itself and held his hands out for her inspection. "See? I made sure to clean them up and bandage them after my shower."

Her eyes widened and her gaze automatically flicked to his towel as he shifted. A squeak escaped her lips and she made a warding gesture. "Keep your hands on the _towel_, for Eywa's sake!"

Baxter obligingly supported said garment, looking as though he might burst into laughter at any moment. He started to speak, shook his head and coughed. He tried again, his eyes dancing with mischief. His voice was unsteady with mirth barely held in check. "What are you panicking for? I don't have anything the guys in your clan don't have and you see a lot more of their bodies in that butt-floss they swagger around in."

Her face was going to explode with heat and take this whole base with it, she was sure of it. "Well, that 'butt-floss' is designed to stay put! A towel's just draped around the waist and...and it could drop..."

Her eyes went to the item being discussed before she could control them and she swore the male body was designed to draw the female gaze there. The perfectly symmetrical "V" of his pelvic arc all but pointed to his hidden endowments, like a sexy arrow. Why, oh why did she have to start feeling a woman's needs? Other women were better equipped to replenish the clan's population with offspring. Karyu would have been perfectly happy spending the rest of her life asexual, without this nagging urge to slobber all over a man's body. No matter how much man-flesh she saw on a daily basis, the thought of catching a full view of Howell made her mouth water.

Her inner complaints were interrupted as Baxter leaned closer to her, even as he solicitously kept supporting the towel to avoid accidental flashing. When he spoke again, his voice was a honeyed purr. "Good point. So why did you push your way in here at the crack of dawn, Karyu? Were you worried about me or were you just hoping to catch me with my pants down?"

It took her a moment to comprehend his words, because his scent tickled her senses and drove her hormones to even greater heights of stupidity. She shook her head and frowned, replaying his words in her mind and realizing she should be offended. "Y-you think I came here to peep at you?"

"I don't know," he confessed with a wink. "It's not every day that a barely dressed woman practically knocks my door down before I can get my clothes on, though."

She looked down at her perfectly reasonable clan attire. "This is what I _always_ wear, you shit! Na'vi women don't dress to please the eyes of Sky People males!" She was beginning to sound like her mother in her ire. Baxter was making it easy for her to see why Tanhi had such a low opinion of some Earth people. The marine was being a complete reprobate but somehow, he managed to be charming while doing it. Karyu blamed the towel and the damp hair and the aftershave.

Baxter locked gazes with her, sobering unexpectedly. "I'll give you that, but you still haven't told me why you barged in here. All kidding aside, you were kind of rude and I've got to report in for my daily duties soon. You can tell me what's up now or you can do it while I get dressed...your choice."

A little demon inside of Karyu suggested she should offer to help him get dressed—starting with the removal of his towel. She hissed in frustration and clamped down on her thoughts, bringing them sharply into focus. She bent over to open the satchel lying at her feet and she retrieved the object she had brought with her. She thrust the army cap before Howell's puzzled green eyes and gave him an expectant, accusing glare.

"I'm here because I want you to explain this."

* * *

At first, Baxter was only mildly confused. "It's a standard issue army cap," he explained to the young woman patiently. "You ought to know that. You see us soldiers wearing them all the time." In fact, it looked just like the cap she had won from him in the poker dream, but he didn't think much of it—right away.

"I know what it is," she assured him, "I want to know what it was doing in my bed this morning!"

He frowned at her, his confusion rapidly turning into outright bewilderment. "Huh?"

She waved the hat at him. "Don't play stupid! I know this is yours! See, it's sized for an avatar head and it's got: 'Cpl Baxter O. Howell' written on the tag."

He stared at the tag in question, flabbergasted. He could see the letters inked into the tag in his own handwriting. It was one of his hats, all right. "Okay, how did you get this without me knowing? You're a sneaky little thing, that's for sure."

"I didn't 'get it'. You planted it on me, somehow."

He ogled her. "Why would I do _that_? Talk about random!"

"To mess with my head," she reasoned simply, glancing down at the item. "It was on my pillow when I woke up this morning."

Baxter shook his head. This girl kept getting stranger by the day. "Let me see if I've got this straight, Sweet-cheeks. You think I crept into the avatar cabin at some point to drop one of my army hats in bed with you? Why? What would be my motivation and how would I get past a handful of trained Na'vi warriors, your family _and_ you without _somebody_ detecting me? Honey I'm good, but let's not sell your people short, here. I don't think I'd make it halfway across the floor without one of your hunters catching me. Someone's playing mind games here, but it sure as heck isn't me."

"I don't know _how_ you did it, but somehow you planted that dream in my mind and got the hat in my bed with me. It's the only explanation!"

Baxter felt like a jolt of electricity went through him and his gaze intensified on her. "Dream?" he repeated. "Did this dream happen to include a poker game?"

She stared at him wordlessly for a moment, her expression appearing stunned. Her eyes searched his face before she answered cautiously. "So you _did_ plant the dream. How did you do it?"

Baxter shook his head and frowned, dragging his fingers through his drying hair as his eyes went to the hat again. "I didn't 'plant' anything! I had a dream last night too and you were wearing this green evening gown. You had your hair all done up and we played a few hands of poker. It ended with you winning my hat and walking out wearing it."

Her face went into a carefully neutral expression. "What else did we do in your dream?"

"Uh...I don't really remember," he lied. "What about yours?"

"I...it was a lot like the one you described," she answered, lowering her gaze. "I don't understand _any _of this!"

"So you believe me when I say I didn't make you dream anything or sneak my hat into your bed?" He crossed his arms over his bare chest and he hoped she had the sense to realize how crazy her accusation sounded.

Karyu looked up at him again and bit her lip. "All I know is that I'm tired of unexplainable things happening and I'm tired of being horny!" Her eyes widened as the last part of the sentence came out of her mouth and Baxter's eyebrows shot up.

"Let's talk about this horny problem you have," he offered, forgetting for the moment about the other stuff in his intrigue.

"No, let's _not_ talk about it," she snapped, taking a step away from him and cramming his cap on her head unthinkingly. "I'm going!"

"Hey, don't I get my hat back?" Baxter started to grin, despite the strangeness of the whole situation. Her hair bounced on her shoulders as she trounced away to the door.

"No," she answered over her shoulder. "I need it for evidence."

He watched her go and he shook his head and chuckled when she was gone. "Stranger than fiction," he mumbled. Karyu neglected to shut his door behind her and Howell saw curious passers-by glance into his quarters on their way about their business. He cleared his throat when one of the maintenance women ogled him through the open doorway and he hastened over to shut the door.

"Morning," he greeted with a nod and a smile at the staring avatar woman. She nodded convulsively, her gaze going to his towel. Baxter closed the door and ended the little show he was giving her and the other passing residents.

His mind was half on Karyu and half on the strange revelation as he dressed. There _had_ to be a logical explanation for it. He had heard of group hypnosis and shared hysterics before but he couldn't think of anything that would account for what happened with he and Karyu. He tried to come up with an explanation to how she ended up with his hat but he kept hitting brick walls. Deciding that he could work it out later, he shoved it to the back of his mind and left to report in for the day.

He had enough to worry about, without trying to solve the mystery of shared dreams and hats that moved on their own. He decided not to bring it up in his next therapy session, convinced that if he told the doctor or the group that he was somehow transferring his personal belongings to a Na'vi princess, they might think he was a deranged stalker and have him locked up.

* * *

While Karyu avoided Howell over the next couple of days and pondered the mystery of her situation, Grace and Tsu'tey prepared as best they could for the approaching court day. With Neytiri's guidance, they meditated and prayed to Eywa each morning and night. Mental and spiritual fortitude were going to be a requirement to get them through what was sure to be an upsetting recounting of the events that took Tommy's life. Neytiri was their rock, guiding them both to align their bodies and spirits to work as one.

Tanhi and Karyu often joined them in the mornings, the former because she was such a heavy traditionalist and spiritual woman and the latter because she was troubled. Karyu said nothing to her family or friends, but inwardly she hoped that Eywa would send her some kind of answer to her many questions, if she prayed hard enough.

Gracie's family was almost _too_ supportive—particularly Norm. She finally had to tell him firmly to back off and give her space to breathe, assuring him that she knew she could turn to him if she needed to.

"He only wishes to help you through this," Neytiri reminded her when she quietly shared her frustration with the meditation group, the morning before the scheduled interview. "Your _Sempul_ is a very protective parent, but he has good reason with you so close to your birthing time."

Grace impulsively rested her hand over the protruding mound of her belly and she rubbed it through the protective tunic she wore. She really _was_ close to her due date and her lower back was aching quite frequently. "I understand, Aunt Neytiri. It's just that when they insist on treating me like I'm fragile, it makes me feel weak. I need to be strong tomorrow, not filled with doubt. I...don't suppose that makes any sense."

Beside Neytiri, Tanhi spoke up. "It makes complete sense. How others see you can influence how you see yourself."

Grace nodded. "Exactly. I know my father means well but he's just distracting me."

Beside her, Tsu'tey reached over to rub her back. "After tomorrow, our part will be over with. We can concentrate on keeping you comfortable and healthy for the birth, after this."

"That's right," Karyu agreed, her eyes going to the rounded belly of her friend. "Just go in there, give your testimony and get out. Don't let them play with you and don't worry about what other people think you can or can't take."

Grace smiled at the petite huntress and nodded, trying to quell the nervous fears inside. Karyu's words reached deeper than she could have realized. Gracie fully intended to take her advice and thanks to the information she looked up on her father's portable computer, she would be going in armed with at least a little knowledge on Earth court practices and what to expect.

* * *

The first Valkyrie shuttle from the newly arrived ISV came in as Parker watched. A second was on its way and as soon as the first completed its passenger exchange and fueled back up, it would be returning to the orbiting transport vehicle to collect another load of passengers. He didn't have an exact count, but he knew that approximately a third of the people coming down from this ISV were in fact RDA loyalists, employees or investors. Selfridge also knew that a large chunk of the military forces were mercenaries, sent to Pandora under generous pay by the company he used to work for. They would claim to be aligned with the UN like so many others before them but in reality, they were SecOps employed by and loyal to the very same conglomerate that started the first major Human/Na'vi war on Pandora.

This was the first big influx of RDA loyalists since UNEC was established on Pandora. They had been slowly and steadily replacing staff for years now, infiltrating under the very noses of the people who were trying to uphold some semblance of nobility and prove that people from Earth could be honorable after all. The slow trickle was necessary—not only to screen people and be sure they were on the same team as the company but to be certain their cover wasn't blown. The corruption ran deep, like a cancer within a body. There was little doubt that many within the UN were not only aware of the relapse, but supported it and helped it to grow.

Earth was dying, after all. Synthetic manufacturing and gathers from Mars _did_ help soften the blow to the already cruddy global economy, but the complications in maintaining steady manufacture of resources was costly in itself. Unobtanium was still worth more in both economic and efficiency value. The medicine and cultures from Pandora were highly expensive, despite efforts to make them as affordable and available as possible. The efforts made by Jake and his friends to take down the RDA were admirable but in the end, no matter how much people wanted peace they wanted themselves looked after more. The big guys in power knew this, knew that the citizens would begin to forgive the lies told to them when the noble route damaged the economy even further.

That was how the power struggle began to shift back in the company's favor. The citizens of Earth wanted UNEC to operate under strict laws of diplomacy and they wanted the government powers to be truthful about the goings-on here on Pandora. No more lies, no more tax dollars used to wage war on the indigenous. It was all well and good to want these things, but when these restrictions began to have a negative effect on their already difficult lives, the common citizens started to feel a little differently. It was hard for people to hold a grudge against the RDA's methods when their children went hungry, the cost of basic utilities like electricity was too high and sickness continued to spread through the population. The purification factories that had started to make a dent in the atmospheric pollution weren't running as efficiently, due to the cost of maintaining and powering them without a steady source of superconductive material.

All the diplomacy and good intentions in the world wasn't going to change the fact that Earth needed resources from Pandora and the restrictions placed down by the UN and the natives were putting a significant damper on progress. Humans weren't by nature an excessively selfless species. People were tired of waiting. They wanted money, they wanted resources and they wanted cures. Because of this desperation, the company began to recover some authority on Earth and people who were booted began getting called back. Selfridge was one of them—among the first to be put back into action after the collapse of the RDA. He didn't find out that the company was still active in the background until Stone contacted him and recruited him back into the conspiracy nest. He should have known better. The RDA was too powerful...practically a government in itself.

Now all that he could do was try to survive the mess he'd gotten mired in. It was too late to turn back. He couldn't reverse the choice he'd made years ago to accept the administration job offer. He couldn't reverse the decisions or plans he had set into motions recently, either. He was literally trapped between two worlds, taking risks that he never would have dreamed of when he first came under the employment of the RDA.

While he was contemplating his situation and imagining dramatic music playing in the background, Parker became aware that his satellite phone was beeping. Dropping his fantasies of a movie based on his life, he retrieved the device from his blazer and brought it to his ear.

"Selfridge here."

"Administrator, I'm calling on behalf of Mr. Stone," responded the voice on the other line. "I'm Director Franklin, with the new arrivals from the ISV. I'm to inform you that a decision has been made regarding Jake Sully and I have agents coming in with me that are prepared to cooperate with the pre-assigned ones to see it done."

Selfridge swallowed and tensed his jaw. He walked over to the cabinet at the left corner of his office and he began to pour a glass of scotch for himself. "So what can I expect and what do you need me to do?"

* * *

General West glanced at the phone on his desk, debating whether he should answer it or just let the voice mail pick up. He was in the middle of five different things, all more important than assuring corporate suits that security was high and tight. He chose not to answer and the automatic messenger picked up moments later. He had it set on mute so that the answering service wouldn't interrupt him when he was too busy to take calls. He would check the message as soon as he finished going over the list of new personnel that arrived on the ISV.

Just as he was nearly finished, Private Sanders' voice came through over the intercom, further distracting him.

"General West, I have Administrator Selfridge on line three. He says he's been trying to reach you."

Nathan grunted and reached into his pocket for his satellite phone. Sure enough, Selfridge's number was listed under the missed calls. He pressed the touchpad button to answer her. "What does he want?"

"He says it's related to the security during Jake Sully's trial, Sir. He says it's urgent."

West grimaced, thinking that ignoring this particular flunky's concerns could prove disastrous. Selfridge wasn't the average suit. After cracking the way he did over the fear of another animal uprising when Sully's boy was killed, Parker could be a security risk himself if not pacified. Not that Nathan intended to take security lightly; especially when they took Jake to the base to testify.

"All right, I'll take the call."

* * *

That night, Grace tossed restlessly in her cot...or at least, as much as her advanced condition would allow her to toss without rolling out of the bed. She accidentally knocked off the pregnancy pillow she had brought with her and she grumbled as she reached blindly for it. Directly across from her in the next bunk, Tsu'tey stirred and reached out across the distance to pat her blindly on the first place he could reach.

"You okay?" He mumbled sleepily.

Grace settled down and opened her eyes, realizing guiltily that her squirming and complaints probably disturbed everyone's rest. She could hear her father's soft snores and Sylwanin's occasional mumbling. Tsu'tey had rolled onto his side and he was watching her with glittering eyes. The pattern of spots on his skin illuminated his face just enough in the darkness for her to see the concern in his expression.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, "I just can't get comfortable and I can't stop thinking about tomorrow. I know it isn't likely to make a difference, but I want to give a testimony that will give Tommy justice and help your father clear his name, so he can come home."

"I know," he answered gently. He grunted softly as he sat up and he got out of bed to squat beside her bunk. He took one of her hands and rubbed it between his. "I can't sleep either. I know our word isn't going to free _Sempul_ alone but I know what you mean. I feel like it will damage his case if I screw up and get too emotional or angry."

Grace nodded and returned the pressure of his hand in hers. "I need to be close to you tonight, Tsu'tey."

He looked around at the dim cabin before examining her narrow cot uncertainly. "I don't think I can squeeze in there with you," he finally whispered. "I'd offer to let you sleep on top of me but you can't lay on your stomach."

Understanding the dilemma, she thought about it for a moment. They had brought compact tents with them but they never set up an encampment outside the gates. A couple of the hunters in their party slept on the floor each night instead of in the bunks but everyone seemed to mutually agree that it was just easier to take advantage of the avatar lodge during their stay. Putting up her little tent wouldn't take long at all, but a glance at the window confirmed that it was a nice, clear evening.

"We can take some blankets outside and make a pallet on the ground behind the cabin," she suggested. "We'll have enough privacy and we can sleep under the stars...or try to, at least."

He rewarded her with a faint smile. "I like that idea."

* * *

Some ten minutes later, the young couple lay stretched out on blankets behind the avatar cabin. Gracie lay on her side with her handcrafted pillow, adjusting it for the best support. Tsu'tey spooned up behind her and rubbed her arm as she settled in. When she was comfortable enough, she turned her head for a kiss.

"Thank you for putting up with me," she whispered humbly after he obligingly kissed her. "I know I've been so demanding these past few weeks."

Tsu'tey shook his head. "Stop saying that. I've seen how volatile some women are in your condition and believe me; I know I've got it easy."

His comment made her smile and she took the end of her queue and lifted it invitingly. Taking the hint, he reached for his and brought it to meet the tip of hers. The delicate neural fibers sought each other out almost immediately and entwined securely. Tsu'tey lowered his forehead to her shoulder and murmured with pleasure as the bond formed and their senses intermingled. He laid his palm over her swollen belly and rubbed in gentle circles as he lifted his forehead from her shoulder. His mouth pressed light kisses on her shoulder and the side of her neck, prompting her to tilt her head and sigh blissfully.

"I can feel her," Tsu'tey whispered into Gracie's ear. His breath tickled her ear and made it twitch. "Every time we link this way, I bond with her a little more."

"Her?" Grace repeated, furrowing her brows. She turned her head and opened her eyes, looking at his sculpted features with a smile. "How do you know it's a girl? I don't even know if this baby is male or female and I'm the one carrying it!"

He paused thoughtfully. "I don't know, really. I just get a feminine vibe from it...or maybe I just really like the girl name we picked out."

Grace turned ponderously to face him and she studied his face in the starlight. "I just hope you won't be disappointed if you're hunch is wrong."

"There's no way that's happening," he answered readily. He brushed his thumb over her mouth and smiled. "Whether it's a boy with Tommy's strength or a girl with your beauty, this baby is going to be cherished. Don't waste another thought on that."

She smiled back, sensing his sincerity through the link they shared. She felt his body responding to the intimacy but he didn't try to initiate anything. This close to her time, the couple had exchanged the act of mating for cuddles and kisses. The changes in her body made the act of mating too awkward and uncomfortable for her, so they chose to stop doing it until after she gave birth and recovered. Still, she sensed the frustration he tried to hide from her and she felt he deserved something for all of his loving patience. She began to explore his body and she kissed his chest, throat and jaw as she traced his stripes and spots with deft fingertips.

"Mother assures me that most Na'vi women recover their mating urges within the first three months after childbirth." She murmured, hoping to reassure him. "I'll be so happy if I'm one of them."

He returned her caresses and he kissed her on the mouth before answering. "Don't rush to recuperate. I won't wither and die without sex, despite what you're picking up through _tsahaylu_." He smirked in an almost Tommy-like manner. "I went into this relationship expecting to get no sex at all, remember?"

Grace giggled softly, warmed and amused at once. "I just don't want you to feel neglected. Besides, I like having sex too and I think I'll be upset if my urges take too long to come back. I like the thrill. I like knowing that when I feel those needs, I have a generous mate to turn to."

He ducked his head bashfully, but not before she saw his grin and felt his pleasure through the link. The pressure of his arousal against her thigh assured her that his blood was stirred by her use of language. "It's good to know you look forward to mating with me again."

She slipped her hands lower on his body, wriggling back a little so that her belly wouldn't get in the way. "I do. You may not believe it, but you're very good at satisfying me."

She came into contact with a specific part of him that he had become good with and she smiled as his breath caught. His hand settled on her hip and he shifted, pressing into her fondling hand.

"You're very good at satisfying me too," he murmured.

Their mouths met in a kiss as their hands sought out sensitive areas of each other's bodies. They took their time caressing and holding one another until sleep finally found them, only three hours before dawn.

* * *

Savanna's parents allowed her to stay home from school on the day of the trial, after much begging and a solemn vow to make up her schoolwork. Dustin was likewise allowed to stay home from school for the day but Andrew couldn't get out of classes for the event. The former was busy helping his parents set up the meeting room for Tsu'tey and Grace. The latter was probably grumbling in Algebra class right about now.

The first thing Savanna did when she left her house was go to the avatar compound to check on her mate and friends. Kato took her hands and squeezed them in greeting when she arrived. It looked like they were getting ready to cook breakfast outside and there was no sign of Karyu or Tsu'tey. Everyone else was busy with the meal preparations or elsewhere.

"So are you eating breakfast with us?" Kato put his hands on her waist, his gaze sweeping over her. "You really make that outfit combination work."

She smiled at the flattery. It was just a blue tank top and a pair of denim shorts, but he made it sound like high fashion. "I don't want to impose."

He rolled his eyes. "You know better than that. Besides, _Sa'nok_ deliberately prepared food that she knows you like. She won't take 'no' for an answer and you know how she is about hospitality."

Savanna wasn't sure how to respond to that. Tanhi wasn't exactly an open book when it came to expressing her feelings. Was she just being polite or was she trying to make her "daughter-in-law" feel like part of the family? Seeing the expectant look on her mate's handsome face, she opted to accept the invitation without worrying over the reason for it.

"I'd love to have breakfast with you all," she assured him. Mindful of the presence of others, she planted a chaste little kiss on his cheek. "It smells good. I didn't realize I was hungry until now."

"Good. Hey, can you do me a favor and go tell Karyu that breakfast is almost ready?" Kato asked her with a glance toward the cabin. "She was going for a shower, the last time I saw her."

"Sure," agreed Savanna with a smile. "After that, maybe I can help with the food."

She tugged her hands out of his and turned toward the cabin. She fought the smug little grin that wanted to surface on her lips when she felt his eyes on her the entire way to the steps. She waved at Norm in passing and she walked through the open doorway of the avatar cabin.

"Karyu? Are you in here?" Savanna called. She could hear water running upstairs, where the bathrooms were located. "Kato wanted me to tell you that breakfast is almost ready."

"Sav?" The huntress' muffled voice called. A door clicked open and Karyu's voice floated down more clearly. "While you're in here, could you get something for me?"

Savanna shrugged. "Sure, what?"

"I forgot my change of clothes," answered the other girl. "Bring them up for me, will you? They're in the leather satchel next to the third bunk on the left down there."

"Okay; I'll be right up with it."

Savanna went to the bunk indicated and found the satchel sitting on the floor. She opened it up and procured one of two spare loincloths Karyu had packed away, along with a little bikini top composed of shells and colored beads. There was an ornamental necklace as well but she guessed Karyu would prefer the shell halter. She took a moment to admire the craftsmanship of the top and the blend of vivid green and aqua blue colors. It almost reminded her of a mermaid bikini top, except that instead of two large shells acting as "bra cups", several small ones were strung together to provide some concealment and protection. It almost looked like seashell scale mail, except it covered so little. A layer of silk-like, sturdy plant fiber material was sewn into the garment where the shells would rest over the breasts. Savanna guessed that the purpose of the transparent padding was to prevent chafing, rather than add modesty.

She folded the garment gently and draped it over her arm with the loincloth. Wishing she could wear something so delicate without flashing anyone, she tucked the rest of Karyu's belongings in, preparing to close the satchel again. She felt something that gave her pause and she frowned.

"What in the...?" The hard corner of something flat and square pressed against her palm through the leather. It appeared to be in an inner side-pocket that she probably wouldn't have even noticed if she hadn't felt the corner of it. Her first thought was that it was a book, but it felt wrong. She gave an experimental feel with her fingertips and she shook her head, puzzled.

"Maybe it's a holopad," she reasoned, shifting the contents of the pack around a little.

It seemed perfectly logical to her so she shrugged it off—until she realized that there were some hard and sharp items packed into the bag as well. There was a tanning blade, a sharpening stone and an arrow-straightening tool. They were neatly packed in before but now they were askew and Savanna grumbled as she tried to adjust them. She didn't want Karyu's holopad to get damaged from these objects, but she couldn't get them situated to her satisfaction. With a sigh of self-annoyance, she decided she would be better off adjusting the position of the holopad.

After feeling around for a minute, she found the opening to the side pocket that the object was concealed in and she reached in to pull it out. Her eyebrows disappeared into her bangs when she saw that it was a framed picture. No, it was _more_ than a framed picture...it was a framed picture of Baxter Howell, standing in all his uniform bedecked, human glory before an American flag. It was the photo Karyu nabbed from the wall of the military wing that night, when Dustin brought them all to the airport to show them his assigned Samson.

For a moment, Savanna just stared at the photo. She absently noticed that it was easy to see the similarities between Howell's human face and his avatar one, since she knew it was him. The eyes stood out the most, though. They were what drew Karyu's attention first and amazingly, they were the exact same color now as they were then—they were just larger and shaped a little differently. Karyu said she took the picture to study it, but she swore she was going to return it. Why was it still in her possession?

Savanna started to smile, thinking of the changes her friend had been going through, and how hard she tried to hide them. The marine was handsome, brave, friendly and a little silly at times. He had all the right qualities to attract a woman like her and if Karyu had a "type", Baxter was probably it. Either she was hanging onto his picture for her own guilty pleasure or she just hadn't had the chance to sneak it back onto the wall yet. Savanna highly suspected the former.

"Sav, are you bringing my clothing up or not?"

The impatient call snapped Savanna out of her pondering and she hastily wedged the picture frame back into the side-pocket. A little flustered now, she slid the satchel back to its former spot and got up with the requested clothing articles.

"Don't get your loincloth in a bunch," joked Savanna as she started up the stairs. "I'm coming."

Excited and intrigued by the discovery she'd made, she made a beeline for the bathroom on the right side of the second floor when she made it up the stairs. She twisted the knob and pushed the door open, holding out the garments.

"Here, I picked out the seashells for y—"

She then realized why she hadn't seen Tsu'tey yet this morning. He was just stepping out of the draining bathtub and he looked up at the sound of her voice with wide, startled eyes. Naked and wet, Tsu'tey blinked owlishly in surprise. Savanna's eyes were likewise owl-like as she stared back at him. Her brain took a few seconds to kick in and tell her what it was she was looking at.

When full comprehension came to her, Savanna shrieked with mortification and blindly threw Karyu's garments at Tsu'tey. His mouth was opening to say something but he got hit in the face with the loincloth. Savanna was already out the door and halfway to the stairs. Her startled cry was loud enough to alert Karyu and the huntress came barging out of the opposite bathroom, clutching a brown towel around her body.

"What? Do we have a stingbat roosting in here somewhere?" Karyu demanded as she met Savanna at the top of the stairs and stopped her from charging down.

"No, um..." Savanna couldn't find the words to explain it and at that moment, Tsu'tey stumbled out of his bathroom. Savanna squeaked and hastily turned her head toward Karyu, averting her eyes.

"I'm dressed," Tsu'tey assured her.

Karyu frowned at her cousin. "You're still wet," she observed. "You _do_ know what the towels are for, don't you? We don't have to air-dry while we're visiting here, Tsu'tey. Hey, what are you doing with my clothes?"

Tsu'tey glanced down at the female garments clutched in his hand, then back at Karyu. His eyes flicked to Savanna and a flush stole over his face. "I'm not sure. Here."

Karyu took the clothing from him when he crossed the floor and held them out for her. Savanna suspected that the only thing keeping him from diving over the rail to get away from her was his unusual stoicism. A glance at his face told her that he was just as mortified as she was. It was on the tip of her tongue to ask him if he'd ever heard of locks and why he hadn't used the one on the door. What remained of her common sense reminded her that _she_ barged in without knocking and was equally at fault for the embarrassing encounter. At least _she_ was fully dressed. Poor Tsu'tey was the one caught in the buff. Her eyes automatically dropped to his loincloth and she immediately shut them when she noticed that it was clinging to his damp skin.

"Uh, I'm going to help with breakfast," Tsu'tey said upon noticing the glance. He leaped down the stairs, making Savanna wince and causing Karyu to raise her eyebrows.

"Okay," Karyu said when her cousin was out the door. "What in the _na'rìng_ just happened?"

* * *

Even through her own jitters, Grace could sense the tension between her mate and Savanna. She thought she was imagining it at first but as they finished cleaning up after breakfast, Tsu'tey's hand accidentally bumped Savanna's and the hybrid jumped.

Karyu noticed it too and she rolled her eyes. When Grace looked at her curiously, the budding chieftess sighed and grabbed Savanna by the arm. She took Gracie's other arm and started dragging them both away from the washbowls.

"We haven't finished cleaning up," Savanna protested weakly, glancing at Tanhi as if afraid of offending her.

"I gathered half of the fruit for that meal," Karyu said. "We can help finish whatever's left after the three of us have a little girl talk. Let's go."

* * *

Karyu herded her two friends into the gardens, far enough away from the cabin to speak without being overheard by any of the Na'vi or avatars moving about there. Savanna looked curiously guilty as they stopped and Karyu made a grand gesture at Grace, her gaze on the hybrid.

"Well, get it out of your system. If I had a watch, I'd be tapping it right now to remind you that we don't have time for any bullshit."

Savanna looked pale and alarmed. "Karyu, I _really_ don't think this is the time! She has enough to worry about!"

The Ikran huntress nodded and put her hands on her hips. "And that's exactly why you've got to tell her now. She _does_ have enough to think about, without worrying about what's shimmied up your pucker-hole to take up residence."

Gracie stared at Karyu in perplexity. "I'm confused."

Karyu gave Savanna a nod. "Then have her clear it up for you. Come on, Sav. She knows something is wrong and you can't leave her wondering at a time like this."

Grace noticed the way Savanna avoided looking at her and she concluded that she must have done something to upset her. "Savanna, are you made at me? I know I haven't spent much time visiting you while we're here, but—"

"No," Savanna hastily assured, putting her hands out before her. "_God_, no. If anything, I'm afraid _you'll_ be mad at _me_."

"For what? You haven't done anything to earn it."

Savanna cast another pleading look at Karyu, who remained unbending. "Tell her," the Ikran huntress demanded, "Or I will. You're making something simple into a big deal, Sav."

"I...that is..." Savanna stammered, looking between Karyu and Grace with an ever-growing blush on her face.

Karyu's patience ran out. "Oh, for the love of—look Gracie, Savanna came in to get me while I was in the shower and I asked her to bring me up a change of clothes. She went into the wrong bathroom and saw your man naked. She's really sorry and she promises never to do it again." She looked at Savanna smugly. "There; I fixed it for you."

"I didn't _mean to_," Savanna blurted when Grace gave her a surprised stare. "I couldn't tell which bathroom Karyu was calling to me from and I didn't know Tsu'tey was in there! Grace, I'm sooo sorry."

Gracie felt more pity for Savanna than annoyance. She placed her hands on her shoulders and smiled at her forgivingly. "Hey, don't get so worked up. It isn't as though you deliberately snuck in there to peep on him. He should have had the door locked."

"Well, his friends and family knew he was in there so he probably didn't think he needed to," excused Savanna. She bit her lip. "Are you sure you aren't angry? I wouldn't like it if one of my girlfriends saw Kato naked."

"Okay," Karyu muttered before Grace could answer, "this conversation is officially disturbing now. I'll leave you two to discuss my cousin and brother naked without me."

They watched her go and Grace laughed under her breath and shook her head when Karyu was gone. She turned back to her hybrid friend and searched her eyes. "We're okay, Savanna. It could have happened to anyone and my people aren't exactly known for modesty. Mated clan members often bathe in front of each other, so you aren't the first female other than me to see him. Besides, you didn't see much more of him than you always see."

"Actually, that's not entirely true." Savanna coughed into her fist and looked away, blushing more deeply.

"What do you mean?"

The younger girl looked at her with a guilty expression again. "I wasn't trying to look, but it was kind of unavoidable. I mean, it was _right there_ and I couldn't help but notice that Tsu'tey is...well, he's blessed down there."

"Oh." Grace bit back a grin and lowered her gaze; remembering how impressed she'd been when she discovered that fact. "That. Yes, he is."

Savanna giggled softly. "Congratulations."

Though her face was warm with embarrassment, Gracie nodded and smirked. "Thank you."

* * *

Tsu'tey watched his mate waddle back from the garden area, with Savanna walking by her side. The two women's heads were low and close together as they whispered back and forth. They broke apart when Kato approached to speak with Savanna and for a moment, the hybrid girl's eyes met Tsu'tey's across the distance.

Savanna shrugged and mouthed: "Sorry about that."

Tsu'tey smiled forgivingly and shook his head, indicating that there was nothing to apologize for. He offered a leaf plate to Grace when she approached and together, they began to select food from the serving baskets set out.

"Maybe you should think about locking the bathroom door from now on," suggested Grace in a casual whisper as she collected a hard-boiled egg. She looked at him sidelong, with a teasing little grin on her lips.

"Oh believe me, I will," he assured her, blushing hard.

So, _that_ was what they talked about. He should have known. At least Savanna seemed to be able to look him in the eye now. He sometimes bathed with other _saronyu_ of both genders after a long hunt and he never thought much of it. Everyone that bathed together had mates of their own and they were more concerned with getting clean than checking each other out. The un-mated hunters either found another bathing spot or took turns. Since Savanna was mated to his cousin, Tsu'tey naturally assumed it was no big deal that she accidentally walked in on him—but then she shrieked and threw Karyu's clothes at him.

_That_ was when Tsu'tey's mild discomfort and surprise turned into humiliation. Her behavior reminded him forcibly that Savanna was raised in a culture that promoted mixed-messages and odd attitudes about nudity. When they weren't exploiting it for sexual gratification, they were depicting it in art as something beautiful or reviling it as something shameful. Even if her parents never intentionally passed this attitude onto her, Savanna's upbringing had to be at least a little influenced by these beliefs.

"Do you think I should apologize?" Tsu'tey finally murmured when he finished selecting his breakfast. He glanced over at Savanna, who was chatting with his cousins and their parents while she ate. "I mean, I _did_ leave the door unlocked and most people here don't do that when they're bathing."

Gracie swallowed the plump berry she'd been chewing on and she balanced her leaf plate in one hand, taking him by the arm to lead him to the sitting logs. "No. This wasn't really anyone's fault, Tsu'tey. Besides, I think she just wants to forget it happened and you bringing it up to her will only make her more embarrassed. It's like your father says: _'sometimes it's better to let sleeping dogs lie'_."

He shrugged uncertainly. "I guess you're right. It's just...she _screamed_; like I was coming after her with a weapon or something."

Grace cleared her throat suspiciously and compressed her lips for a moment before looking at him. She began to grin, despite her obvious effort to contain her amusement. "She was just startled. Do you remember that day last week when the beetle landed in my hair?"

He nodded, wincing a little. "I think you would have ruptured my eardrum, if you had shouted any louder."

She chuckled. "Mm-hmm, and I'm not even afraid of bugs. It surprised me enough to make me lose my head for a minute."

Tsu'tey crinkled his nose. "So you're saying I'm like a bug?"

Grace laughed softly and squeezed his bicep. "I was just trying to give you an example of how people react when they're taken by surprise. Savanna was expecting to find Karyu and when she opened the door and she found a naked man instead. That kind of situation wouldn't really inspire a rational response in most girls."

He felt a little better. "That makes sense. So you don't think I scared her?"

Grace looked him up and down. The corner of her shapely lips quirked briefly and she shook her head. "Not exactly. I think you gave her an unexpected shock. Just remember to lock the door from now on when you use a bathroom here."

He sighed. "I'll lock it _and_ barricade it from now on, if it'll stop something like that from happening again."

Grace kissed him on the cheek. "Well, it's over now and we have other things to worry about."

He conceded the point and grimaced as his nervous stomach rumbled. Keeping breakfast down would be the next challenge to overcome. Between the bathroom encounter and the trial, he didn't think the day could get much more stressful.

* * *

The room that Max set up for the testimony was equipped with a small observation room off to the side, out of sight of the cameras. The thoughtful arrangement would allow Tsu'tey and Gracie's families to watch from the other side of the glass and if necessary, provide them with moral support. Trudy shut off the environmental conditioning to both rooms so that there was no need for native air-breathers to require use of an exopack during the event. Tom and Tanhi were there as well, to support Tsu'tey and Neytiri.

The twins and the other kids wanted to come too but the adults forbade it, informing them that they could meet up with them after the testimony. At first, Grace disagreed with the decision to keep their friends out of the observation room. While she understood that it would probably be too upsetting for the younger girls—especially Sylwanin—to hear the account, she would have felt better knowing her friends were behind the glass with her parents.

Tom explained his reasoning to her when Grace tried to get them to change their minds. "Certain heads are hotter than others," he insisted. Beside him, Tanhi nodded in agreement.

Grace faltered and looked to the _Olo'eyktan_ for her opinion. Tanhi obliged calmly. "I am with my mate on this, Grace. Karyu is a proud warrior of _Olo'ikran_, but she has much to learn of self-control, before she is ready to lead her people. Hearing you re-tell how her cousin died to the greed of Sky People will be too great a test for her temper, I fear. Tom says you will be questioned and they may try to put blame on Tommy for what happened. Even unarmed, I do not trust Karyu to hold herself in check through such a thing."

"My Tommy was a warrior and a leader, like Karyu," added Neytiri softly, lowering her gaze in thought. "There is empathy there—a respect they shared for one another. Tanhi and Tom are wise to be concerned."

"Kato might launch himself through the window to kick the computer screens down too," Tsu'tey sighed, only half-joking. "He doesn't have a patent on self-control either."

"Oh, they're both growing out of some of that impulsive behavior," Tom assured with as little smile. "Responsibility forces growth and I'm proud of them. I just don't want to risk anything going wrong. It's better for both of you to get through this as fast as you can, without any outside drama added to it."

Grace offered no more arguments, finding the logic more than sound. She didn't want the twins barging into the courtroom to threaten the tribunal or jury either. She expected to hear some hard questions...probably a few insulting ones too. Knowing Kato and Karyu as she did, she could easily imagine one or both of them going "postal" if they witnessed it. She spoke with her parents—which resulted in fast frustration for her when Norm started in on his protective antics.

"Dad, we're going to be fine," Grace said to her father. She looked through the one-way observation window and watched Max, Trudy and Dustin setting up the equipment in the meeting room. "I can cope with their questions. I've been preparing myself for this, remember?"

Norm sighed and glanced at his mate. "I know. I just wish you didn't have to do this. Just remember to ask for a recess if you start getting too worked up, okay? We'll be right here if you need us."

She almost chastised him again but she caught her mother's pleading look. Ni'nat was standing off to the left, behind Norm. He couldn't see the look on her face that begged Grace to let him feel like he was protecting her. The young woman looked into her _Sempul's_ eyes and she remembered all the times he had comforted her when she was scared or upset. How many times in the course of her life had those lean arms held her and made her feel safe? How many times had he taken her hand reassuringly, guided her aim with a bow or tended to her injuries? She could recall only two times she had ever seen those hands raised aggressively against anyone. The first was when she was a small child and she earned her first—and last—spanking. The second was when Emazu made the grave error of insulting her in front of him.

Grace smiled at Norm and she impulsively embraced him, forgetting all about her frustration with his borderline-smothering approach to safeguarding her. There would come a time in her life when she would wish with all her heart that her _Sempu_ were still around to wipe away her tears and hold her in a comforting embrace. She saw this with shocking clarity and she put all of her love and appreciation into her gesture of affection. When she pulled away from him, she looked up at him silently and smiled before turning to her mother to embrace her.

Tsu'tey finished speaking with his mother and he approached just as Grace and Ni'nat broke apart. He offered his hands to Grace and took a deep breath, smiling at her nervously. "Are you ready?"

Gracie smiled back and took his hands. "As ready as I can be. Let's go."

Norm put an arm around Ni'nat's waste and drew her close. Tom and Tanhi whispered softly with Neytiri, occasionally glancing through the mirrored window into the meeting room. Grace and Tsu'tey left the observation room together; drawing strength from one another as they prepared to describe how someone they loved was killed trying to protect them both.

* * *

Max stood behind the cameras with the technicians and he watched with sympathetic, supportive dark eyes as the two Omaticaya witnesses took their seats at the desk. Trudy had vacated to join the Spellman and Sully families in the observation room—possibly because she feared she might shout something inappropriate at the wrong time. Grace and Tsu'tey shared a look between them, grateful for Dr. Patel's reassuring visual presence. It did help to know their parents were watching but visual contact with an adult they respected and trusted did wonders for their nerves.

"And we're clear," Max announced. "Tsu'tey, Grace, just try to relax and respond to the people on the screen. We can break whenever you need to."

Grace nodded. "Thank you, Dr. Patel. I think we're ready to do this."

Max glanced at Tsu'tey and when the hunter nodded in agreement, he signaled the transmitter team and the broad, flat monitor screens lit up. The center screen displayed a familiar woman with copper skin and long raven hair. The left and right screens on either side were focused on the tribunal and the jury.

"Thank you for joining us," said the dark-haired woman on the center screen. "I know this must be hard on you both, but all accounts must be heard."

Grace's first instinct was to glance at her mate but she refrained. Testifying together was already likely to impress an image of weakness. She needed to be able to respond without seeking Tsu'tey's approval or advice, even silently. Out the corner of her eye, she saw him give a polite nod of greeting and she knew that he felt the same way. They had agreed to be silent in their support for each other while in the proverbial "court room". They needed to be firm but united and they needed to show the tribunal the strength and dignity of their clan.

This did not stop them from giving more to each other than they let on, however. The black lacquer desk they were seated at provided enough cover for the young couple to hold hands beneath it and that simple blessing provided the most comfort of all.

* * *

They watched as their children endured coldly detached questioning about the day Tommy was murdered. The woman called Archer was gentle when she had her turns, though professional. The man, however, was ruthless. Trudy had warned them about him but they didn't fully respect his ability to manipulate people until they saw the way he was going after Grace. His first line of questioning insinuated that Tommy had basically "asked for it" by going to investigate in the first place. He asked Grace if she agreed that he should have led his hunting party away and reported the noise for others to investigate. By then, she was flustered and she ended up giving him a jerky nod of agreement, obviously reluctant to concede but unable to formulate a better response.

"Are you _kidding_?" Norm hissed, curling his hands into fists at his sides. "Can't they see her condition? What kind of asshole asks a pregnant woman if her dead mate deserved to be cut down in front of her?"

"The kind that gets paid to stack the odds in the opposition's favor," Tom reasoned. "And he's probably relying on the fact that pregnant women have been known to be emotionally vulnerable."

"Why would he do this?" Tanhi demanded, narrowing her eyes at the image of the rude human interrogator on the screen. "To what purpose?"

"To make the Na'vi seem unreasonable and volatile," answered Tom. "If he gets them upset enough to imply they approve of killing over territorial disputes, he can lead the jury to believe other Na'vi feel the same. Under that logic, Jake is too dangerous to go free, because he has the respect of all the great clans on this continent and could incite an all out war against the human colonies."

"That is foolish reasoning," Neytiri hissed. "My Jake would never choose to go to war again, unless they force him too. He was the one to arrange the peace treaty!"

"I know that and the man questioning the kids knows that too," Tom answered, "but my bet is most of those people watching this testimony weren't here when it all happened and they don't know all of those details. That's why it's very important that Grace and Tsu'tey show them that the Omaticaya aren't a violent clan. If they see that the natives aren't hostile to the colonies then there's a better chance for Jake to be acquitted and freed."

His voice was calm but his features were troubled as he watched Neytiri. She stood with her back stiff and her hands tightly clutching something together. He glanced at his mate, who was also giving the _Tsahik_ a frowning look of concern. Neytiri had just listened to a full description of how her firstborn son died and it was clearly taking a toll on her emotions.

"Neytiri, do you want to leave?" Tom squeezed her shoulders supportively, keeping one worried eye on Norm as well. Perhaps Karyu wasn't the one they needed to worry about disrupting the proceeding, after all. Ni'nat was trying to soothe him but Norm clearly couldn't bear to see his daughter emotionally attacked this way.

Neytiri opened her hands to look down at a small, carved wooden _pa'li _in them. She took a deep, shuddering breath and shook her head before turning to look at Tom with unshed tears in her eyes. "I will manage. I must be here for my remaining son, as promised."

Tom nodded and patted her shoulders gently, heavy-hearted with empathy and his own grief. Losing his nephew was bad enough, but watching Tsu'tey and Grace have to re-live the experience before an audience of detached representatives of UNEC was torture.

"Norm, we knew that they would ask unfair questions," Ni'nat murmured, rubbing her mate's back in slow, soothing strokes. "Please, let Grace finish this with dignity."

"I won't disrupt anything," Norm said tensely. "As much as I'd like to wrap my hands around that guy's throat and squeeze until his tiny head pops off."

The opposing council was not finished yet, of course. He stepped back up and regarded Tsu'tey thoughtfully, before shifting his attention to Grace.

"How did you feel when you learned that your father in law killed the men responsible for your mate's death, Grace?"

Her lovely features hardened and she stiffened in her chair. "I don't have to answer that."

At the same time, Commissioner Archer voiced an objection. "Grace Spellman Sully is not on trial here."

"I was brought here to give my testimony for what happened that day when those people killed Tommy," Grace agreed with a thankful glance at the commissioner. "What I felt when I heard those men died has nothing to do with our clan leader's case."

"Objection sustained," said one of the judges after conferring with his companions. "The question will be stricken. Continue."

* * *

"_Good girl_," Tom enthused, glancing at Norm. The anthropologist's mouth was hanging open and he was looking at his daughter like he barely recognized her. "Looks like she wasn't kidding when she said she's been preparing herself, Norm. Close your mouth and don't be so shocked."

Norm found his tongue. "I knew she was looking up some things but I didn't expect _this_."

"You underestimate her," Ni'nat told him smugly, smiling at their daughter. "Now you see that Gracie can take care of herself, when she must."

To his credit, Norm looked a little chagrined. He even began to relax as the testimony neared its end. "I'm just glad it's almost over with."

* * *

She wasn't nearly as calm on the inside as she may have appeared on the outside. Grace feared she might throw up if the torturous questions continued. The plaintiff switched his attention between she and Tsu'tey but he focused more on her, deliberately trying to rattle her and make her reveal something he could use to cloud the issue. Grace refused to allow him the satisfaction and she took comfort in the presence she could sense at her side. She watched Tsu'tey from the corner of her eye and she suspected he felt it too. Tommy was with them in spirit, even if he wasn't saying anything.

"People have said that your father acted out of temporary insanity," the plaintiff said to Tsu'tey. "But he made plans before acting, didn't he? He told his clan to banish him. This was all premeditated."

Tsu'tey set his jaw. "He didn't want the Omaticaya to be involved in any conflict that could endanger the treaty. That doesn't mean he went out intending to kill anyone. He was just acting for the good of the clan."

"But did he strike you as irrational?" persisted the man. "Was he stricken with insanity, as others suggest?"

Tsu'tey considered the question briefly. "He saw what Grace and I witnessed, as if he'd been there himself. I think he was insane with grief, yes. I saw his eyes."

The plaintiff frowned and so did several other people. "You say he 'saw' the whole thing. How is that possible, when he wasn't there?"

"Through _tsahaylu_," explained Tsu'tey. "He asked me to link with him, so he could see the faces of the men who killed Tommy."

"_Tsahaylu_," repeated the man doubtfully.

"If you know anything about Na'vi anatomy, you know we can transfer memories and images through our hair queue's." Tsu'tey's voice expressed a hint of annoyance. "Ask any of your avatar drivers, if you doubt it."

"I thought only mated Na'vi linked that way."

"Most of the time," agreed Tsu'tey, "but any two Na'vi can do it, if they want to exchange memories or thoughts. It's just a more direct way than using _Utral Aymokriyä_ or _Ayvitrayä Ramunong_ to share them. In mating, _tsahaylu_ helps a couple to bond with each other in more than just body. Outside of that, it lets us communicate with our ancestors and animals."

The plaintiff seemed to lose his momentum and Commissioner Archer stepped forward. "Thank you for explaining how the bond works, Tsu'tey. You say Mr. Sully linked with you to see the faces of the people who killed his son, correct?"

Tsu'tey nodded.

"So, he actually _watched_ your brother get surrounded by soldiers and shot point-blank in the head," reasoned Archer in sympathetic tones.

Again, Tsu'tey nodded. He shut his eyes and Grace reached beneath the table to squeeze his hand. "Yes Ma'am."

Archer looked at Grace. "What about you, Grace? Do you believe that seeing such a thing drove Jake Sully to madness?"

She looked at Tsu'tey and swallowed the lump in her throat. "I saw his face too. He wasn't the man I grew up knowing, Miss Archer."

"I see." The woman seemed satisfied. "Are there any parting words you would like the jury to consider?"

Grace shook her head, but Tsu'tey stood up to take the woman up on her offer. "Yes, if it's permitted."

The judges gave him the nod and he gathered his thoughts before speaking again. "My clan isn't aggressive unless we have to be. We hunt, we fish and we gather in our territories but we don't seek out human beings to terrorize or attack. We want to raise our children in peace, but we _will_ defend the land and our people if someone tries to do them harm. Those people were violating the agreement between your people and ours that day, desecrating sacred ground where our brothers and sisters died to RDA weapons. To say that Tommy never should have been there is an insult. Tommy and the rest of us had _every right_ to be there and we had _every right_ to investigate when we heard noises of destruction coming from our old village. The harvesters were the ones in the wrong, not us."

He looked down at Grace, who watched him from her seated position with both hands protectively resting over the swell of her abdomen. He gave her a tender little smile as he spoke. "This woman is my mate, but she is carrying my brother's child. Soon, she is going to bring my niece or nephew into the world. I'm going to hold the baby and help name it. I'm going to be there to soothe it when it cries, bathe it and change its wraps when it soils itself and help raise it from a baby to an adult. I'm going to love this child like it was my own."

He looked at the screen again, his face sobering. "This all should have been Tommy's honor. He should be the one to hold his daughter or son. He should be the one to name the child, to tell it bedtime stories, to teach it how to fish and hunt and survive in the forest. He's been robbed of that. Gracie has been robbed of her first mate. Her son or daughter has been robbed of a biological father. I have robbed of a brother and my parents have been robbed of a son. Please, don't ask us to feel any sympathy for the men who took this person out of our lives. You wouldn't ask it of a human and you shouldn't ask it of us."

* * *

Tsu'tey took his seat and there was a moment of silence. In the observation room, Neytiri wiped her eyes and smiled at her youngest son with pride. Tanhi put an arm around her supportively and Norm watched Tsu'tey with surprised respect.

Tom took a deep breath and nodded. "Way to go, kid." Tsu'tey had just demonstrated that despite differences, Na'vi and humans weren't so different after all and this would help the jury identify with his family and their grief.

Archer gave him an approving look, glancing around at the jury with confidence before addressing Tsu'tey and Grace again. "Thank you both."

Tsu'tey nodded and thanked her. Grace prepared to do the same but something gave her pause and she went quiet, listening inwardly with a frown.

"Are you okay?" Tsu'tey whispered, noticing her hesitation.

She waited a moment before forcing a smile and nodding. "Yes...I just felt a little sick to my stomach."

"This hearing is adjourned," announced the middle judge. "The court thanks the witnesses and will now disassemble."

* * *

"You handled yourselves very well," congratulated Max when the screens shut off. He smiled at the couple through the clear visor of his breathing mask as the adults came in from the observation room. "I'm impressed."

"Thank you, Dr. Patel," answered Tsu'tey politely. He sighed in relief that the ordeal was over with and he embraced his mother.

"I'm proud of you," Norm said to Grace as he put his arms around her. "When you said you wanted to read information about Earth court proceedings, I thought you just wanted an idea of what to expect. I didn't know you got that into it."

Grace smiled and stepped out of his embrace to hug her mother. "I wanted to know what rights Tsu'tey and I could expect to have on the stand. I half expected the judges to make me answer that stupid question but my bluff paid off."

"What would you have said, if they had not agreed it was an inappropriate question?" Ni'nat inquired.

"The truth," answered Grace. "I was _glad_ when I got the news that those men were dead—_GLAD_. I know it's ugly but that's how I felt." She started to speak again but she went still and took a slow breath.

"Okay, it's over now," Tom said tactfully. "The others are waiting for you in the base-side recreation building. They're in the board meeting room you guys are always gathering in to watch movies together. I think it would do you both a lot of good to wind down with your friends and siblings. Do some teenager things, while you have the chance."

Tsu'tey smiled at Grace and he return smile wasn't as enthusiastic. He noticed it and frowned. "Are you sure everything is okay?"

She started to reassure him, but she felt another warning inside and she had no choice but to heed it. Instead of answering her mate, she looked to her father. "I'll go to tell our friends how it went, but I can't stay. I think we should go home as soon as possible."

"But you were looking forward to visiting your cousins and friends," objected Norm cluelessly. "And Kato and Savanna are getting married this weekend. I thought you wanted to be here for that."

"Oh, I do," she assured him. The look she saw on Tsu'tey's face told her that he was starting to get it. She took his hand in hers and tried to swallow the thrill of fear that made her shiver. "The baby is going to be coming soon, Father."

Norm's eyes bugged out and they dropped to her stomach. Everyone went quiet—except for Trudy, who had just come back in after being informed via satellite phone that the testimony was finished.

"Holy shit...don't just stand there looking dumb, Norm! Get your little girl to the infirmary!"

"It's okay," Gracie said hastily, concerned by the expressions of alarm spreading over the adults' faces. "I haven't started having contractions yet. I just know it's going to start happening soon."

Trudy shared a puzzled look with Max. "You 'just know'? Before you even start having symptoms?"

"Na'vi women can sense when it is close to their birthing time," Neytiri confirmed.

Max considered Grace with quiet concern. "How much time does she have before it starts?"

"I have no idea," confessed the young woman. "I just feel like it's going to start soon-ish."

"Some women know a full day before it begins," Tanhi explained, sharing a little smile with Tom. "Others may begin feeling their birthing pains an hour after sensing their time is near. It is the way we are made, to allow expecting mothers time to find a safe birthing area. This is why many Na'vi females continue to hunt up until they are ready to give birth. We always know when our time is coming."

"Unless something is not right," added Neytiri with a suddenly concerned look Gracie's way. "You feel no pains?"

Grace put a hand over her abdomen and she shook her head. She was at least a week early but she didn't sense anything wrong, thank Eywa. "I feel fine—except for my nerves. I would know if something wasn't right, wouldn't I?"

"I am sure you would," Neytiri answered, relaxing. "I did not mean to frighten you. It is just sooner than anticipated."

"Well, sometimes predictions aren't completely reliable," Max soothed, "even when you know the exact date of conception. A week or two ahead of schedule isn't a reason to panic if the pregnancy has been healthy, and we all know you've been taking good care of yourself."

"Maybe we should just stay here," Norm said cautiously. "Just in case."

"No," Grace said firmly. She rubbed her stomach in slow circles. "I want this baby to be born where its father was born; at home, among the People. Tommy would have wanted that too. Can't you understand that, _Sempul_? I know you trust the medical technology here but this is my decision."

Norm watched her helplessly and his mouth worked as he tried to come up with an argument.

Beside him, Ni'nat stroked his arm supportively while smiling at her daughter in approval. "It _is_ your right as a mother to choose where your child will draw first breath, Gracie. Your father understands this. He is only anxious."

Grace breathed a bit easier with the reassurance that her parents weren't going to try and detain her at Hell's Gate for the birth. She looked to her mate to see how he was coping and she found Tsu'tey staring blankly off into space. He looked as though he'd been hit over the head.

"Tsu'tey?" Grace waved a hand before his eyes, worried for his mental state.

Neytiri also murmured his name, her concern shifting from Grace to her son. "_'Itan_? Are you unwell?"

He blinked and seemed to come out of his daze, appearing a little startled. "S-sorry, I'm just...I'm trying to work out what I should be doing right now. Gracie...does your back hurt? Should I boil some water?"

If he didn't sound so sincere and look so earnest, she might have laughed at him. She stroked his hair and shook her head, smiling at him. "My back doesn't hurt any more than it usually does these days. I haven't gone into labor so no; you don't need to boil any water. _Sempul_ and your mother will be taking care of those things. I don't want you worrying about anything until it's time for us to link and bring this baby into the world together, okay?"

He nodded stiffly and she temporarily forgot about her own fear in her pity for him. He was trying to be brave and thoughtful but clearly, Tsu'tey wasn't handling this as well as he would have liked. The reality of the situation staggered him and Grace was a little surprised she wasn't as lost and confused as him.

"Let's go and tell our friends," she suggested. "Mother, would you mind gathering our things for the trip home? I wouldn't ask, but—"

"Of course not," agreed Ni'nat with an excited little smile. She touched Grace's cheek and sighed. "You are being very brave, my daughter. This proves you have truly become a woman, with or without _Iknimaya _or _Uniltaron_. You make me proud."

"Yes, we're all proud," Norm said urgently, "Go and say goodbye so we can get you back to Hometree, Gracie."

She looked at her father with surprise, unused to seeing him so...helpless. Even when he was nervous, Norm Spellman usually knew what he was doing. Now he looked like he might fly into a panic at any moment. His eyes were too bright, his complexion was too pale and he moved in a jerky manner that seemed magnified by his lanky physique. If he weren't her father, Grace might have found him a little creepy at this moment.

"Go," Ni'nat urged, glancing at her mate with some concern herself. "It is best not to wait too long."

Her tone suggested that haste would be as much for Norm's emotional benefit as Gracie's health. Grace noticed that her father's tail was puffed up at the end and she found it so unexpected and amusing that she snorted. Tsu'tey took her arm and ushered her away while she tried to contain hysterical giggles.

* * *

When his daughter and Tsu'tey were gone, Norm turned to Tom and he tried to think of the best way to word his request without inadvertently insulting Neytiri's midwifery skills. He was too troubled to come up with anything good, so he sighed and hoped the _Tsahik_ would understand.

"Tom, I'd really appreciate it if you could come with us for this, just in case. I'd feel a lot better knowing you're there."

Tom glanced at Neytiri before answering. "You've delivered babies before, Norm. You're just as qualified as I am and you'll have Neytiri there with you."

Norm gave Neytiri an apologetic look. "I know, but this is my _daughter_, Tom."

"I...would feel better with you there too, brother," Neytiri admitted softly. "You are very skilled with medicine and anxious grandparents are not always at their best."

Tom raised his eyebrows and he looked to Tanhi, ever mindful of her opinion. "Well, how do you feel about this? Would you mind staying here to help the kids with their plans while I do this?"

"You brought our son back from the dead when he was born," Tanhi answered. "And you saved my life. You should go with them, Tom. Eywa forbid anything should go wrong but you are the one to have near, if it does. Our children and I will manage without you while you are away."

Norm was sure that with the women on his side, it was a shoe-in. He felt a little bad about pressuring his friend when Tom had a big day to look forward to himself. "I know Kato is getting married this weekend and I'm sorry to disrupt your plans."

Tom shook his head and smiled crookedly. "It's okay. The wedding is four days away. If Gracie is still laboring by then, she'll definitely need a cesarean."

Under different circumstances, Norm would have found the joke funny. Imagining his poor little girl suffering the pain of childbirth for four days in a row put a significant damper on his sense of humor, though. Tom evidently sensed that his little quip didn't go over well and he winced, patting the taller man on the arm.

"Sorry. I don't have my brother's gift for picking my moments. Let me just grab some things and I'll be ready to go."

* * *

Dustin was the first to greet them when they walked into the room. He hurried over with a smile, hardly seeming to care about the exopack he was forced to wear to hang out with his friends. "And here are the guests of honor, arriving after the interview from hell. So how was it, you two? Are you coping okay?"

Tsu'tey glanced at his mate and swallowed before answering. "Yeah, it's over now and we've definitely got other things on our mind."

The others stopped watching the movie projecting onto the wall and they got up to join them. While they exchanged hugs and pats, Dustin paused the movie and offered to re-start it. "Andrew should get here roughly by the time the movie finishes. It's too bad his parents wouldn't let him skip school today but we can always put in another movie or play a board game."

"No board games," Karyu insisted upon releasing Grace. She patted the taller girl's baby-bump casually. "They're boring...pun intended. There are plenty of other things we can do that can include a pregnant lady—like darts."

"Darts?" Ralu looked at Karyu as if she was crazy and she pointed at her sister. "You want to throw sharp pointy things around my pregnant sister?"

"I'm not going to be throwing them _at_ her," Karyu sighed. "And Grace is a pretty impressive dart-thrower too. She's not broken and the darts aren't fetus-seeking missiles, for Eywa's sake."

"They have velcro darts," Savanna suggested. "They're for beginners. No sharp points."

"They're for _children_," groused Karyu. She nodded at Sylwanin and Ralu. "That's fine for these two but we're grownups. Grace is carrying a child...she's not a child herself."

"Not that I don't appreciate the vote of confidence," Grace began. "But—"

"What about other activities?" interrupted Dustin, failing to hear her softly spoken words over the sound of his exopack filter, "Sav just recently hand-made some clay mugs and they aren't painted yet. Maybe we could do that...if she doesn't mind."

Savanna shrugged. "I don't mind at all. I made them for people to drink out of at the wedding, so everyone that comes will have a little souvenir to take home with them. Painting them yourselves would just personalize them more."

"Ooh, I like that idea!" Sylwanin enthused.

Ralu nodded in agreement, ever happy to do anything involving crafting, fashion or hair. "You're still going to let us braid your hair for the ceremony, aren't you Savanna?"

"Of course," assured the hybrid with a smile. "Well Grace, how do you feel about painting mugs this afternoon? "

"It sounds like fun," she said hesitantly, "But there's something you should—"

"I'll go grab some couch cushions from the lounge," offered Kato. "We can prop her up with them so she's more comfortable."

"That's great," Tsu'tey said, raising his voice to be heard over the chatting of their friends, "but she can't do it, guys."

"What?" Dustin stopped what he was doing with the projector and looked up with a puzzled frown. One dark curl fell untamed over his left eye, looking almost like an upside-down question mark. It was oddly fitting for his expression.

"Oh come on," Karyu demanded. "Savanna only uses organic paints. You don't have to worry about Gracie handling any chemicals and ending up with a deformed baby."

Grace took Tsu'tey's hand. "That isn't what he's worried about. Guys, I really _would_ like to stay and paint with you but we have to go...and that includes my sister and Sylwanin."

The younger girls looked at each other, then back at their older siblings accusingly. "But we're supposed to be here for the _wedding_," objected Ralu.

"How are we supposed to braid Sav's hair if we aren't even _here_?" Sylwanin demanded with a frown at her brother that said she expected him to fix this problem immediately.

"You can come back before the wedding," promised Grace. "It's just..." she paused and put a hand on her belly, gasping softly.

Savanna figured it out and her eyes went round as she looked at Gracie's stomach. "Is the baby coming?"

"It will be," answered Tsu'tey. "She hasn't started having contractions yet, but—"

"Yes I have," corrected Grace in a tense voice.

He froze. "You...have? When?"

"Right now." The pressure of her hand in his increased and she regulated her breathing carefully while the others ogled her.

"Oh my god," Savanna cried when she regained her senses. She practically squealed as she spoke. "It's happening! Gracie's going to have her baby!"

"Not right this minute," Dustin tried to assure everyone. Kato said something similar and Karyu went to Gracie's side to rub her back. Ralu, Sylwanin and Savanna all began to chatter at once, enthusing wildly over the upcoming birth.

"Tsu'tey," Grace said when her tension faded, "we have to go..._now_."

* * *

Jake was surprised when the guards came to his bunker and informed him that he was to be taken to UNEC for his trial. "Seriously? But I thought today was my son's testimony, not my trial."

Sanders glanced at her fellow soldier. "It was, Sir. The testimony is finished and we've been given orders to bring you in for yours. It's been bumped up."

Jake tilted his head, sensing unease from the young woman. "Something the matter, Private?"

She looked up at him, flushed and looked away. The male soldier with her was giving her a warning look. "If there's something going on, it's above my paygrade to know, Mr. Sully."

Understanding that she was forbidden to say anything even if she knew something, he didn't press her. "Where's General West?"

"He left this morning to watch your son's testimony," answered the other soldier. "He's handling security at the base and he's waiting for us."

"He wanted us to give you a message, in case he doesn't get to see you before you go into the courtroom," said Sanders.

"Okay. What's the message?"

She looked up at him again. "He said to remember the conversation the two of you had about guilt and agendas, a while back."

Jake frowned, thinking back to the conversation in question. If he wasn't mistaken, they'd had it just before he got transferred off-base to prevent further attacks against him and cut down on enemy scrutiny. West told him that he should go into that court room and be exactly what he was: a father robbed of his son. He told him not to show any guilt. Regret was fine but guilt wasn't. He also agreed that someone was deliberately toying with him while he was in custody on base, so the part about agendas could mean West finally figured out the purpose behind all of those odd attacks.

"I guess I'd better grab my things, then," Jake sighed. This could prove to be an interesting day and he was beginning to wonder if he'd see the end of it alive.

* * *

Norm didn't notice anything odd at first, when Grace and Tsu'tey returned to the lodge. She was waddling faster than usual and Tsu'tey appeared tense and worried, but that was to be expected with a baby on the way and Grace being so determined to get home for the birth. Ralu and Sylwanin were with them and Grace ordered the girls to go and help Ni'nat and Neytiri finish packing their things. Norm paused in the act of tying off his satchel, noticing the way Gracie's face took on a strained expression as she rubbed the small of her back. Tsu'tey assisted her, whispering softly and gazing at her with concern he couldn't hide.

Tom had already returned with a duffle bag for the trip and he stopped adjusting the straps when he saw them enter.

"Grace, why don't you sit down and sip some water," Tom suggested before Norm could say anything. "You look like you over-exerted yourself a little. In the future, you might want to avoid trying to run while in the final days of pregnancy."

Grace took a slow breath and nodded, giving Tom a forced smile. "Okay, Uncle Tom. Just for a little while. Are the ikrans ready?"

"Tanhi's out getting them for us," Norm answered. "I don't know how she manages to get other people's ikrans to cooperate with her so easily, but if she can round them up it's going to save us some time waiting for them."

Grace nodded and sank down on one of the lower floor bunks carefully. She seemed to be clutching Tsu'tey's hand rather hard and he grimaced faintly and sat with her. Norm frowned, beginning to worry if she did more than exert herself a little too much in her rush. Tsu'tey unfastened his little water skin from his harness and he urged her to sip from it. Norm put his bag down and approached, taking note of the wary look both young people gave him as he closed in on them.

"Gracie, did you hurt something while you were out?"

"No," she assured him with a sickly smile. "I just want to leave as soon as possible, okay _Sempu_?"

Norm's suspicions rose. Her almost pleading tone and the use of the word: "_Sempu_" led him to believe she was begging him to believe her while she lied to his face. He sighed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Are we really going to play this game _now_, Gracie? If something's wrong, you need to tell me. I _just _calmed down enough to think rationally and I don't want any nasty surprises."

Tom paused what he was doing again and he approached as well. "You _do_ look strained, Gracie."

Tsu'tey looked at her pleadingly. "We have to tell them."

"Tell us what?" demanded Norm.

Grace shook her head, looking at her mate just as pleadingly as he was looking at her. "I'm okay."

At that moment, Ni'nat came down the stairs, moving with quick grace that earned so many admiring glances from men and women alike. She looked straight at Gracie with a mother's stern frown.

"Grace, does Ralu exaggerate when she says the baby is coming now?"

"Of course, she's exaggerating," Grace assured after a moment's hesitation. "She just misunderstood what I said to her when we came and got her."

"She says that you made her promise not to speak of it until we leave this place," Ni'nat said. "Sylwanin supports her."

"They're wrong," Grace insisted. "The baby isn't coming right now."

"You'd better not be lying," Norm warned, his eyes going to her stomach. He narrowed his eyes when he saw the anxious way Tsu'tey was looking between them and Grace. "Tsu'tey, is she telling the truth?"

The young man looked torn and Norm almost felt sorry for him. Tsu'tey looked at Grace and shook his head when she whispered something urgent to him that Norm couldn't quite pick up. Tsu'tey's response to the girl's whisper came through loud and clear, though.

"I don't want you flying while you're having contractions!"

Neytiri came down with the girls just in time to hear that and she stared at her son and Grace. "So it is true; your body is preparing for birth."

"Those tattling little brats. There's still time," Grace said urgently, shooting a betrayed look at Tsu'tey. "It only takes a couple of hours to fly to Hometree and it could be after midnight by the time I'm ready to start pushing."

"Or it could happen faster than any of us expect and you could be in the final stages of labor before we touch down," Tom predicted. "Sometimes it can happen that way."

She got off the bunk with difficulty and approached Norm, looking up at him with near desperation in her amber eyes. "Please, _Sempu_! I want my child born in our village, with the sound of flutes and drums and our people talking and singing in the background. I want it born where Tommy was buried!"

Norm felt like his heart was breaking as he watched those eyes well up. He cupped her face and wiped away a tear that fell from her left eye. The others went silent and watched as he did his best to reason with her. "Grace, I understand how you feel. If it was in my power to get you safely home to do this how you want to, I would. It's _too dangerous_, though. What's more important to you; giving birth at Hometree or giving birth safely?"

"Listen to your _Sempul_," advised Neytiri softly. "You do Tommy honor by wanting the son or daughter you made together to be born where he rests, but he would not want you in danger. Women should not fly or ride when they are preparing to bring a little one into the world, unless there is no other choice. The motions of the animal and the sitting position will put strain on your body."

"But I don't want to have this baby in a cold stone building," insisted Grace with passion.

Neytiri considered the problem. "Then we will make a birthing lodge," she decided at length. "We have the materials with us. We never made camp with the tents and it will not take long to put together a larger one with what we have, for this purpose."

"That's a good idea," approved Norm with relief when Grace began to relax. "We can set it up near the gardens. That will give us some privacy and make it feel a little more like home."

"I...I guess that could work," Grace said reluctantly.

"I will sing for you, daughter," offered Ni'nat. "Our brothers and sisters who have traveled with us are sure to join me in song for this event."

"Karyu brought her flute," Tom announced. "If we're doing this here, I don't see any reason why the twins can't come and do their part. She'll want to play for Gracie and I'm sure Kato would be happy to fetch anything we might need when it's time for the delivery."

"We can burn incense," offered Ralu.

"_Sa'nok_ has some in her supply pack," said Sylwanin, taking her mother's hand.

Neytiri looked down at her youngest and she smiled. "How do you know what I have in my pack, _'Ite_?"

Sylwanin shrugged. "I saw you pack it. Besides, you've been burning it every day when you lead the prayers."

"Observant child," stated Ni'nat.

"I'll try to contact Jake and let him know his grandchild is on the way," said Tom. "When Tanhi comes back, I'll tell her what's happening too. I'm sure she'll want to do her part to help."

"I should go and tell the other young ones what is going on," Ni'nat said. "I will bring them back with me."

"I will announce our plans to the hunters that came with us and we will begin constructing the birthing tent." Neytiri paused on her way past and she stroked Gracie's hair fondly. She looked back at Sylwanin and Ralu when she reached the door. "Come, little ones. There is much work to do and your siblings need to prepare themselves."

The two girls skipped across the room to join her without protest, both of them too excited over the thought of a new baby to consider the difficulty Grace and Tsu'tey faced in bringing it into the world. Norm watched them go and he managed a smile, helping Grace back to the bunk when they were gone.

"Just try to keep track of how long the contractions last and how frequently they happen," he advised. "Practice your breathing, stay calm and walk around now and then. Staying too still while you're waiting can make your muscles tighten up and you don't need extra discomfort. Tsu'tey, I guess I don't need to tell you to stay by her side."

"No sir, you sure don't," agreed the young man. He picked up the end of his queue and looked at it for a moment before offering it to Gracie. "We should probably link, now."

"We don't have to do that yet," argued Grace. "It isn't bad right now."

"Actually, it's better for you to do it sooner than later," Norm informed her. "It'll give him a chance to adjust before the contractions start getting intense. Don't wait until the contractions are bad to have him link with you. Your mother did that to me when we were having you and that was the first time I ever really got mad at her."

"Was it that bad?" Tsu'tey asked innocently.

"Well, like I said; I wasn't expecting it," explained Norm. "We were having a baseball game outside Hell's Gate and she sat through the whole thing while having contractions, without ever saying a word. I didn't find out Gracie was coming until the game was over and Ni'nat's water broke. I linked up with right away and her next contraction almost made me buckle on the spot. I wasn't prepared for it at all."

"Why would she do something like that to you?" Grace asked, frowning.

Norm smiled a little at the memory. "She didn't mean any harm. In fact, she thought she was doing me a favor by not interrupting the game. It was our first pregnancy and we learned the hard way. If we had waited until full-blown labor, the shock of it might have actually killed me."

He was exaggerating a little on the last part but it sufficiently convinced his daughter to not put it off any longer. Grace gave him a horrified look and snatched up her queue. "Oh Eywa...here, Tsu'tey! Hurry up and link with me!"

Norm smiled as the young man fumbled with his braid in his haste to get it connected to Gracie's. "Remember to practice your breathing. I'm going to go and get the medical equipment ready for the birth."

"Wait!" Grace reached out and caught his wrist before Norm could pass her by. "Don't go, _Sempu_!"

Norm stopped and looked down at her, seeing the fear in her eyes and expression that she had been trying so hard to keep hidden. Beside her, Tsu'tey looked equally vulnerable. Norm hesitated, compressing his lips. There was time, after all. Tom could get the equipment ready when he came back. He nodded at his daughter and he took a seat on the bunk opposite the one she and Tsu'tey were seated on.

"Okay kids. I'll stay here with you."

* * *

Unfortunately, Jake missed Tom's call to the facilities he was being held in. He was ushered into a Samson and transported to the main colony before he had time to do much more than take a leak. After his arrival at UNEC, Jake was hustled to a private holding cell and given the tribal wear he had on him when he was first taken into custody and he gladly put it on. He remembered a discussion about him testifying in his regular clothes, instead of prisoner garb. He had little doubt that Archer had something to do with the arrangement and when she showed up with armed guards to escort him to the courtroom, he had his confirmation.

"You're looking of a form today, Mr. Sully," complimented the Commissioner politely. Her dark gaze revealed subtle, professional approval as she examined his attire "I apologize for the haste, but recent developments have demanded that your testimony be given right away. Are you ready, or do you need more time to prepare?"

Jake shrugged. "I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Don't you think seeing me dressed as a hunter might make some people a little nervous, though?"

"Perhaps," agreed Archer. She nodded at the guards and they approached Jake with a pair of wrist and ankle manacles, fit for Na'vi limbs. "But a hunter is what you _are_, Mr. Sully. You aren't a corporal in the USMC any longer. You aren't a citizen of Earth any longer. You are a Na'vi leader and you have an entire nation of people on your side. That scares some individuals far more than appearances, I assure you."

"And what about the other individuals?" Jake asked, allowing the guards to shackle him.

"They are the ones you must convince of your people's right to protect their own," she answered. "They must see for themselves that the Na'vi don't owe any quarter to criminals that kill their children."

Jake was a little surprised by the feeling that crept into her tone in the last sentence and he looked at her with interest and suspicion. She was a mysterious lady—difficult to read, at best. One thing he felt almost certain of was her empathy for the natives of Pandora, though.

He decided it was worth a shot to ask her the question that was nagging him, even if it would only result in a reaction of some sort. "I don't suppose you can tell me where General West is, can you?"

Archer's eyes flickered in a barely perceptible manner, nearly glancing at the guards before she parted her lips to speak. "General West is maximizing security at this time. This is a high profile case and we don't want any complications. You can speak to him after the trial."

"So this isn't just a testimony," reasoned Jake. "They're going to try me too." The guards stepped back and motioned at him to move and he hobbled forward, following Archer out the sliding cell door.

She nodded. "You'll testify against the people that illegally mined in your clan's territory and you'll give your account of your son's death and the events that occurred between then and your surrender. Afterwards, you'll be questioned and opposing council will attempt to bring you up on charges and convict you."

Jake didn't find this news surprising. "And what do you think the chances are of that happening, now?"

She continued walking but she turned her head to look up at him. "I really can't predict it with any guarantee, but your son and his mate have made quite an impression. Opposing council has a good fight on its hands and the sympathy of the people lies with you. Oh, and Mr. Sully...your mother-in-law sends her regards."

Jake stumbled and the guard behind him almost ran face-first into his ass as a result. "Mo'at? When did you speak to her?"

"A few days ago. I needed some perspective for the case and she was the perfect individual to provide it. She's a powerful woman, your mother-in-law."

Jake stared at her as he resumed walking, wondering what in the hell kind of perspective she could get from the old _Tsahik_. Even more puzzling was what she said to Mo'at to gain her cooperation for whatever it was she wanted to ask her. He wasn't allowed time to work it over in his head, because another voice rudely interrupted his thoughts—a familiar, missed voice.

_"Jake!"_

He swore aloud before he could stop himself, startled by the abrupt bark of Grace Augustine's voice in his head. "Dr. Augustine?" He looked around suspiciously, coming to another abrupt halt that had all four of the guards cussing him out and asking him what his problem was.

Archer stopped and frowned up at him. "I beg your pardon? Grace Augustine has been dead for years, hasn't she?"

Jake realized he was starting to look like a flake and he cleared his throat. "Yeah...dead but not forgotten. Sorry, I just heard a voice in the hallway that sounded like hers. It's been one of those days."

_"Good,_" approved Grace's voice in his mind. _"Now just shut up and listen, Marine."_

"Okay."

Archer and the guards looked at him curiously again and Jake winced inwardly.

_"That isn't what I call 'shutting up',_" said Grace's voice dryly. _"Now whatever you do, don't react to what I'm about to tell you, except to blink twice to let me know you understand. Got it?"_

Jake blinked twice.

_"Good. Talking to you directly is very draining on me, so I have to be quick about it. The first thing you need to know is that my namesake is getting ready to give birth to your grandchild."_

Jake's eyes widened and his lips parted.

_"DON'T REACT!"_

He schooled his features into a bland mask with substantial difficulty, wishing he could blurt out how cruel it was for her to tell him his grandchild was coming and then expect him to keep a poker face. Instead, he listened.

_"Don't worry, Gracie and Tsu'tey are in good hands. What you need to worry about the most right now is yourself. I had the chance to hear one of the security officers in the courtroom speaking with someone over the phone and if you make one wrong move, they will shoot you dead. Jake, I think someone is going to try and set you up. The RDA is still active, even if it's below the surface. They want you out of the way."_

Jake snorted and rolled his eyes before he could stop himself. If he were permitted to speak, he would have said for her to tell him something he didn't already know.

_"Don't be glib about this," _lectured Grace. _"You know what kind of underhanded dealings those people are capable of, Jake. They provoked the Omaticaya into attacking their dozers, just so they could have an excuse to take out Hometree. You've seen for yourself how they'll twist any situation to make it look like they've got legitimate cause for the things they do. Keep your temper in check, no matter what they say to provoke you. You know the truth and so does everyone that matters. Promise me."_

He had no way to verbally do so, but he blinked twice to indicate that he understood. He wished that he could see her but he could tell by the strain in her voice that just speaking to him was taxing on her energy. She had given him something that would help him keep that promise. The knowledge that his grandchild was on its way into the world was like a glimmer of hope, shining in the darkness. It would be easier to detach himself from the court proceeding if he kept reminding himself that a piece of his son was about to be reborn into the world.

_"I would give you more information if I could,"_ Dr. Augustine told him in an even more faded voice, _"but my time is just about up. If I see you on the other side tonight I will kick your ass, Marine."_

Jake smirked, never doubting it for a second.

Passers-by saw an impressive specimen of male Na'vi in native garb, somehow managing to walk with pride despite the manacles hobbling his ankles. He had a confident smirk on his face and he appeared to be unconcerned with what was going on around him, as if it was all beneath his notice. They didn't notice the subtle differences that marked him as an avatar, rather than a pureblood. What they saw was exactly what Commissioner Archer said that Jake needed to show people: a strong Omaticaya warrior. Some people recognized him and others didn't, but all were impressed.

Of course, none of those curious passers-by suspected that the exotic prisoner was hearing the dead whispering in his ear.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

_**Na'rìng**_ = Forest

_**Saronyu**_ = Plural of _taronyu; _hunter.

_**Utral Aymokriyä**_ = Tree of Voices

_**Ayvitrayä Ramunong**_ = Tree of Souls

_**'Itan**_ = Son

_**Sempu**_ = Daddy; endearing word for "Father"

_**'Ite**_ = Daughter


	25. Chapter 25

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 25: Shock the monkey

* * *

_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. This is an excessively long chapter, with many switches between perspectives and locations. Yes, I was listening to Peter Gabriel's classic when I thought up the title of this chapter. **_

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

"Remove his manacles," ordered Commissioner Archer when they stopped outside the courtroom doors.

The guards looked at each other frowningly. "Ma'am, he's a prisoner—"

"I said remove them," she reiterated calmly. "He's a political icon and he won't be testifying in chains, like a common criminal. Mr. Sully will walk into that room and take the stand with the dignity he deserves. If any of that is unclear, I'll be happy to get your superior on my phone and have him explain the rules in a manner you can better understand."

Her words sufficiently cowed the four guards and though they didn't look a bit pleased about it, they complied with her orders and removed Jake's restraints. He was grateful to be rid of them and he looked at Archer with even more respect. She might not be physically equipped with them but the woman had the balls of a drill sergeant. That she was able to wield her authority so elegantly was just the mark of a woman with class. It made him think of his mate and he smiled a little. She and the guards slipped their exopacks on before entering the courtroom—which was evidently pressurized for Na'vi biology so that Jake could testify without an exopack obscuring his features.

The courtroom wasn't what Jake expected. It was a domed, oval-shaped room with a single stand in the center, boasting two chairs. One chair was sized for regular humans and the other was sized for Na'vi and avatars. Facing the witness stand a few feet apart from each other were two desks with chairs—presumably for the attorneys to sit between questions and gather their material. He looked up, taking note of the domed ceiling and the glass-enclosed observation balcony running the circumference of the room. There, he could see the tribunal judges and the jury, seated behind the glass where the air conditioning no-doubt provided a breathable atmosphere for humans.

"Please take your seat on the stand, Mr. Sully," instructed one of the judges through the microphone at his desk.

Jake almost shrugged, but he didn't want to seem too flippant. Like people kept telling him; he needed to face this with some dignity and show the jury that the Omaticaya were a proud and noble people. Out of love and devotion for the clan that took him in and taught him their ways, he vowed to represent them as honorably as he could.

He sat down in the chair and waited while the doors opened and the plaintiff walked in. Commissioner Archer moved for an acquittal for Jake and opposing council predictably moved for charges of murder and treason. The men that were involved in the black market operation were already convicted for illegal mining, treaty violation and hostility against the natives. Jake's testimony, as he understood it, could affect the length of their sentence—particularly the pilot that shot Tommy out of the tree. His testimony would also affect how this day ended for him personally.

The tribunal declared court to be in session and the trial began.

* * *

_Meanwhile, at Hell's Gate:_

"Sav, all that stuff really isn't necessary."

Karyu smirked at her friend as the hybrid stuffed the teddy bear into the gift bag and fussed over the balloon arrangement. As soon as Ni'nat came to them and informed them that Grace would be giving birth at Hell's Gate, Savanna dragged the others to the shops in the bio-dome to buy gifts for mother and child. Karyu didn't enjoy the experience. People stared at her as Savanna and Dustin browsed for something nice to buy. Being the only one dressed as a native, Karyu naturally attracted attention. Thankfully, the event was over and they were presently back at Savanna's home, getting ready to leave for the avatar compound. Ni'nat had returned to the avatar compound to help prepare her daughter for childbirth.

"I know Na'vi aren't big on 'things'," Savanna said absently, "but Grace is our friend too and I think she and her baby should have something from our culture. It will remind them that there will always be someone here at Hell's Gate they can turn to, no matter what."

Kato smiled at his betrothed and he put an arm around her, drawing her close for a brief kiss. "That's really sweet, babe."

Karyu rolled her eyes. "Mrs. Thomas, your daughter and son-in-law are making me want to throw up."

Katherine poked her head out from the archway leading into the kitchen. "Stop making Karyu nauseous, you two."

Kato grinned and obligingly released Savanna from his embrace. "Yes ma'am."

"Is Papa coming home from work too?" Savanna asked of her mother. Katherine took the rest of the day off when she was informed of the news, so that she could help out if needed. Sebastian's schedule was a bit more complex, though.

"I wish I could say he was," answered Katherine with a sigh, "but I doubt he can get out of it today."

"What's he working on?" Karyu asked.

"Part of your father's flux shield generator project." Katherine lowered her voice a little, conscious of the neighbors. She brought out a tea set and put it on the table. As she poured everyone a cup, she continued speaking. "Not only is Bastian determined to do his part, but he's being paid quite a hefty commission for his collaboration. We told Max it wasn't necessary but he insisted."

"Well, he _should_ get a reward for it," Karyu reasoned. "There aren't many trustworthy people on base with your husband's technical skills." She took the cup offered to her and she thanked the older woman.

Katherine shrugged and dropped a sugar cube into her cup of tea, after distributing the rest of the tea to the others. "Be that as it may, he would have done it free of charge. Ending the threat to this base's security and livelihood is important to us all. Still, the extra money will be good. We're going to put it into Savanna's trust fund."

"Mother, I really don't need your money," Savanna said softly.

Katherine glanced at her and raised an eyebrow. "And what exactly do you and Kato expect to live on, until you have some form of steady income? Twigs?"

"If they were living with the clan, they wouldn't need money," Karyu informed her bluntly. "Humans are the only ones that charge each other rent for a roof over their heads."

"Karyu," admonished Kato in a hiss, flushing with embarrassment. He looked like the collar of his t-shirt was strangling him all the sudden and he tugged at it uncomfortably.

Katherine smiled tolerantly at the female twin, giving her a grudgingly admiring look. "Don't censor your sister, Kato. Her honesty is refreshing, if a bit raw."

"But she could afford to tone it down," he grumbled. His eyes met Karyu's and he silently warned her to be more charitable toward his in-laws. After all, they were _her_ family too—in a manner of speaking. "While Savanna and I are living here, we're going to need to pay for utilities. That's how the economy works. I may need to find work to do while I'm here, because I won't have Savanna trying to support both of us."

Karyu sighed. "Of course. I should have known."

In the den, Dustin paused in his conversation over the phone with Andrew. "Guys, don't start fighting," he advised, overhearing enough to guess the twins were about to have a row.

"I'm just saying humans charge each other money for an awful lot of things," Karyu observed with a shrug, refusing to apologize. In fact, she was getting annoyed and not just with Kato. "If you want to talk about 'toning it down', what about the Thomas family?"

Katherine set her cup down with a frown when the huntress looked at her. "What about the Thomas family, Karyu?"

The younger woman met Katherine's stare levelly. "I think you know already, but I'll be happy to say it out loud." She gestured at her brother, putting emphasis on his choice of attire meaningfully. "Look at him. It seems to me that Kato is making all the sacrifices to make you and your mate happy, but you give him a hard time at every turn."

Kato kept his eyes on his tea. "It's not that bad," he mumbled.

"Don't lie," snapped Karyu. "They've domesticated the hell out of you and you're too worried about making a good impression to say anything."

"Uh, I'll call you back," Dustin said into his phone. He put the device away and stepped into the dining area. "Karyu, maybe it isn't my business but I think you're being a little unfair."

"I can handle this, Dusty," Katherine said. She turned back to Karyu. "We aren't trying to 'domesticate' your brother. We just want Savanna to have a good life."

Karyu narrowed her eyes at the older woman. "And what about my brother's life? You've succeeded in taking him away from his people, dressing him up in clothes he's obviously not comfortable in and now you're going to have him looking for some thankless job on base. Your way of life is going to smother him. He is a warrior of the Ikran people and that isn't going to change no matter what he puts on or how many toilets he scrubs for crappy wages."

"I think I can do better than toilet scrubbing," Kato muttered, his face now purple with mortification. "And it was _my_ decision to live her and dress as a colonist, Karyu. The Thomas's didn't pressure me to do it."

"That isn't really true though, is it?" Savanna said, placing a hand on his shoulder. She looked at her mother with faint accusation in her expression. "They asked you to promise to try living here first."

"Because we aren't ready to lose you," Katherine said, beginning to lose some of her composure. "For goodness sake, Savanna...you've only recently turned seventeen! You shouldn't even be getting married at your age and you expect us to just sit back and let you get whisked away from civilization?"

"Did you just call my people uncivilized?" Karyu raised a brow at the older woman.

"No, of course she didn't," intervened Savanna hastily.

"There are no fences around that village," Katherine went on, still addressing her daughter. "You were nearly killed by one of those slinger creatures earlier this year while you were visiting there, for God's sake! How can you expect your father and I to allow Kato to take you back there permanently, just like that? You're still a baby."

"I'm not trying to take her anywhere," Kato defended helplessly.

Dustin patted him on the shoulder and started to inject his opinion again, but Karyu beat him to it. "Okay fine, this is getting out of control. Look Mrs. Thomas, I understand that Sav is your only child and you want to protect her. She's my best friend and I want her safe and protected too. I know you don't want her to move away, but my brother is moving away from his home to make you happy. Do you think this is going to be easy on my family?"

Katherine's tension faded and she gazed at Karyu with sympathy and perhaps a little self-shame. "You're right, Karyu. You and your brother are close, and you are the only children Tom and Tanhi have ever had together." She sighed and poured herself more tea. "I honestly don't know how we can make this fair for everyone."

"Start by being nicer to my brother," insisted Karyu with a glance at said sibling. "At least _try_ to acknowledge everything he's been doing for your family."

Katherine's eyes went to Kato and a hint of a smile curved her lips when she saw how flustered he was. "Do you feel the same way, Kato?"

"M-me? No ma'am, I—"

"He's afraid you'll shoot him in the balls if he says 'yes'," guessed Karyu candidly. At the other end of the table, Dustin choked on his tea. He hastily covered his mouth into the kitchen, to avoid showering anyone with the half-swallowed beverage.

Katherine's smile grew and she looked at Kato with some affection. "Oh, really. Kato, tell me she isn't right. Do you think I'll shoot you if you don't do everything exactly how I wish?"

The poor boy looked like he wanted to run out of the house. He gave Karyu a blame-filled glare and took a deep breath. "The thought _has_ crossed my mind, Mrs. Thomas. You can be pretty fierce when it comes to Sav. I mean, you said you'd mount my head on your wall if I ever hurt her."

Katherine appeared to consider this information. "I see. Well, I can assure you now that I do not intend to shoot my son-in-law. You would have to do something really awful for me to even consider it and I know you'll never hurt my daughter. I was speaking out of anger when I said that."

"So are you going to start treating him better or not?" Karyu demanded.

Katherine heaved a sigh in the girl's direction. "Stubborn girl. Yes, I'll speak with Sebastian about it tonight." She turned to Kato again. "We haven't been entirely fair or reasonable with you and it really didn't occur to me, how much you're willing to give up for Savanna. As I said before: Karyu's delivery may need a bit of work but she always manages to get her point made clearly."

"I just want the bonehead to be happy," Karyu informed with a smirk at her brother. Kato dropped hid head to the table and groaned. Savanna rubbed his back and giggled softly. From the kitchen, Dustin could be heard coughing.

Katherine shook her head and chuckled. "Well, now that we've cleared that up, I'll go and check on Dustin. I think he inhaled half of his tea a moment ago."

When she got out of her chair and left the room, Karyu moved over to sit at Kato's other side. She patted him smugly on the shoulder as he turned his head and looked at her. "There, you see? I fixed it for you."

"You need to stop 'fixing' things for people," Kato groused. "The only reason that worked out is because Mrs. Thomas is a civilized woman. Most adults aren't going to take it so well when you talk that way to them, sis."

"I wasn't going to stand by and watch them keep running all over you," Karyu answered without remorse. "We've all been good sports about their demands and it was past time for you to get some credit for everything you're giving up."

Savanna spoke up uncomfortably. "Um, I hate to sound like I'm defending them, but those _are_ my parents you're talking about and they _do_ have their reasons."

"I know that," Karyu assured her. "But at least now your _Sa'nok_ seems to realize how unfair they've been."

"Let's just drop the subject," Kato sighed, lifting his head off the table. "Gracie could go into labor soon and we should all be there to help out."

The girls nodded in agreement and Dustin came back out of the kitchen, wiping his mouth. Katherine patted the human boy on the back with a motherly smile and advised him not to drink while Karyu was talking, from now on.

"Now go and help with Grace," Katherine said. "Give her family our love. I'll speak with Sebastian about our little chat tonight, Karyu."

Savanna gathered up the gifts and Dustin checked his exopack for when they left the bio-dome. "Thanks, Mama. I'll call you from my satellite phone when we have news about the birth."

"Where's Andy?" Kato asked Dustin when they headed out the door. "School's out now, isn't it?"

"He's going to suit up in his avatar and meet us there," answered Dustin. "I don't blame him. It's going to be more comfortable than wearing an exopack mask and there's no telling how long Gracie could be in labor before the baby comes."

"Cool." Kato looked down at their human friend with a little frown once they made it outside. "It's too bad you don't have an avatar you could use, Dusty. Nobody's going to think badly of you if you don't hang around for the birth."

Dustin shrugged. "I'll manage. If it looks like it's going to be several hours, I'll just go to the lab building and find something to do in the pressurized sectors. It's right by the avatar compound."

"Good idea," agreed Savanna. She stopped and looked down the street, pointing. "Hey, isn't that Corporal Howell jogging this way?"

Karyu turned her head so fast, it was a wonder she didn't give herself whiplash.

Savanna grinned at her. "Psych."

Seeing that Howell wasn't there after all, the huntress swiveled her head again to glare at Savanna.

The hybrid took an uncertain step back and smiled sheepishly. "I was just teasing. No need to get hostile."

Karyu flushed, humiliated that she'd reacted so strongly. The boys were watching her with interest and Kato had a look of delight on his face that suggested he was enjoying the sight of her flustered over a male. "Play your games another time," she growled, pinching Savanna on the arm just enough to make her wince. "Our friend is going to be squeezing a person out of her body tonight. Can we just focus on that?"

Savanna shrugged. "Of course. You and I can talk later."

Karyu stared at her suspiciously, wondering what she meant by that.

* * *

_Meanwhile, at UNEC:_

Jake learned that the plaintiff's name was Director Grant and the man was quickly beginning to wear on his nerves. He had wavy brown hair, blue eyes and a medium pale complexion. He was a decent looking fellow and he seemed to be in his thirties. Jake had no idea what department he worked in but he could guess who was paying his salary, going by the intrusive and often insulting questions he asked. Jake begged Eywa for calm as he answered to the best of his ability. The cross-examinations did indeed seem designed to test his patience and temper. Jake found it highly plausible that part of Grant's duty in this case was to try and make him snap.

"You were attacked how many times during your incarceration on this base, sir?"

"Twice," answered Jake.

"And did you provoke these attackers in any way?"

He shook his head. "The guards can vouch that I didn't attack first. I think the first guy had a bet going with someone. The second must have thought I looked tasty, because he tried to take me out with a plastic fork."

A few people in the jury chuckled at the final sentence, charmed by Jake's dry humor. The plaintiff didn't seem so amused. "You killed your first attacker, didn't you?"

Jake nodded.

"You snapped his neck. You didn't give the guards the chance to take him into custody and question him."

Jake looked down at his hands, the instruments of his would-be assassin's death. "I didn't realize how much force I was using until I heard the snap. I just grabbed him out of impulse and the next thing I knew, he was gone. I haven't fought a human with my bare hands since before I came to Pandora and that was when I was human myself. This body is a lot stronger and humans are a lot more breakable than I remember."

"You sound regretful, Mr. Sully."

Jake shrugged and nodded. "I am. The guy was an idiot with more balls than brains but I didn't want to kill him. Why would I do that on purpose? Dead men can't answer questions and I would have been _really_ interested to know who gave him that knife and put him up to it."

"So you think there's a hidden conspiracy against you?" The plaintiff didn't seem bothered by the pointed way Jake looked at him when he talked about someone putting his attacker up to it. If anything, he seemed pleased.

Jake glanced at Archer and he saw her give a barely perceptible shake of her head, her dark eyes steady on him. Remembering Dr. Augustine's warning and the confirmation West gave him that someone was trying to fuck with him, he answered the question with caution.

"I think someone helped that guy get a knife and he picked me out as a target. How should I know why? Maybe someone wanted him dead and they figured pitting him against me was the fastest way to make that happen. Maybe he was trying to make a name for himself, who knows? The poor bastard's in the ground now."

Grant's expression faltered a little, revealing a hint of disappointment. "You think a lot of your skills, don't you?"

"Compared to a drug dealer and Mr. Fork, yeah," agreed Jake. "I'd think a lot of almost anyone's skills against those two clowns. That's why it's tragic."

"And yet you feel no remorse for the deaths of the three soldiers you are responsible for."

Jake pushed back his impulses again and used his head. "I didn't enjoy it, if that's what you mean."

"But you killed them anyway," insisted the plaintiff. "You and your mate."

Jake's hands curled into fists. "My mate didn't fire a single killing shot in that fight and your people have the evidence to prove it."

"But she aided and abetted you."

"She did what her upbringing told her to do," Jake explained, finding it increasingly difficult to hold his temper in check. "Support her mate and defend her family."

"Mr. Sully, it's no longer defense _after_ the fact." Grant walked over to the desk he had claimed for himself and he picked up the holopad lying on top of it. He activated the device and flipped through virtual files. "Had these men been killed during the assault on your son, it would be another matter. You and your mate tracked them down and ambushed them in the dead of night. It was pre-meditated murder and your mate Neytiri helped you to commit it—making her an accessory to the crime."

"Funny, I don't remember being convicted of murder," Jake responded. "And by the way, you're talking like you think we're on Earth. We aren't. Those people broke the laws of the treaty and committed unprovoked hostility against my clan. They killed my son on sacred ground, right where the RDA attacked the old Omaticaya village and murdered so many men, women and children. You think—"

"You are not a Na'vi," interrupted the plaintiff. "You're a citizen of Earth in an avatar body. By those standards, you can be tried and convicted as a citizen."

"Objection," interrupted Archer, "Mr. Sully isn't being tried as a citizen of Earth, your honors."

"Objection sustained," agreed a woman on the tribunal.

Jake drew a deep breath and shook his head, marveling at the accuracy of some predictions. "Wow...they had you pegged just right."

"Pardon?" Grant frowned.

Jake smirked, thinking of all the warnings he'd gotten concerning the prosecution trying to use his former human status against him in court. "Just thinking out loud."

Grant didn't respond to that. Instead, he held up his holopad and approached Jake's chair, showing the screen to him. "Do you recognize this face?"

Jake stared at the digital photo with a frown. The dark-skinned young man in it appeared to be an army soldier, but he didn't recognize him. He shook his head. "Sorry. I've never seen him before."

The plaintiff lifted the holopad and displayed it to the watching audience in the balconies. "The man that Mr. Sully claims never to have seen before is Private Jason R. King—the MP that was blown to pieces by a grenade tossed into his ranks by Mr. Sully. There wasn't enough of him left to put in a casket. He has a mother, a father, two younger sisters and an older brother on Earth. He came to Pandora for the pay and he was sending some of his wages back to Earth, to help his family during the economic crisis."

Jake shut his eyes before he could stop himself, awash with horrible guilt. He had forgotten all about the kid that died to the grenade—or maybe his conscience purposely blocked the memory to help him get through this. The deaths of his attackers in prison bothered him but because they had attacked him, it was easier to cope with. The men he deliberately killed took his son's life, so he forgave himself and accepted some regret for his actions. The death of this kid was another matter, though. It was tragic enough, but to have forgotten about it was unforgivable.

"Nothing to say, Mr. Sully?" Director Grant sounded self-righteous and smug. "Is this young man's death acceptable to you?"

Jake opened his eyes and met the plaintiff's stare evenly, hiding his inner turmoil as best he could. "I'm very sorry for his family's loss. He was what we call 'collateral damage' in the military. He was never a target."

"And yet he died by your hand."

"Wrong," Jake corrected. "I threw that grenade to scatter them. Private King made a judgment call and tried to toss the grenade away. He wasn't fast enough on the snap and he died for it. If he'd scattered like the others, he wouldn't have been killed."

The plaintiff nodded. "I'm sure you tell yourself that every night, Mr. Sully. But let me ask you another question. You took revenge on the people that killed your son. Don't you think this boy's parents might want revenge on you?"

"Objection," called Archer. "The plaintiff is badgering the witness. The family of the deceased soldier is of no relevance in this case."

The three judges discussed it for a moment before the man on the left answered. "Overruled. We would like to hear Mr. Sully's answer to this question."

Grant looked pleased. "So how about it, Mr. Sully? Do you think the King family would be justified in wanting revenge on you?"

Jake sensed a trap and he thought back to the line of questioning regarding the men that attacked him in prison and conspiracy theories. He didn't know much about law but given speculation he'd heard from friends, family, ghosts and allies, he suspected this man was trying to lead him.

"I think I'd want revenge on me too, if I were them." Inwardly, Jake was calling the plaintiff a dirty bastard for trying to steer the conspiracy theory away from the RDA and toward victims of circumstance.

"Then you admit to murdering this young man?"

Jake stared at him. "I think you need to have your ears checked. Private King died partly because of my actions, but I didn't kill him. I don't expect a grieving family to understand that, though."

"Just like you didn't understand that the authorities would have arrested and convicted the men responsible for your son's death, had you cooperated with them instead of going on a killing rampage?"

Jake's expression darkened. "I wasn't thinking about—"

"Private King would still be alive right now, if you had bothered to _think_," interrupted the plaintiff. "He'd be doing time in prison with his companions, but he would be alive. Perhaps he would have married when he finished doing his time, or maybe he would have gone home to visit his family. Now we'll never know. Do you feel righteous now, Mr. Sully?"

Oh, how Jake longed to punch the man in his smug human face. "You know that's a stupid question, right?"

"Whether you think the question is stupid or not, please answer it." Grant waited with smug confidence.

"No, I don't feel 'righteous'," answered Jake. "Unlike _some_ people in this room. That kid's death was tragic and I didn't want it."

"But you clearly wanted the deaths of Major O'Connell and Lt. Baker, didn't you?"

"At the time," agreed Jake, seeing no other way to answer that. "I was out of my head."

"Aahh...out of your head," repeated Grant with a significant look at the jury above. "And yet you planned and executed this ambush beautifully. Would you say that a person who was literally out of his or her mind with grief should be capable of such a carefully constructed plot? You took the time to find out who your targets were and as you so passionately insisted; nobody else was fatally shot in the event. How does someone suffering temporary insanity still think clearly enough to be so methodical?"

Jake had two reactions available to him. The first one was to demonstrate how quickly he could snap a human neck—particularly when he meant to. The second one was to retaliate to the ruthless badgering with an honest yet sarcastic response. He sincerely struggled between the two choices, until one of the judges reminded him that he had to answer the question. At the last moment, Jake chose not to pop Grant's tiny little head off and answer the question.

"You want to know how a man can function when he's torn apart by grief? How about you get back to me on that when someone carries your kid home with a bullet in his skull. Maybe you can figure it out yourself, because I sure as hell don't have an answer for you."

There were murmurs up above and Grant finally looked to be at a loss. Jake couldn't enjoy his small victory, however. The grief that he was still trying to manage rose again as he thought back to that terrible night, when he looked down at the still, dead face of his oldest son. He thought of the picture of the young soldier that died for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He took no joy in the knowledge that he was apparently winning the jury's sympathy. The one thing that kept him from breaking down and crying at that moment was the knowledge that somewhere miles away, Tommy's son or daughter was on the way into the world.

* * *

As the contractions grew closer together, Tsu'tey and Grace began to walk around the garden area, near the birthing tent set up for them. Norm stayed right by their side, only leaving for brief moments to fetch a cup of fresh water for them to sip from. Neytiri and Tanhi were finishing up with the final touches and they left the sides and entrance of the tent rolled up, to allow open air through. Andrew met up with everyone as promised and he brought pillows and blankets with him, courtesy of his parents. Ni'nat thanked him and piled them up in the tent for when her daughter and son-in-law needed to lay down.

The others began to play instruments to soothe the expecting couple. Ralu and Sylwanin solemnly scented the air with the ritual incense Neytiri gave to them. Those who weren't helping to prepare or playing musical instruments softly discussed the upcoming birth or kept a careful eye on any strangers that passed by their location. All had heard tales of enemies sneaking into Hell's Gate to steal weapons and technology, so it was no surprise that Ikran and Omaticaya hunters alike watched for possible danger.

While the others were preparing for the birth, Tom retrieved some medical supplies from the lab building and he made sure that the blood bank had Gracie's type available. On his way back to the avatar area, he felt eyes on him. He resisted the urge to look behind him and he changed his itinerary, hoping that he was only imagining it. He glanced up at the safety mirrors hanging on the walls in certain areas. The reflective surfaces were placed so that medics pushing gurneys could see around corners to avoid running into anyone or anything. They presented Tom with the opportunity to see behind him without being obvious about it.

Each time he glanced at a mirror, he spotted the same man some ten feet behind him. He couldn't stop to get a good look at him and he was running out of corridors to choose. The man was in lab attire and he didn't look particularly focused on Tom. If it weren't for the warning in his heart, Tom might have assumed the man just had somewhere to be that took him down the same corridors.

Tom guessed that if the man intended to harm him, he wouldn't do so in front of other people. As long as there were witnesses around, he couldn't do more than follow him. This was a small comfort to Tom. He had to get back to the gardens and he was none too happy about leading possible danger back to his family and friends. Perhaps though, the hunters in his party could catch his stalker and get some answers out of him. Finding the plan to be the best option available to him, Tom stopped trying to lose his follower and he left the building. When he stepped through the sliding doors, the change in the atmosphere gave him pause. He waited for his lungs to adjust and he cast a casual look around. He spotted his mysterious friend on the other side of the glass doors, going for the exopacks stowed on the wall.

"Just what are you after, buddy?" Tom muttered beneath his breath, watching the man out the corner of his eye as he checked his watch. He thought he could hear a distant cry of distress, coming from the direction of the avatar compound. Grace must be getting closer to her time.

* * *

"_Sempu_, it hurts!"

Grace sucked in shaken, quick breaths, trying to focus on her breathing as she'd been taught. Tsu'tey was groaning in pain beside her but he never faltered in supporting her. Norm stood at Grace's other side with an expression of empathy and pain on his face.

"I know, Gracie." Norm wiped the sweat from his daughter's flushed brow and tried to soothe her. "Just remember that this will all be over by tomorrow and you'll have your baby in your arms. Come on now; steady your breathing and ride it out."

Ni'nat approached with a cup of cool water and she looked at the straining young couple with gentle encouragement. "Here. Sip." She held the cup to her daughter's lips first and when Grace finished drinking, she offered the cup to Tsu'tey.

"I'm okay," he assured in a tight voice. "But…where is…Uncle Tom? He should be…back by now!"

Ni'nat and Norm exchanged a glance and she shrugged. "I am sure he will return soon. You have much time before the baby comes, so don't worry that he will miss it."

Neytiri returned to them with the freshly rinsed bowl she had held for Gracie when one of the previous contractions made her vomit. She overheard some of what they were saying and she smiled at the young couple. "_Mawey_, _'Itan_. Tom would not miss this. He will be here for the birth. Grace, do you feel you may get sick again?"

The younger woman shook her head and sighed with relief as the contraction tapered off. "No, _Tsahik_. I think it's passed."

"That is good." Neytiri stroked aside a stray lock of hair from Gracie's forehead before placing a hand over her tightened belly. "This child is very eager to be born. We may greet it into the world this night, if it comes as quickly as I think it will."

"I've got the same feeling," agreed Norm.

The good thing about that was that Grace and Tsu'tey wouldn't have to endure labor for an extended amount of time. The bad news was, active labor was likely to be more intense when her body was ready to begin bearing down. Norm supposed short and painful was better than long and exhausting, but each time his daughter cried out, he cringed inside.

* * *

Tom frowned in puzzlement when he spotted a familiar young marine up ahead of him. Baxter Howell was chatting with another MP and he appeared to be wearing linked sausages draped over his shoulders. He had one of the little remote controlled transport rovers beside him and unless Tom was mistaken, it looked like it was piled with grilling equipment. There was a bag of wood chips, a portable grill, separately wrapped cuts of meat and a sack full of some kind of groceries.

"Corporal Howell," Tom greeted, waving at him. He thought this might give him the opportunity he needed to put a damper on whatever plans his stalker had for him.

Baxter turned his head at the call and he waved at Tom. He said goodbye to his companion and parted ways with him. He activated his little rover and it followed him dutifully as he jogged over to Tom. The dying rays of the setting sun glinted on his mirrored shades and he came to a stop before the older man with a smile.

"Hey Dr. Sully. What's in the case?" He pointed at the object that Tom held in his left hand.

"Medical supplies," answered the biologist. "Just in case. Gracie started having contractions this afternoon and we're covering all our bases."

"Yeah, I heard she's having her baby here. Kato called me up on the cell and told me what's going on. Good thing they've got you to help then out with that."

Tom smiled. "I think I'm almost as nervous as the Spellman family and my sister-in-law." His eyes went to the sausage links hanging from the marine's shoulders and he lifted an eyebrow. "I'm almost afraid to ask."

It took Baxter a second to get what he was talking about. He laughed and adjusted the sausages. "Well, I was supposed to have a barbeque with the twins and Savanna while your family is visiting here, but we haven't gotten around to it yet. When I got the news that everyone's going to be there waiting for the birth, I figured now is as good a time as any. People need to eat and it's kind of a celebration, right?"

Tom nodded. "It's definitely something to be celebrated. This is very thoughtful of you, Baxter."

The marine shrugged. "I was going to grill for them anyway and I had the meat. I took down one of those striped deer the other day so that I'd have some fresh native meat to try cooking. I soaked it the way your people do when they're getting meat ready. I hope I did all right."

Tom was surprised. "You shot a hexapede?"

"Yeah." Baxter held his hands up, misunderstanding. "Don't worry Doc, I like animals and I was humane about it. He didn't suffer long."

"I have no doubt," Tom answered with a smirk. "I was only surprised that you took the time to go out and hunt one. Isn't there native meat available at the market, for regular avatars?" Tom knew that Hell's Gate sent people out every couple weeks to hunt and thankfully, they were conservative about how many animals they harvested per month.

"Yeah, but it's not usually fresh," sighed Baxter. "The avatar drivers are pretty much the only ones that need any wild game, so a lot of it gets put in the deep freeze. I'm not going to feed that to people who know what fresh game tastes like."

Tom chuckled. "So you're a perfectionist when it comes to grilling. I never would have guessed." He checked his watch again, sobering. "Well, we should get going. It could be hours before the baby comes but I promised to be there for all of it and Norm can be a handful when he gets too excited."

Baxter grinned. "Yeah, I need to get this stuff set up too. What do you like better, Dr. Sully; steak or burgers? I ground up some of the hexapede meat and made patties out of it. It's kind of experimental but I think they'll taste okay."

"Hmm, I haven't had a burger in years. I think I'll try one of yours." Tom began to walk but he remembered the man that had been following him and he stopped Baxter from turning around. "Just a minute, son. Can you look behind me and tell me if you see a man in a white lab uniform? No, don't take your sunglasses off. I don't want it to be obvious that either of us are looking at him."

Baxter frowned and looked over Tom's shoulder, obediently keeping the gesture from being too obvious. "Am I looking for a human or an avatar?"

"Human," answered Tom, watching the taller man's face for any change of expression. "Do you see him? He has dark hair and he's medium height."

Howell shook his head. "Nope. I saw an avatar dressed in lab clothes heading to the med/research building in kind of a hurry, but I don't see any humans matching your description." He lifted his shades, propping them on his forehead. Baxter was all business now, gazing at Tom with studious green eyes. "Is someone giving you trouble, Dr. Sully?"

Tom thought that if it weren't for the sausage links draping Howell's shoulders, he might have forgotten that there was a light-hearted humanitarian beneath the suddenly stern visage. It was easy to forget that Howell was in fact a trained killer. Like Jake, he was just an all around nice guy until he put on his soldier face.

"I honestly don't know," Tom confessed. "I'm almost positive someone was following me but he must have changed his plans when he saw me speaking with you."

Seeing the way Howell's attractive features had hardened and taking note of his height and build, Tom could see why the stalker would have backed off. He wouldn't want to mess with the marine either.

"When did you notice him following you?"

"I started to notice him after I left the supply room," answered the scientist. "He was still behind me when I came outside."

Baxter considered the information and he reached into the breast pocket of his khaki uniform shirt, producing a small container of "Tic-Tac" mints. "Want some?" He offered, holding the container up. When Tom shook his head he shrugged and shook a few out into his hand. He tossed them into his mouth and put the container away.

"The surveillance cameras," Baxter said as he sucked on the mints. "If he was following you in the building, it'll be on today's security feed." He took his cell out of his pant pocket and started dialing.

"What are you doing?" Tom watched with curiosity as Baxter put the phone to his ear.

"Making sure we have a copy," answered the marine. Someone picked up on the other line and he spoke into the phone. "Yo Franklin, it's Howler. Are you working security or is today your off day? Uh-huh. Well I need you to do me a favor. I need you to make a copy of the last hour of the surveillance feeds in the lab building. Which cameras? Uh…just make a backup of all the feeds to be safe. Yup. Nah, it's nothing serious. No, it isn't about _that _either. Thanks, man. See you on the field tomorrow."

Baxter hung up the phone and smiled at Tom, switching back to his usual behavior. "There. When this is all finished, I can take you in to review the feed and we can use it to identify your fanboy. I'll talk to Lt. Chacón about sending people to question him, once we have an ID. Don't worry, Dr. Sully. If this guy was really following you, we'll find out what he was up to."

Tom was suitably impressed, even as he wondered over some of the things Baxter said to his friend in security. "You've really got your act together now, Corporal."

Baxter lowered his gaze and absently adjusted the sausage links around his neck. "I've still got a ways to go on that, sir."

* * *

_Back at UNEC:_

"Jake Sully is still a citizen of Earth," said the plaintiff, looking up at the jury watching overhead. "Just because he traded his human skin for blue stripes doesn't change that fact. As such, he is susceptible to human laws. The men who violated the peace treaty are doing _their_ time for their crimes. Mr. Sully should be made to do his; regardless of his political standing with the natives. Maybe if he were a real Na'vi, we would have to pardon his actions but Jake Sully is just as human as I am, under that avatar skin."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Jake commented with a feral smirk.

"Treason is a crime too, Mr. Sully," countered the plaintiff. "You betrayed your home world with your actions when you sided with the Na'vi."

"I betrayed a bunch of murdering savages that wanted to wipe out a whole race for some metal under the earth," corrected Jake. "Last time I checked, the people of Earth didn't support genocide of the Na'vi."

Mr. Grant faltered a bit at the reminder of the international outrage expressed by the citizens of Earth when the broadcast from Pandora exposed what their tax dollars were paying for. "Still, you sided against your own kind and now you expect to get away with murder in the name of vigilante justice."

"I never said I expected to get away with it." Jake shrugged. "I turned myself in, remember?"

"And yet I'm sure you're counting on your status as clan leader to earn your freedom for you," answered the plaintiff sardonically. "Well, celebrity or not, three men are dead because of you and one of then was innocent of any wrongdoings. I trust the jury to take that into consideration when they make their ruling."

"I'm sure they will," agreed Jake. The court session had dragged on all afternoon and he was at a point where he just wanted it to be over with. He didn't give a damn if they threw the book at him or let him go, at this stage. He wanted someone to contact Hell's Gate for him and ask about how Grace and Tsu'tey were doing. His grandchild could be born already and he was stuck listening to some weasely little man try to manipulate him and the tribunal.

Grant regarded him with an expression that said he was starting to see that Jake was bored beyond caring. "I have no further questions, your honors." He turned away and walked back to his desk, taking his seat.

Archer got out of her chair and set aside her holopad. "If it would please the court, I have some evidence that I would like to present that will prove Jake Sully cannot be charged as a citizen of planet Earth."

The judges looked at each other and conversed softly before the woman gave a nod. "Present your evidence, Commissioner. We would like to see what you can show us."

Jake was interested in seeing it too and he perked up a little, wondering what kind of evidence she could present to prove such a thing. Archer produced her phone and she called someone on it. "Please bring the exhibit in now. The tribunal is ready for it."

She ended the call and looked up at the judges. "It will take approximately fifteen minutes for the exhibit to get here, your honors. May I request a short recess in the meantime?"

"Recess granted," agreed one of the judges.

Jake stared at the woman as Archer approached him to consult with him. She looked quite pleased with herself and it was making him a little edgy. "So are you going to tell me what the scoop is?"

She stepped onto the podium and sat down in the human-sized chair beside him. "Just remember that the ends justify the means, Mr. Sully. You may not like what you are going to see, but the advantage to be gained from it was too good to pass up."

"Okay, now you're making me nervous," he muttered, glancing sidelong at her. Beneath the clear visor of her breathing filter, her copper features were confident and dignified. "What exactly are you bringing in to show the court?"

Archer returned his glance. "You'll see, soon enough."

"You sound like you really want me to be surprised."

She smiled faintly. "Unrehearsed reactions are ideal in this situation. I know you can handle it though, Mr. Sully. Your constitution is legendary."

Jake wasn't so sure his constitution was as "legendary" as she claimed. His boredom had passed but his stomach was beginning to complain. He couldn't tell if he was hungry or nauseous and it was getting steadily worse. He thought of his family and his friends while he waited to see what kind of rabbit Miss Archer was going to pull out of her hat. Was Tsu'tey handling his role as the "father" and supportive mate well? Were there any complications with the birth? Would his grandchild be a boy or a girl?

The doors opened and a man and woman in lab coats came into the courtroom, wheeling a covered gurney. They pushed the gurney to the center of the room and then left with a nod from Archer.

"Recess is over," announced one of the judges. "Commissioner, if you please?"

"Of course." Archer got out of her chair and she gave Jake one last, warning look before approaching the gurney. She took the corner of the sheet covering the gurney and she began to pull it down. "I present to the court the body of one Corporal Jake Sully, UNMC veteran, honorably discharged from service with a Purple Heart medal for injuries taken in service to his country."

Jake felt his eyes trying to bug out as he watched her remove the sheet to reveal the decayed remains of his former body. It really could have been any human skeleton, but he could clearly see the identification tags lying against the ribcage. They had buried his body with them, one of the only ceremonial things he wanted done for the occasion. "Where the hell did you get that?"

Archer didn't answer him. Instead, she picked up her holopad and tapped something into it. "I've just sent the coronary report to your personal computer interfaces, ladies and gentlemen. You can see for yourselves that the data is conclusive. This body has been positively identified as the remains of Jake Sully. It was retrieved from its resting place with permission, to provide this court with proof that the man sitting in that chair is _not_ the same man who came to Pandora as a citizen of Earth."

The tribunal and the jury looked at the digital documents on the small screens built into their desks. Archer gave them a moment to examine the evidence before pointing at Jake. "This man is a warrior of the Omaticaya people—otherwise known as the Blue Flute clan. He is _Toruk Makto_, symbol of hope and strength for _all_ Na'vi, not just one clan. His ties to our planet and culture were severed when his former body died and he started a new life. We are the aliens on this planet, ladies and gentlemen. We don't make tribal laws and _Toruk Makto_ broke none of them when he brought his son's killers to justice."

Jake kept staring at his remains and all he could think was: ~_Toruk Makto is about to hurl_.~

"Semantics!" Objected the plaintiff. "She's trying to get her client off on a technicality! Whether he was in his human body or his avatar when he did it, Jake Sully is guilty of premeditated, cold-blooded murder. He—"

One of the judges banged his gavel, cutting off the tirade. "You will wait your turn to present your argument, Director Grant. Commissioner Archer, please continue. I'm interested in your reasoning."

"As I reminded earlier, Mr. Sully is not being tried as a citizen of Earth. I am demonstrating to the jury that we _must_ treat him as an Omaticaya warrior—which is exactly what he is. As such, he operated according to Na'vi justice. We are currently at peace with the natives and if it's to remain that way, this man must be pardoned and returned to his people. To imprison him indefinitely for actions the Na'vi believe are justified is to risk another war, and we know how the citizens of Earth feel about that."

There was utter silence, both in the witness boxes and in the courtroom. Even Grant had nothing to say about Archer's final statement.

Archer was apparently satisfied with the result of her closing argument. "I rest my case."

* * *

Grant took a couple of seconds to pull his thoughts together as he got out of his chair to present his closing argument. He walked toward the witness stand but he retained a safe distance before pointing at Jake and making his argument. "That body is legally the property of the RDA. _Stolen_ property. It was created on Earth and is therefore subject to Earth jurisdiction."

Jake's jaw dropped. As if the shock of seeing his own skeleton wasn't enough, now this joker was talking about him like he was a piece of merchandise! "You've got to be shitting me."

"Objection," Archer protested—and this time, anger crept into her tone. Her eyes practically shot daggers at the plaintiff as she rose to her feet and placed her hands flat on the desk. "Mr. Sully's status as an avatar does _not_ give anyone ownership of his body. That would be tantamount to slavery—which is _illegal_ both on Earth and here on Pandora."

"But the avatar itself was paid for and created by the RDA," reminded Grant before the any of the tribunal could act. "Jake Sully took his without any compensation to the company. For that matter, so did Dr. Norm Spellman."

"The company took their payment," Jake growled, "In blood. Or maybe the price of a Na'vi kid's life isn't worth as much to you as a human kid."

They Jury began to buzz with activity, stirred by the controversial subject matter. Archer looked as though she wanted to leap over her desk and skin Grant herself, while Jake was barely holding himself in check.

"Order! Order in the court!" One of the judges was banging his gavel and the other two were preparing to reach for their security buttons. "This court will come to order immediately!"

People settled down and Jake shut his eyes and counted to ten. The female judge on the tribunal regarded Grant with a stern, disapproving look. "I will remind the plaintiff that the RDA is now dissolved and matters of legal property are not relevant to this case. Jake Sully hasn't been brought up on theft charges and even if your accusation is true, he is a human being and as such, cannot be bartered for."

Grant smirked. "Of course. The RDA doesn't exist any longer." He looked at Jake then and there was something so conniving and evil in his eyes that Jake felt a coldness down his spine. The plaintiff went on to further plead his case. "But your honors, with all due respect, if he's a 'human being' as you say, he should stand trial as one."

"Semantics, as you so elegantly stated earlier," responded the judge on the right. "We don't buy and trade the natives, any more than we buy and trade our own species. Whatever Mr. Sully is now, he isn't a slave."

"Now, if we're finished with the disruptions, this court will be adjourned," said the judge on the left. "The jury is dismissed to reach its verdict and we will wait here for the final ruling."

* * *

Selfridge poured himself one last scotch as he watched the court proceedings draw to a close on the monitor. He glanced at his office door when he heard voices outside of it, but they faded away as the owners continued walking. The judges declared the trial to be over with and Sully walked out of the room with Archer, no doubt to be cuffed and led back to his cell the moment the doors shut behind him.

His phone rang and Parker downed his drink before answering it. "I guess you saw. Yeah. I figured as much. It's probably in the bag. No, I'm good for it. You can tell Stone I'll take care of it."

When he hung up the phone, he combed his fingers through his short-groomed hair and sighed. He put his hands on his hips and gathered his strength for what was to come. "Yeah, I'll take care of it. Moment of truth."

* * *

When her father returned with Baxter Howell and one of the base's transport units accompanying him, Karyu stopped playing her flute, lowering it as she stared at the marine. "What's _he_ doing here and what is all that junk he's got with him?"

Kato stopped playing his drum and looked up. "I called him when Grace started having her contractions."

"Why?" demanded the female twin, finding it impossible to tear her gaze off of the male she helplessly lusted after. She thought of the day she confronted him in his private quarters and a thrill went though her with the memory of how he had looked, standing there with damp hair in nothing but a towel.

"They're friends now," Savanna answered for her mate, smiling as she stroked Kato's hair. "They hang out together sometimes."

Karyu felt strangely betrayed and she gave her brother an accusing look. "You never told me that."

Kato raised his eyebrows. "I didn't know I had to clear it with you before I make new friends."

Gracie moaned with another contraction and everyone paused, looking at her and Tsu'tey with concern and sympathy. Her parents and Neytiri were quick to soothe the couple, coaching them through the contraction. Ralu and Sylwanin passed by them with their incense sticks, praying out loud to Eywa for a safe and healthy birth. Allowing them to scent the air was Neytiri's idea. It gave the girls a sense of importance and kept them out the way.

When the sounds of distress faded a little, Karyu returned her attention to her brother. "I didn't _say_ you had to clear anything with me, dummy! I just didn't know you and Howell were so chummy. You could have warned me or something."

"Why would I need to do that?" He cocked his head innocently, but his smile was sly. "You make him sound dangerous."

She almost blurted that he _was_ dangerous, but that would have prompted Kato to ask her for an explanation. She wasn't about to confess to him that the marine had a way of making her lose concentration and turn into a lusty _skxawng_.

"I'm your sister," Karyu said instead. "We should tell each other things like this."

"We should tell each other when we have feelings for someone too," suggested Kato with a meaningful glance at Howell. Now Andrew and Dustin were looking at the marine as well and they were taking a little too much interest in Karyu's reactions.

"Looks like he's got a grill with him," Andrew remarked with a frown. "What the hell is _that_ about?"

"Oh no he didn't," Kato said with a laugh. He set his drum aside and got up. As the others watched in puzzlement, he hurried over to his father and Baxter. The marine grinned at him and slapped his hand in greeting.

"Is he…are they going to have a barbeque?" Dustin queried when Kato began to help Baxter unload the supplies. "He's got sausages hanging around his neck."

Karyu remembered the marine's promise to cook her some hamburgers and before she knew it, a little smile curved her lips. "I forgot all about it. We were supposed to have a barbeque with him while we're visiting. It looks like he's decided to bring it to us."

Baxter set the grill down on the ground, far enough away from the birthing tent to cook without getting the smoke near the expecting parents or the baby they would soon welcome to Pandora. He glanced up and caught sight of Karyu. Green eyes met amber across the distance and he smiled and winked at her in greeting.

Karyu cursed her face for betraying her with a blush. She looked away, cleared her throat and picked up her flute. Dustin tried to ask her something but she was already playing again, re-joining the other Na'vi musicians.

Near the birthing tent, her mother watched her behavior with more than a passing interest. Tanhi's eyes settled on Howell—who seemed to be paying more attention to Karyu than the cooking equipment he was setting up. The Ikran chieftess narrowed her eyes thoughtfully and she ducked into the tent to make some final adjustments to the bedding.

* * *

Baxter didn't offer to grill for everyone out of kindness alone, of course. He had an ulterior motive and its name was Karyu. The inspiration for his motivation was playing her flute with the other Na'vi musicians and he kept glancing up to admire the way her lips fit around the mouthpiece of the instrument. It resembled a pennywhistle or a recorder from Earth, except that it was bigger and carved with Na'vi symbols.

"Dude, stop staring at my sister and watch what you're doing," Kato muttered.

Baxter realized that he'd almost let the match burn out and he hastily dropped it into the grill. The flammable tree sap he had sprinkled over the wood ignited and soon, the grill was fired up properly.

"I wasn't staring," Baxter lied, giving Kato a half-guilty look. The other male was grinning at him. Kato knew he had an interest in his sister and so far, he didn't seem to mind one bit. Most males tended to be more protective of their sisters but considering that Karyu was practically a force of nature in her own right, she hardly needed such protection.

Kato's next comment proved he didn't have a problem with it. "Hey, it's okay if you were. You're not the first to look and you won't be the last."

Baxter grimaced, disliking the thought of another guy having a shot at her, even if it would be better in the long run for her to be with someone from her own clan. "Say for argument's sake that I was staring," he said, glancing around to be sure nobody was close enough to eavesdrop, "what do you think my chances are, compared to the other guys that look?"

Kato finished unwrapping one of the hexapede mince patties Baxter had prepped before coming and he sniffed it curiously before handing it over. "What did you put in this?"

"Some native onions and herbs from the garden here, a little sweet pepper and sea salt."

"So this is okay for the other hunters to eat too," reasoned Kato.

"Yup. I only used Pandora ingredients. The beef burgers and sausages are a different story, though. So how about answering my question, bud?"

Kato chuckled. "Honestly? I'm not sure _any_ guy has an easy chance with my sister but you'd probably have better luck than any of the other guys interested in her."

Baxter considered the answer and he thought of the discovery he'd made while reviewing security feeds of the barracks with Corporal Franklin. He still couldn't believe he slept through all of that but the evidence was overwhelming. With what he knew now, he could safely say that he had his proof that Karyu shared his feelings, even if she would never admit it while awake. What he still didn't understand was how the dreams worked. There seemed to be no explanation for _that_.

Baxter turned the meat and looked at Karyu again. Savanna was now dancing to the music and Karyu got up and swayed with her, still playing her flute. "Think you could lure your twin over here to talk to me, Kato? I've got something to tell her."

Kato looked a bit worried. "Is that why you were asking me what I thought of your chances? I hope you aren't planning to do something stupid."

Howell laughed and he dashed a bit of sauce over the cooking burger patties. "I'm not going to proposition her, if that's what you're worried about."

"Good, because I'd be more worried about your health than her honor if you did," answered Kato dryly. "So what is this about?"

Baxter shrugged. "She asked me something the last time we spoke and I didn't know the answer at the time. I've figured it out since then and I want to tell her."

"Hmph...mysterious. I'll see what I can do."

* * *

When her brother pulled her aside to talk, Karyu thought he was going to tell her something about the wedding or ask for her advice. She wasn't expecting him to ask her to go and speak with Baxter Howell.

"He sent you to come and get me?" She leaned to one side and peered around her brother's body at the marine in question. Dustin and Andrew were chatting with him now and offering their help with the cooking. The hunters on watch kept glancing at the grill, evidently finding the aroma of the cooking food appealing.

"He just wants to talk to you," Kato urged. "Where's the harm in that? You've been avoiding him for days and you acted like I kept some big secret from you by not telling you we're friends now. The guy likes you, Karyu. Eywa only knows why, the way you've treated him. Just go and talk to him. It's the least you can do."

"The way I've…what?" She sputtered, setting her flute down. "I nursed that klutz every single _day_ after he got hurt saving our father. You've got some nerve, accusing me of treating him bad."

"But you're rude to him when you're not trying to avoid him completely," insisted Kato. He studied her narrowly. "Did something happen between you two? You seemed more or less okay with him, until last week."

She swallowed, some part of her wishing she could just come out and tell her brother all about the strange dreams and her powerful attraction to Baxter Howell. She wished she could let him comfort her and cheer her up, the way he always used to do when she was upset. She couldn't, however. Nobody could understand what she was going through, not even her twin. She didn't understand it herself.

"I just don't want to encourage any mistaken ideas he might have," she excused, thinking fast.

Kato snorted. "Mistaken ideas…whatever. I think something's going on with you two. I don't think you're avoiding him out of fear that he might get the wrong idea from a friendly word."

She rolled her eyes to hide the uncertainty she felt as his words struck too close to home. "Think whatever you want, _Tsmukan_. You always did have an active imagination."

He smirked. "Are you going to go talk to him or not? If you won't, I've got to think up some excuse and apologize for your rudeness."

She glared at him. "Listen to you! You sound more like _Sempul_ every day. Fine, if it will get you off my back so I can go back to focusing on the childbirth that's going to be happening, I'll go talk to him."

* * *

"Okay klutz…what did you want to talk about?"

Baxter grinned at the lithe huntress. She had her arms crossed over her chest in an impatient pose and she somehow managed to look intimidating and cute at the same time. He kept his voice lowered as he answered her. "I know how you got my hat."

Whatever she had been expecting him to say, that clearly wasn't it. She blinked up at him and frowned. "Okay, I'll bite. How did I get your hat?"

He leaned toward her, holding her gaze. "You came to my room and took it." He waggled his eyebrows at her.

She stared at him.

"What, nothing to say?" He wanted to reach out and cup her chin, lower his mouth to hers and kiss her silly. He wasn't that stupid though.

"My cousin and friend are getting ready to have a baby," Karyu finally growled with a gesture at Tsu'tey and Grace. "I don't have time for your stupid little mind games, avatar."

"You don't believe me," he said, unsurprised. "What if I told you I have proof?"

She regarded him suspiciously. "I doubt that you do but I'm intrigued that you may. What sort of proof are you talking about?"

"Video proof," he answered succulently. "One of my light duties is to review surveillance feeds and report it if I see anything unusual. Guess what I saw when I went over the feeds from the military barracks, recorded the night before you came accusing me of planting my hat on you?"

She only stared at him some more.

Unperturbed, he went on. "Well, to be fair I probably would have missed it if Franklin hadn't spoken up and asked me who the native hottie was that came to visit me in the night."

"What the hell are you talking about?" she demanded. "I _think_ I'd remember something like that."

"Then you have a selective memory," he countered, eyeing her up and down. "I saw it with my own eyes. You walked down that hallway straight to my room, like you had purpose. You were in there for over an hour and when you came back out, you were wearing my cap. I'm sure I don't need to tell you how that looked to Private Franklin. I had to make something up to protect your honor."

She looked bewildered for a moment, then angry. "You're lying. I would know it if I went to your room and I'm sure you would have woken up if someone just walked right in. Besides, don't you lock your door at night?"

"That's the funniest part," Baxter answered. "I _do_ keep my door locked. The feed showed me opening it and letting you in."

Now she ogled him. "That's impossible."

"I know," he agreed. "Crazy, right? But it happened. I don't remember you coming to visit me either but you did."

He was still trying to work out how the picture got knocked over and the door got left open after the first time she visited him in a dream. She had been miles away at her village then, so the only explanation he could think of was that he got out of bed and moved stuff around himself.

She shook her head. "How could nether of us remember it, if it really happened?"

Baxter shared his theory with her. "Well, we practically had the same dream that night. Have you ever heard of sleepwalking?"

Something in her expression changed. There was a light of recognition in her eyes, just before she looked away. "This is all bullshit. I still think you're making this up."

He shrugged. "I can show you the proof whenever you want. I just thought you'd like to know, since you were so worried about how you got my hat. Are you going to give it back to me, by the way?"

"No," she answered without hesitation. "I won it, fair and square."

"In a dream," he reminded with a grin.

She tapped her foot and struck a pose of impatience again.

Baxter laughed. "Okay, you can keep the hat and I won't bring up your little visit again until you're ready to see the proof. How do you like your steak cooked?"

She deflated, appearing staggered by his easy change of subject. "I like my meat rare."

Baxter smirked at her. "Why doesn't that surprise me? Rare it is."

"I thought you were making me a hamburger."

"I am," he assured her. "Along with a steak. With your metabolism, I think you can get away with eating both." He'd also seen how much food she could put away, but he wasn't about to say so and risk being accused of calling her a pig.

"I'd better not get food poisoning from this," she warned. She started to walk away, but she paused and turned again. She looked up at him almost reluctantly and she appeared to have a question on the tip of her tongue.

"Something wrong?" Baxter asked lightly, guessing that she was just as hungry for answers as he was.

"What does the 'O' stand for?"

It was his turn to frown. "Huh?"

"The label inside the cap," she explained. "It says "Cpl. Baxter O. Howell on it. The 'O' is the initial of your middle name, isn't it?"

"That's right. All of us 'Sky People' are given middle names."

"So what's yours?" She persisted.

He thought about leaving her wondering, but she seemed to be genuinely interested and he just couldn't resist those curious, almond shaped eyes. "It's Owen."

Karyu tested the name on her lips. "Baxter Owen Howell. It fits together."

"Was that a compliment?"

She compressed her lips. "Be sure to cook my steak rare, Green-eyes."

Baxter chuckled and he admired the sway of her hips as she walked away. He caught Dr. Sully looking at him and he hastily returned his attention to the grill. Tom smiled subtly and went to his mate's side to help her with the final touches to the birthing tent.

* * *

Some time later, Karyu was picking her teeth with a splinter of wood, well-satisfied with the meal provided by Howell. The other hunters complimented the marine and thanked him for sharing his bounty. Poor Dustin had to hold his breath and lift his mask every time he took a bite, but he stubbornly stayed and thanked Howell for cooking some human food.

"So, did I cook your meat right?" Baxter asked her when she walked up to him to watch him clean the grill. He grinned at Sylwanin as the girl passed by him with a literally saucy smile and a compliment to his cooking. "Here, you've got some gook on your face, kiddo."

Sylwanin stopped and let him wipe the barbeque sauce from her mouth with his tea towel. "Thanks Mr. Baxter!"

"No problem. Your incense smells good, by the way."

"It's _Sa'nu's_ incense," replied Sylwanin importantly, glancing at her mother. Ralu came up beside her and the girls clasped hands. "We're inviting the ancestors to help the baby be born. It's important."

"Then you'd best get back to the welcoming," suggested Baxter.

The girls agreed and they continued their rounds. Howell grinned at them before returning his attention to the woman of his fancy. "So as I was saying earlier, did you like the food?" He lowered his eyes to the grill as he scraped it, trying to look casual.

"You cook good food," agreed Karyu unexpectedly.

Baxter looked up from his task.

"But don't think you'll butter me up with a meal," Karyu demanded, arching one delicate brow. "I want to see this alleged proof of yours and discuss this problem we have, when this is finished."

Happy that she was at least trying to investigate it rather than close the door on it, Baxter nodded. "You've got it, Sugarplum."

She scowled, the firelight flickering on her delicate features in a way that made the expression seem sexy, somehow. "Use one more pet name on me and I swear I'll—"

"Aaaahhh!"

Karyu was startled out of her umbrage by the sound of agony that erupted from both of her laboring friends. She looked over at the couple with wide eyes as Grace stopped and splayed her hands over her rounded belly. Beside her, Norm was speaking in an urgent tone and Ni'nat was speaking soothingly to Tsu'tey, who was obviously doing his damndest to support his mate without falling over himself.

Kato approached the grill and he kept one eye on his struggling friends as he started to gather up the barbeque equipment. "I think they're about to go into the final stages of labor."

"Shit...what do they need?" Baxter forgot all about what he was doing and he nearly pressed the grill-cleaning tool against a passing hunter's arm. She dodged at the last moment and hissed at him, prompting him to apologize.

"Calm down," Kato urged. "They've got it under control, okay? Don't do like you did that day with the lady we found in the ally."

Baxter flushed when Karyu looked at him curiously. "I'm just the grill man. I'll focus on that."

"What did you—" Karyu started to ask, but Savanna came up to her at that moment and began yanking on her arm with excitement.

"She's ready to push," exclaimed the hybrid with delight. "They're taking her to the birthing tent! Isn't it exciting?"

Baxter caught a look of Tsu'tey and Grace's expressions and he thought they both looked more frightened than excited.

* * *

Grace could no longer stand. She could feel her child's readiness to be born and she gasped a plea to her parents, looking at them with pain-glazed eyes as she sank to her knees. She heard the alarmed cries of her friends from the direction of the chosen grilling area and she wished that she could reassure them that she was okay. The urge to begin bearing down was overwhelming and she started to comply with it, straining with her body's demands.

"No, Grace," Tom's voice advised from somewhere to the left, "not yet. Let us get you to the birthing tent first and have a look, before you start pushing."

"B-but I _have_ to push," she complained. "I have to get it out!"

"We have to listen to them," persuaded Tsu'tey, even as he clenched his teeth and bit back a yowl of pain.

"We must position them quickly," Neytiri urged, her gaze flitting between the other adults and the young couple. "When the birthing pangs are this strong, the body cannot resist for long."

"Hold on, Gracie," Norm urged his daughter as he helped the others support her and Tsu'tey. "We're right here."

The young woman gave an agonized shriek and Neytiri briefly felt beneath her garments before giving the others a nod. Together, the expecting grandparents herded the couple to the birthing tent while the others looked on.

"Uncle Tom?" Tsu'tey called uncertainly, looking over his shoulder at the older man.

"Don't worry Tsu'tey," Tom assured him. "You two don't need to be crowded and I'm going to be right here, all right? I'll come in when they need my help. You can do this."

Tsu'tey nodded and held his mate close as he entered the tent with her. Neytiri drew the flaps down for privacy and Tanhi came up beside Tom to put an arm around his waist. He returned her embrace and nuzzled her hair.

"It won't be long now."

Tanhi nodded. "It is sad that your brother will not be here to see his grandchild take the first breath."

"Jake will make up for that," Tom assured.

* * *

_Back at UNEC:_

A mere fifteen minutes later, the jury returned with the verdict. Archer was seated next to Jake on the witness stand again and she straightened up a little as the chosen spokesperson stood before the judges to declare the verdict.

"In the charge of murder of the first degree, we find the defendant...not guilty."

Jake's eyebrows shot up and Grant mumbled something uncharitable under his breath.

"In the charge of murder of the second degree, we find the defendant...not guilty."

A smile curved Jake's mouth. He was honestly surprised to be so unanimously supported.

"In the charge of high treason, we find the defendant...not guilty."

That was the final charge against him. Jake stared up at the witness panels, feeling a little dazed. "That's it?" He whispered, leaning toward Archer. "Just like that?"

The tribunal answered his question before she could. One of the judges tapped his gavel, stood up and gave Jake a nod. "We now declare this trial complete. Mr. Sully, you have been cleared of all charges and you will be freed and transported to Hell's Gate by morning. Adjourned."

Jake looked at Archer with a wary smile and she returned it calmly.

"Someone was watching over you, Mr. Sully. We were fortunate to get a sympathetic jury and tribunal panel."

He nodded, still hardly believing it. Grant gave him one last, unfriendly look before leaving and the guards came in. When they approached him with the request to cuff him, Jake frowned. "I thought I was cleared."

"You are," assured Archer, "But the paperwork must be done before it's final. You're presently still under custody, Mr. Sully."

Jake wasn't too happy about being cuffed, but he was glad to have the trial over with and being cleared of all charges did give him a feeling of closure and justice. They slipped an exopack over his face and escorted him out of the courtroom. The one thing that put a damper on his spirits was lingering anger over Grant's outrageous ending argument. Jake couldn't understand what possessed the man to say such a thing, so he sought insight from Archer.

"Just what in hell was that guy trying to prove?" Jake fumed as he walked beside Archer down the corridors. "I'm no expert with law but that was about the craziest argument I've ever heard! Was he really hoping the jury would go for that and declare me RDA property?"

Archer kept her eyes focused straight ahead. "No. He was hoping to bait you into a reaction that would have cost your credibility to the jury—hence the reason he retained distance between himself and you when he presented the argument. It was a last, desperate attempt to force a violent reaction from you. You did well to resist it."

Jake thought about that malevolent look the plaintiff had given him upon mention of the RDA's demise. Had he acted on his instincts and attempted to attack the man for casually referring to him as RDA property, he likely would have been shot to death or dragged away and declared criminally insane. Grace Augustine's warning from the spiritual world couldn't have come at a better time.

"Sounds like someone's really determined to get me out of the way," Jake remarked. He glanced over his shoulder and he frowned when he spotted a couple of uniformed avatar operatives joining their group from behind. It was then that he realized he wasn't being taken back to his cell. In fact, they seemed to be heading to the most remote sectors of the building and the number of people coming and going thinned out. He tensed, his senses on alert.

"This isn't the way back to my holding cell."

Archer kept walking. "No, it isn't. I'm sorry to put you through this, Mr. Sully."

Jake instinctively kicked out when he sensed someone moving in from behind him. He heard a man swear and grunt in pain, just before someone else tried to restrain him from the other side. He shoved back against the human, easily sending him sprawling to the floor.

"Goddammit," Jake cursed, "I trusted you!"

* * *

Strong hands caught hold of his arms and he heard someone else grunting—probably the avatar he had kicked earlier. A second pair of hands joined the first and despite his efforts, Jake was dragged into a side room. With his hands and feet hobbled, he could do little against the two avatar operatives. A cloth sack was dropped over his head, obscuring his vision. He kicked out violently with both feet when he felt someone trying to hamper his limbs and he felt some satisfaction as his feet launched the human body away from him and he heard it hit the wall.

"We've got to do this fast," one of the human guards grunted. "This bastard's tough."

"I'll check the door," Archer's voice said.

Jake struggled with all his might, remembering all of his military and hunter training. He was sure he cracked someone's nose and broke someone else's ribs in his struggles. He nearly had his hands tucked under his feet to put them before him, but then he heard muffled gunshots. Someone groaned and something wet sprinkled Jake's torso. He felt a human body fall onto him and he could tell by the stillness that it was dead. It was quickly followed by more silenced gunfire and there was heavy swearing from the avatars.

"What the hell are you _doing_?" Jake twisted in his captor's grasp, nearly breaking free.

There was the sound of a door sliding open and more footsteps. "Jesus. All right look, we don't have a lot of time. Block this room off and let's get him to the transport before we lose the window."

Recognizing the voice, Jake bucked against his restraints and voiced his anger. "Selfridge, no matter what you do to me, I'm going to find a way to make you—"

The hood was suddenly yanked up over his head and he found himself looking at Parker Selfridge's strained, pale face. "If you want to see your family again, you'll shut up and cooperate."

Jake was stunned and admittedly confused. He looked around him and he saw Archer leaning against the wall toward the door, with one hand pressed over her left side. The bodies of the human guards lay sprawled everywhere in the chamber. He could see blood trickling between Archer's fingers and he started to piece together the events he had heard whilst blinded.

"What the hell did you do, Selfridge?"

Parker gave him an angry glare. Before he could speak up, Archer answered Jake's inquiries. "We need to move. Parker, are the arrangements in place?"

The administrator's eyes went to the wound and he hesitated before answering. "Yeah. The General is waiting. Sully, you've got one shot to get out of this place alive. Are you going to fight us or do we need to put you out to get this done?"

Jake looked from the administrator he despised to the commissioner he had come to respect. His gaze slid to the bodies, shot down by Archer and her two avatar cohorts. Did he really have a choice?

He sighed. "Tell me where we're going."

Selfridge cracked the door open and peered outside. "Looks like we got through this part without attracting attention." He looked at Archer and Jake saw the flash of concern in his eyes. "You need medical attention, Pam."

"I'll manage until we're out of here," she said stubbornly. She looked at Jake and offered the explanation he was waiting for, nodding at the dead guards. "Those men were RDA agents, operating under orders to take you some place out of sight and kill you if the trial went in your favor. I was assigned to assist them. The company decided that if you can't be put out of sight through imprisonment, an accident must be 'arranged' to dispose of you. They resent you for refusing to break as you were supposed to. West is also a target, for being a thorn in the corporate side and aiding you. They had plans for him as well, once they dealt with you."

"Holy shit," Jake grunted, "That's...that's..." He shook his head and barked a bitter laugh, dropping the pretense of shock. "You know what? I can't even act surprised by anything they do anymore. So, what the hell is _your_ story, Selfridge? If you think I'm putting my trust in you, you're crazy."

"You'd have to be nuts to put your trust in me," agreed Parker candidly. "I'm here because I'm sick of being a lapdog. At least trust _her_, Sully. She put herself in the line of fire trying to save your ass."

Jake regarded the woman with concern. He did trust her, at least more than he trusted Selfridge. "I can carry you."

She shook her head and pushed away from the wall, checking her small revolver. "I'll be fine. They didn't hit anything vital. We've only got a short window before someone checks in on your status and we need to be in the air and on our way to Hell's Gate by the time they know you're still alive."

He again admired her gumption. He hoped he was right to put his trust in her. Parker's motives were still under question but as Archer said; there was a shrinking window of opportunity and Jake didn't have the time to interrogate the man. He looked to the right and left, where the avatar operatives flanked him. With a start, he realized that he knew the one on the right. He was one of the few enhanced avatar operatives the General had under his command. "Aren't you one of West's people?"

The man nodded. "Corporal Raines, sir. Good to see you remember me now."

Jake winced. "Sorry about kicking you."

Raines rubbed his side with a little grimace and shrugged. "I'll live." He bent down and removed the ankle cuffs hobbling Jake. "I'd love to let you out of the other cuffs too and give you a weapon, but it would blow our cover. I give you my word that you'll be freed the minute we're out of the red zone, sir."

Jake found it much more believable that West was waiting for him as Parker claimed, now that he knew one of the General's hand-picked soldiers was in on it. "Let's do it."

* * *

She felt like she was being split in two. The encouragement and reassurances from her parents and Neytiri helped somewhat, but what really gave her comfort was the strength of her mate, staving off exhaustion and supporting her even through his own suffering. She could feel Tsu'tey's trauma through the link and she tried to calm her own anxiety, if only to keep from feeding his. Her efforts were in vain—the pain grew to a point where she couldn't stop screaming. Someone was dabbing her sweating face with a cool cloth but it did little to ease her agony.

"Unh! _Sa'nok! Ma Sempul! _Ayiee!"

Norm and Ni'nat looked at each other helplessly. The anthropologist glanced at the tent exit. "Maybe I should tell Tom to get some pain meds ready."

"Yes, please!" Tsu'tey groaned.

"Try a different position first," Neytiri insisted. "It is best not to use medicine unless we must. It would dull the senses and cause the birth to take longer."

"I just...want it to...hurt less!" Grace yelled.

Neytiri grimaced. "Please, try my suggestion first. If you both cannot bear it after trying different positions, I will speak with Tom about medicating you."

Neytiri looked her fellow grandparents to be, sharing their concern. Neither Grace nor Tsu'tey were known for exaggeration and if they were both demanding medication, the pain must be very intense.

* * *

Outside, the teenagers stopped conversing entirely to stare at the tent with worry and a little horror. Tanhi tactfully took Ralu and Sylwanin to the recreation building to have a swim when the cries grew to an alarming volume and Tom assured the other young people that screaming was generally a natural, common part of childbirth.

Karyu of course didn't find that comforting. "I'd rather have an enemy to fight than be helpless against my own body," she declared.

Nobody could really blame her for her feelings, given the sounds of agony coming from the tent. Baxter impulsively came up behind the slender huntress to rub her shoulders and amazingly, she didn't pull away.

"Hey, they'll be getting a baby out of all this," reminded the marine in a low voice. "I hear that part makes it worth all the screaming."

"If you like kids," snorted Karyu.

"You don't like kids?" His breath fanned her ear, distracting her.

Karyu had to think for a second to comprehend the question. "They're okay. I'm not in a hurry to push one out of me, though."

More screams tore through the air and Baxter paled a little. "Yeah...can't say I blame you."

"At least Na'vi women don't have to do it all alone," Savanna reminded them. "If Gracie was human, all Tsu'tey could do to help would be to stand there telling her to push."

"I'll bet Tsu'tey wishes he was human right now," Kato said dryly, earning himself a smack on the arm from both his sister and his mate.

Baxter wisely kept his agreement with that statement to himself.

* * *

Jake soon lost his sense of direction as they traversed multiple corridors. The place was like a beehive to him and he wondered how often personnel got hopelessly lost on their way to work in the huge building. He ignored the curious looks he got on the way out—if anything, it was probably a blessing that he drew so much attention in his tribal garb. Archer was hiding her injury gamely and the black pantsuit hid the blood well enough, but Jake could see that her limp was growing more severe. Selfridge and Archer put on their exopacks as they made it to the door and Raines obligingly helped Jake remove his.

Just as they made it outside, Parker's phone rang. He swore softly and answered it. "Selfridge, here. No, that's being taken care of now. The hallways were too busy. I'll call you back when it's done."

He hung up the phone and looked at the others urgently. "We've got to move faster, people. They're starting to get suspicious."

No arguments were forthcoming. Selfridge covertly supported Archer's faltering steps as the group picked up the pace and traveled over the concrete, toward a transport rover. A familiar young woman sat behind the driver's seat. Her light brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail and her brown eyes were urgent behind her exopack visor. She hopped out of the vehicle and pulled the passenger cabin doors open, motioning them to hurry.

"Private Sanders," Jake greeted with some relief, smiling in spite of himself. Now he understood why the girl was so nervous when she came to get him for transport to UNEC. She was in on the plan to get him the hell out of there.

She gave him a nervous little smile and a salute. "It's good to see you in one piece, Mr. Sully."

"Save it for later," Selfridge advised. "Every second you people waste chatting is a second we lose. Ándele, folks! Move it!"

"He's really starting to piss me off," Jake grumbled as he climbed into the vehicle, narrowly avoiding hitting his head.

Sanders smiled again, but a frown took its place when she realized Archer was shot. "How bad is it?" She asked, gesturing at the commissioner.

"They missed vital organs," answered Pamela. "I just need the use of a trauma kit until we get to Hell's Gate."

"We've got a medic on board the ship," said Sanders. "There's a trauma kit in the overhead locker here."

"I'll take care of her," Raines offered.

He climbed in and took a seat across from Jake before reaching up for the kit. Selfridge sat down next to Archer, the other avatar whom Jake had yet to be introduced to shut the door and Sanders got back into the driver's seat. The engine came to life and the vehicle jerked into motion, making Archer gasp in pain. Selfridge put a supportive arm around her while Raines undid her blazer and lifted her blouse to begin patching her injury as best he could with the basics.

Jake looked at the entry wound and he felt a lump of dread in his stomach. He'd seen a shot like that before, years ago when Grace Augustine took a bullet in the escape from Quaritch. He hoped the commissioner wouldn't share his friend's fate.

* * *

"Holy shit...we're taking a _Dragon_?" Jake didn't need to exaggerate the surprised look on his face when he was instructed to board the massive warship waiting in the hangar bay. Selfridge and the other avatar soldier helped Archer on board and took her to the medic, while Sanders and Raines boarded with Jake.

Raines removed Jake's cuffs as promised and he ushered him onto the ramp. "Why not? Everyone else is stealing them these days."

"The General is supposed to go out on a search mission tonight," explained Sanders as she came in behind Jake. "Dragons are the only ships allowed to fly night ops by themselves."

"A night time search mission?" Jake frowned. "What the hell is he supposed to find in the dark?"

"The few reported sightings of smuggler activity always took place at night," answered Raines. "We think they're operating somewhere up north on another continent. It isn't unusual for the General to fly night ops searching suspected coordinates, these days. Radar can't pick anything up in the flux areas but spotlights work pretty well for line of sight."

"They planned to get rid of me while I was out on this assignment," General West's voice said from above as he climbed down the ladder leading to the cockpit deck. He smirked at Jake and offered his hand. "I've replaced the crew they assigned with my own people. It was a messy affair."

Jake shook his hand and smirked back, understanding. "So where'd you hide the bodies?"

"They're on board for now, awaiting proper burial," answered West. "The other conspirators are secured in our custody, more or less whole. Fortunately, there were only two casualties in the struggle."

"You'd better make sure one of those survivors checks in with their superiors," Selfridge suggested. "This cover won't last if the agents don't report in."

"We've already managed to 'convince' one of the agents to check in with his superior," answered West. "So far, the cover is solid."

"So what happens when they find out we're not dead and you took a Dragon ship?" Jake inquired.

"With any luck, that won't happen until we get to Hell's Gate," answered West. "And the ship is a loner. I'll have my people contact someone I can trust at UNEC when we're secure and they can send people to retrieve the ship. Even infested with RDA supporters, UNEC won't sanction any hostility against Hell's Gate. The company will have to strike at us through covert agents. They can't afford to blow their cover wide open with a hostile takeover and they still don't have the manpower to try anyway."

"I hope you're right about that," Jake said grimly. "Mind if I go up with you? It's been a while since I've seen inside the cockpit of one of these monsters."

"Be my guest," agreed the older man. "You should also be aware that we're operating on a skeleton crew here, so if something goes wrong and we come under fire, we'll need you to operate a gunner. Do you think you could do that for us?"

Jake scratched his head. "I've never done it before but I'm a fast learner when shit hits the fan. You can count on me."

"Just like a Marine," chuckled West.

They climbed up into the cockpit, where a pilot and a co-pilot waited for takeoff. West picked up the communicator and gave air control his authorization code. "This is General West requesting takeoff for a scheduled search mission. Authorization code is one, charley, zed, fifty-two apple."

There was a crackle as air control responded. "Copy General. You are clear for takeoff."

Jake breathed easier as the rotors started up and the ship began to hover. So far, so good. He could be holding his grandchild by morning.

* * *

_Meanwhile, back at Hell's Gate:_

"Come on, Gracie! Keep pushing! I can see the head crowning!" Norm's excited encouragement prompted his daughter to bear down again.

The struggling young mother was in a squatting position, supported on either side by her mother and Neytiri. Tsu'tey was squatted behind her, helping to support her as best he could while concentrating to aid her efforts. Another scream bubbled on Grace's lips as the burning intensified. She was sure she couldn't bear any more and she began to pray to Eywa to make it stop.

_~"I'm right here, Gracie! You're doing good!"~_

The ghostly voice startled her so much, she actually forgot about her birthing agony for a couple of seconds. Behind her, Tsu'tey stiffened with surprise as well. "Can you hear him?" Grace called to her mate, not caring how her question sounded to the other occupants of the tent.

"I hear him," Tsu'tey confirmed in a strained voice. His next comment was directed at his dead sibling. "You took your time getting here!"

_~"Sorry. I'm here now and we're finishing this together."~_

Gracie sobbed gratefully, somehow infused with renewed energy by the presence of Tommy's spirit. Their parents looked at each other with concern, having heard part of the conversation. Neytiri had a dawning look of comprehension on her face and she smiled a little sadly when she heard Tsu'tey blurt his brother's name. She stroked her son's hair and looked around the room.

"Yes, of course Tommy would be here for the birth of his child."

Norm noticed none of it. He was too absorbed in monitoring his daughter's birthing progress. "Tom," he hollered over his shoulder, "I think it's time for you to get in here!"

The flap opened almost immediately and Tom ducked in, finding a spot beside Norm. "Looking good," he approved after examining the situation. "I know it hurts like the dickens but you're making it through this with flying colors, Gracie."

She gave a tremulous smile, listening more to the encouraging voice of Tommy's spirit than anything else.

* * *

The baby came just after midnight. Grace gave one last, mighty push and she felt a combination of agony and relief as the tiny body came out of her. She heard the angry wail and she tried to look at her child, desperate to know it was healthy.

_"Sempul_? Is the baby okay?" Her voice was raw from screaming.

Tom helped Norm clean the newborn off and he answered for his friend—because Norm was too awed by the sight of his grandbaby to respond. "The baby is fine, Gracie. Congratulations; it's a girl."

Tsu'tey struggled to see the baby too. "It's a girl? Really? I was right!"

Norm bundled his tiny granddaughter carefully while Tom cleaned Grace up and disposed of the afterbirth. "She's amazing," said the anthropologist. Once Neytiri and Ni'nat helped the new parents recline against the pillows piled against the back of the tent, Norm handed the baby over to his daughter.

_~"Grace...she's beautiful. I can't believe we made her together."~_

Grace smiled at the curious, tiny face looking back at her. The infant was still whimpering but she seemed to find something just over Gracie's shoulder more interesting than her indignation. Her fussing faded away and her golden eyes stared at that one spot.

"I think she can see you, _Tsmukan_," Tsu'tey whispered, beaming with pride at the baby. "She has your eyes. She's also got your stripe pattern."

Ni'nat exchanged a quietly concerned look with Norm but Neytiri only smiled.

Tommy's voice sounded slightly husky as he answered. _~"She really does. She's got Gracie's nose and mouth, though. Take good care of our girls for me, brother. You've got to promise me, one last time.."~_

Tsu'tey's vision blurred with tears. "I promise, _Tsmukan_."

_~"Grace, I loved you before but now I love you even more. Thank you for bringing our little girl safely into the world. I know she'll be an amazing person, with you as her mother."~_

Grace sniffed and bowed her head, nodding.

Tommy's presence lingered for a while but it eventually faded away, leaving his brother, his first love and his daughter to bond without him. Their parents and uncle smiled at them as Grace and Tsu'tey stared at the baby with awe. After giving them a few moments of silence, Neytiri asked the question that was on everyone's mind.

"What will you name her?"

Grace stroked her daughter's soft cheek. "Leyra. That's the name we agreed on."

Tsu'tey nodded, smiling as he kissed Grace on the temple and spooned a little closer to her.

"A beautiful name," approved Ni'nat with a smile. "I will go and announce it, now."

They watched her go and then they turned their attention back to their daughter. Norm and Tom left the tent to give them a little privacy while Neytiri instructed Grace on feeding the baby. All the heartache and pain melted away for the time being, mended by the birth of a very special little girl.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Skxawng_** = Moron

**_Mawey_** = Calm

**_'Itan_** = Son


	26. Chapter 26

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 26: Uniltìranyu

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Believe it or not, all of the events in this chapter occur within a 24 hour time period. Move over, Jack Bauer. Warning: This chapter is rated R for some (brief) adult sexual content. _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

When things settled down, Baxter approached Tom with a suggestion. "Dr. Sully, I know you've got other things on your mind, but I think now might be a good time to check that surveillance feed. Everything's under control here and the sooner we can ID that guy that was following you, the better."

Tom looked up from the medical case he was just shutting. "That's good thinking, Corporal. I don't want to leave something like that up in the air. Let me just check on Grace one last time and I'm all yours."

Baxter agreed and he waited outside the tent while Tom ducked in. He heard Tom exchanging a brief, whispered conversation with Neytiri—who was relaxing inside and keeping an eye on the new parents and the baby in case they needed anything. While the doctor did his thing, his daughter came up to Baxter with a half-wary, half expectant look on her face.

"Okay, everyone's distracted with the birth of the baby," she informed him in a low voice, "so this is the perfect time to show me this alleged 'proof' you have of me coming to your quarters."

Baxter glanced at the tent and he cringed inwardly. "Oh. Uh, you see, the thing about that is—"

"I _knew_ it." She smirked, nodding in satisfaction. "You don't have any proof. You were just trying to trick me into thinking I'm responsible for the hat."

He started to stammer another excuse but he considered what he might gain out of proving to her that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. He smiled and leaned closer to her. "All right, Kitten. I was going to put it on hold because I'm about to take your father to look at a security feed, but you can come with and when we're done with that, I'll show you that proof."

She frowned fiercely at him. "My father? What does he need to see a security feed for?"

Baxter realized she must have been starting to believe he had his proof, because the look in her eyes was frankly horrified. She probably thought he intended to show Tom the video feed of her wandering into his quarters and leaving with his cap. He huffed a low, contained laugh.

"Don't look so worried, Princess. Your Dad thought he saw someone following him in the lab building when he went to get supplies for the birth and we're going to go over security feeds to be on the safe side. I'm not going to tell him our little secret."

Karyu's spot pattern brightened and she looked away. "I wasn't...you misunderstood." She snapped a sharp look up at him again as his explanation sank in. "Wait, someone was following my _Sempul_?"

He couldn't help but react to the change in her attitude and before he knew it, he was cupping her face in his gloved hands and blurting promises to her. "Hey, don't worry. We're right on top of this and I'll have this guy brought in for questioning as soon as we've got him identified, okay? I'm not letting anything happen to your _Sempul_."

He wasn't even aware that for once, he spoke a Na'vi word with perfect infliction and accuracy. All he could think of was the worry in her delicate features and the uncommon vulnerability in her eyes at the mere thought of someone trying to hurt her Dad. He brushed his thumb over her parted lips and he completely forgot that there were people all around them. He started to lower his mouth to hers.

Tom came back out of the tent and Baxter snapped out of his enamored daze. He backed off and tried to look casual. "No, I don't see anything. You probably got a speck of dirt in your eye."

Karyu stared at him blankly for a second and then glanced at her father. When she saw Tom's raised eyebrows, she opted to cooperate with Baxter's act. "I guess you're right. Uh...thanks for checking. Dad, what's this about someone following you?"

Tom gave Baxter an annoyed look and it occurred to the marine that he might not have wanted his family to know about it just yet. The older man returned his attention to his daughter and addressed her in a low voice. "It may be nothing. There's no reason for anyone to get worked up yet and I'd appreciate it if you'd keep it to yourself for now, young lady."

Baxter looked away uncomfortably and he hoped he didn't just start a family feud. He wouldn't have thought Tom would try to keep things like this from his family, simply because they were all so strong in body and spirit. The hopeless romantic in him was partly to blame for this issue as well. Karyu had a way of turning his brain to mush...or at least making it mushier than it already was.

"I want to see what this man looks like myself," Karyu demanded in a whisper, glancing at her mother, sibling and sister-in-law across the distance. The three of them were sitting by the fire chatting. Dustin and Andrew had retired to their homes and the hunters that weren't currently on guard were heading to the avatar cabin for some rest.

"Karyu," Tom warned, also glancing at the rest of the family.

"That's the deal, _Sempu_," she said stubbornly, crossing her arms over her chest. "If you want to keep this from Mother, fine—but that's my price for cooperation. I want to know this person's face in case you're making a mistake by not telling our family or clan."

Tom shot another grievous look at Baxter that said: _~See what you've done? You've gotten me in trouble.~_

The marine found it difficult to keep a straight face. He cleared his throat and made a suggestion. "Dr. Sully, maybe you _should_ tell your family. Can you really blame them for being protective of you after what happened with the filter plant explosion?"

The look given to him by the good doctor warned Baxter that the progress he'd made in gaining approval from the man was in danger of being reversed. Tom sighed and looked to his daughter after casting one last, wary glance in his mate's direction.

"Okay, I'll let you come with to see the feed," he whispered, "but you have to promise—Karyu, _look at me_. You have to promise not to say anything until we have more to go on. You let Hell's Gate security handle this, understand?"

For a second, it looked like she was about to argue. She glanced at Baxter, compressed her lips and nodded. "Okay. I'll leave it to them." She began to walk and under her breath, both men heard her mutter: "Or at least give them a head start."

The sidelong grimace Tom gave him wasn't lost on the marine. "Sorry Doc," murmured Baxter contritely as they started after the young woman.

Tom heaved a sigh and shook his head. "No, she would have figured it out eventually. The girl is tenacious."

* * *

"Hey Franklin," Baxter greeted as he held the door open for Karyu and her father. "How's it going?"

The blond human soldier gave him a thumbs-up, even as he covered his mouth on a yawn. He noticed Karyu and he raised his brows, looking between her and Baxter questioningly. Remembering what Howell had said about someone going by the name "Franklin" spotting her in the video, she suddenly felt naked and exposed.

"This is Dr. Sully and his daughter, Karyu," Baxter explained to the MP. "Dr. Sully, Karyu, meet Private Franklin. He's one of the folks in charge of checking out the surveillance feeds each day."

Perhaps she was imagining it, but Karyu thought she noticed Baxter giving the human a warning look as Franklin got out of his swivel chair to offer his hand to her father and to her.

"I've heard a lot about you and your family, Doc." Franklin's eyes flicked to Karyu again and she narrowed hers in response, prompting him to quickly look away. "Are we giving them a super early-morning tour or something, Howler?"

Baxter shook his head. "No. I need that surveillance footage I asked you to save for me. Dr. Sully just needs to clarify something." He paused and clapped the other man lightly on the shoulder. "Hey, your shift is up in like forty minutes, man. Why don't you take off early and I'll fill in?"

Franklin looked reluctant, his hazel eyes flicking from Tom to Karyu. "I don't know...I could get in trouble if I leave unauthorized personnel in here on my watch."

"Just tell them it was my idea and I'll take full responsibility, if you get reamed." Baxter grinned at the other soldier. "Go get some rack, bud."

"If you say so." Franklin procured a data slide from his pocket and handed it over. "Here's the backup you asked for. I haven't seen any evidence of tampering regarding the feed from yesterday but I saved the time frame you asked for."

Baxter took it and thanked him. "See you tomorrow. I've got you covered."

Private Franklin yawned again, gave Karyu one last curious glance and then left the room. Karyu was itching to ask Howell what exactly he allegedly said to the private to "protect her honor" but as soon as the door was shut and locked, Baxter slipped the data transmitter into one of the monitors and motioned Tom forward.

"Okay Dr. Sully, this is a feed from the hour you were in the lab building. Let's see what we can get."

Tom leaned over Baxter's shoulder and watched as the marine scanned through the time. "Wait, stop. Right there."

Howell obligingly stopped the feed and allowed Tom to have a closer look. "That's him. He's following me from the supply room. I'm sure if you switch it to coordinated cameras for the connected hallways, you'll see him again."

Karyu leaned over his shoulder so far that Tom shooed her. "There he is again. See? He followed me right to the exit."

Baxter froze the feed and enhanced it, zooming in on the face of the stalker until he had a decent picture. He cut a copy and drew a slim drive out of his jacket to save it on. "Not that I don't trust the guys in here," he explained to Tom and Karyu, "but I'll feel better taking a copy of this in myself."

Karyu tried to quell the admiration she felt for him at that moment. It was difficult, though. He looked so sure of himself under those strange, luminescent lights. He was so determined. When he had cupped her face earlier and spoke to her with so much passion about defending her father, she saw a great warrior and she believed every word he said.

Still, she memorized every bump, angle and curve of the face that Corporal Howell enhanced on that screen.

* * *

"I can't thank you enough, Corporal." Tom cordially shook Baxter's hand after reviewing the tape and getting several close shots of the man he thought was tracking him. "I'm sure you understand that telling my family before I know there's something to worry about could lead to an innocent man getting peppered with arrows."

Howell chuckled and returned the handshake, glancing sidelong at Karyu. "I can't say I blame you for the caution."

Tom smiled and glanced at his daughter. "Well, I'll leave you to the processing and I'll wait for you to get back to me on the identification. Karyu and I should be leaving now."

"I'll be along in a minute, Father," excused Karyu. "I just need to pee first. I'll meet you in the lobby and don't you _dare_ go outside those doors without me."

"You can use the restroom in here," offered Baxter, catching the hint. He motioned to the narrow hallway on his right. "It's clean and all."

"Thanks." She took his advice and went down the hallway.

* * *

When Karyu emerged from the little bathroom, her father was gone and Howell was alone in the observation room. She approached the marine cautiously, stubbornly holding onto the belief that he was just trying to trick her. He detected her just as she came up behind him—not an easy thing to do, given her natural tendency to move stealthily.

"So show me already," she demanded when he half-turned to look at her. Her heart skipped a beat when those jade eyes met hers and she tried not to enjoy it when he put an arm around her to draw her closer.

"Have a look," he offered as he pressed the touchpad and indicated the monitor in front of him.

She put her hands on the desk and unconsciously leaned forward a little as she peered at the screen. He started the feed up and after a few seconds, Karyu saw herself strolling down the hallway, casual as could be. She shook her head and frowned with disbelief, but there was no denying the evidence. The Karyu in the video approached one of the bunker doors and stopped, waiting. Seconds later, the door slid open and Baxter Howell stood there in his boxers. He stepped aside and video Karyu walked into his room. The door slid shut.

"How could this happen?" She muttered, completely floored. "How could _both_ of us not remember any of this?"

Baxter shrugged and shook his head. "I'm still trying to figure that part out myself. Now watch...I'll fast-forward and you'll come prancing out with my hat on."

She grumbled under her breath and watched. Just like he said, after a little more than an hour the door opened again and video Karyu walked out, now sporting Baxter's army cap on her head. She even had a satisfied little smile on her lips. It was mortifying.

"I've seen enough." Karyu turned away, her face burning with humiliation. Even now, she ached for him. He was too gorgeous, with his eyes and his hair and that delightful scent he rubbed into his skin.

Baxter stopped the feed and caught her before she could get to the door. "Now hold on a minute," he pleaded, "I think we should talk about this. You don't need to be embarrassed."

"No?" She stared up at him and she mentally reviewed all of the steamy activities they had gotten up to in their dreams together. "I'd never even _kissed_ a boy until you laid one on me that day when I came asking you about the hat. Now I find out I've practically been fucking you in my sleep and you seriously expect me to _not_ be embarrassed?"

His mouth descended to hers—not exactly the answer she was expecting. She was too shocked to pull away as his lips pressed against hers in a kiss that was utterly inspirational. Karyu imagined herself with a big cartoon question mark floating over her head as his tongue slipped into her mouth and he demonstrated that real kisses could be even more stunning than dream kisses.

A deep, resonant purr rumbled in her throat, muffled by Howell's kiss. She clutched at his uniform shirt, her fingers curling to grasp the material desperately. Her responses were instinctive and when he splayed a hand over the small of her back to urge her closer, she gladly rubbed up against him. Her tail wound around his thigh without conscious direction from her and the sweet ache of lust drove away all common sense.

It ended all too quickly. Karyu stared stupidly at Baxter when he released her mouth and held her gaze. He was breathing heavily through parted lips and the pattern of spots on his face and neck were glowing with his emotions.

"There. Now you've been kissed again. Is that about how I did it in your dreams?"

Karyu knew panic like never before. She swallowed, barely holding her actions in check as she let go of his shirt and stepped away. "I have to go. I need to think about this."

"Are you sure there's anything to think about?" he persisted, though he didn't make a move to try and stop her—probably a wise decision on his part.

She regained some of her senses and gave him a snarky glare. "I don't think sleep humping should be ignored, Green-eyes. Something strange is definitely going on with us!"

He smiled. "I didn't say you should ignore it. I'm saying maybe we should just take the hint. Someone wants us together. I'm starting to believe in Eywa."

It was un-nerving to hear him speak the same thoughts that were going through her mind. Why would Eywa pay such close attention to her mating choices, though? There had to be more to it than the Great Mother just thinking they'd make a cute couple and playing matchmaker. Eywa usually didn't intervene in the lives of her children unless it was very important to their future.

Karyu shook her head. "I'm going now. I've got to work this out."

Baxter sighed and allowed her to leave. She felt his eyes on her like a brand as she opened the door and walked out. It wasn't his fault, really. All of those things they did together in those dreams happened because _she_ let them. She didn't see the harm in it because she thought it was just a dream. She knew without doubt that Baxter would have stopped immediately if she had ever told him to. He was a gentleman that way. If nothing else, she could admit to herself that most of the blame for her actions was squarely on her own shoulders.

* * *

In the dark hours of morning after everyone had returned to their homes, quarters or beds, Karyu asked Tom a very odd thing. Neither of them could sleep and so he was brewing an herbal tea over the open fire. It wasn't even his recipe; Norm had told him which native herbs worked best together to make a mild sedative drink. Karyu watched the fire silently for a while before she asked her strange question.

"_Sempul_, you used to walk in your sleep, didn't you? I remember _Sa'nok_ telling us so."

He looked at her sidelong and nodded, forgetting about the tea for the moment. "Yes, but that was years ago. It stopped happening after a while."

"How did you put a stop to it?"

Tom remembered the tragedy of the River clan and he frowned. "I did what Eywa charged me to do and I found closure."

She didn't seem pleased with the answer. "So you were sleepwalking because Eywa was trying to get you to do something?"

"Partly," he agreed. "She was trying to communicate with me, to ask my help in aiding the Kilvan people. That wasn't the only cause for my symptoms, though."

"What else was making you do it?"

Tom sighed, remembering how conflicted he'd been, trying to hold onto part of his own life and balance his love for two women. "I didn't know what I wanted. My subconscious mind was trying to find my path. I think that combined with Eywa's attempts to communicate is what set me off. I used to walk in my sleep now and then in childhood too, but it stopped when I became an adult—until I came to Pandora."

"So sleep walking happens when the subconscious mind wants something," reasoned Karyu with a sigh.

"That's a popular theory," agreed Tom, "but in truth, there are no known definitive reasons for it. Sleepwalking is still one of those things science has yet to fully explain. A psychiatrist would probably have better insight than a physician."

She drew her knees up and rested her forearms over them, staring into the fire again. "But you made it stop by giving your subconscious mind what it wanted."

"That's essentially it," he confirmed. His brows drew together with concern. "Karyu, is there something you'd like to talk about?"

She glanced over at her brother and Savanna; who had chosen to curl up together and sleep on a blanket not far from the fire. A troubled little frown tugged at her lips. "Do you remember ever seeing me leave the Avatar cabin Friday night? Sometime late?"

Tom was even more curious. "I remember waking up to see you going for the front door. I assumed you just went for some fresh air. You seemed fine the next morning."

She bit her lip and drew a pattern in the soil with her big toe. "Oh."

He was starting to get an idea of what this might be about. "Starfish, have you been sleepwalking?"

She shrugged. "I guess so. Someone I know here said they saw me wandering around that night and I don't remember getting up to go anywhere. I just wondered what could cause it and if it can be an inherited habit."

Tom checked the tea and grabbed the wooden cups he'd set aside for drinking. "Well, your brother mutters in his sleep just like I tend to do when I have a lot on my mind. It wouldn't surprise me to find out that you've inherited my fun sleepwalking habits." He poured her tea first and handed the steaming drink to her. "Drink up."

Karyu looked into the cup as if seeking answers from it. "I don't know if this is a good idea."

Tom reached out and rubbed her shoulder. "You need rest, Karyu. We both do. We have hunters from both clans keeping watch so if you're worried about walking in your sleep again, I can have a word with them about keeping an eye out for you. I want you to drink that tea and get some sleep."

She sighed and obediently brought the cup to her lips—which told him she really was more tired than she let on. He tried to quell his worry for her as he sipped his beverage as well. He looked at it with surprise and nodded. It didn't have a medicine flavor to it as he expected. Norm's special brew was actually kind of tasty, with a flavor that reminded Tom a little of apple cider. He'd have to thank his friend for giving him the recipe and suggesting it.

* * *

Grace wasn't even aware of all the people that had poked their heads in to look at her baby through the night and early hours of morning. She slept hard and her mother helped her nurse the baby during feedings, allowing Gracie to doze without worrying about dropping her. Neytiri cleaned her recovering flesh often, applying herbal medications to ease the sting of birth and speed her healing process. She felt Tsu'tey spoon up against her several times and she instinctively cuddled against him. She asked after her daughter often and he urged her to rest and assured her that he and their parents were taking good care of Leyra.

The sound of a large aircraft somewhere in the distance was what finally woke Grace around mid-morning. She stretched and immediately winced at the soreness between her thighs. A quick examination revealed that someone—probably Neytiri—had packed her loincloth with medicinal herbs. She had little doubt that she would be hurting a lot more if it weren't for their careful ministrations. She gingerly sat up and examined her tummy. It was already beginning to shrink again beneath her tunic and she might need to borrow a shirt from the avatar clothier before she returned home.

"Tsu'tey?" she called when she saw no sign of her daughter in the tent. "_Sa'nok? Sempul_?"

Someone pulled the tent flap open and she squinted as the morning light beamed into the tent. She saw a masculine form close the flap again before approaching and when her eyes adjusted, she recognized Tsu'tey's sculpted, gentle features. He smiled and sat down beside her, taking her hands.

"How are you feeling?"

"Sore, weak and a little slow-witted," she answered truthfully, "but I suppose it could be a lot worse."

"Uncle Tom gave you a shot of some kind of pain medicine so you could sleep," explained Tsu'tey. He combed some tangles out of her thick, straight hair with his fingers. "That's probably why you're feeling a little goofy."

"Where is our daughter?"

He smiled in response to being included in Leyra's parental status. "Right now your mother is taking care of her. Everybody's had a chance to hold her for a while except you, unfortunately."

"I'd like to see her now," Gracie requested. "Although I'd feel better if you stayed by my side when I hold her, until I regain some strength."

"I don't believe for a second you'd drop her, but I'll do as you ask." He kissed her softly and got to his feet. "I'll bring her in. _Sa'nok_ says it's almost time for another feeding anyway, so we can do that together."

Grace relaxed against the pillows and rewarded him with a tired little smile. "Thank you, Tsu'tey."

* * *

"Lt. Chacón, we've got an un-announced gunship incoming an it isn't one of ours."

Trudy put her coffee aside. "I'm on my way."

She left her office in a rush, more curious than worried at this point. She reasoned that if UNEC were to converge for an attack on her base for any reason, they would opt to do so at night and they sure as _hell_ would have brought more than one gunship. Besides, they were currently on good terms with the other base, so any trouble coming from that direction would have to be from RDA supporters. With that in mind, she considered the possibility of a suicide bomber and her footsteps quickened. It certainly wasn't above the RDA to send some poor bastard to fly a chopper full of explosives into Hell's Gate—especially since someone on their side seemed to know about the project Tom was working on.

When she made it down the hallway to the control room, she came up behind the ATC officer and looked at the screen. "What kind of bird is it, Laker?"

The younger woman sounded apprehensive. "It's a C-21, Ma'am. The ID code reads as one of UNEC'S ships."

Trudy pursed her lips. "Have they hailed us yet?"

"No Ma'am, not yet. I'll attempt to contact them now."

Trudy nodded, her dark eyes fixated on the radar screen. "You do that and while you're at it, make sure they know we'll start firing on their ass if they make any funny moves or try to land without authorization."

Max came into the control room and the worried look on his face suggested he'd either seen the radar from his office computer or someone had alerted him. "What have we got?" he asked as he came up beside Trudy.

The ACT officer paused and frowned. "Lieutenant, I've got contact from a man claiming to be General West. He's asking for landing permission."

Trudy shared a frown with Max. He spoke before she could, his thoughts synchronized with hers. "Put it through the speaker."

The ATC officer obeyed and seconds later, a familiar masculine voice came through the speaker. "This is General Nathan West, requesting permission to land in your aircraft hanger, Hell's Gate. Do you copy?"

"That's General West all right," Trudy said, "but he sounds a little weird, if you ask me."

"You think he could be in a coercive situation?" Max inquired with a frown. "Somehow, I don't see West as the kind of man that would allow anyone to force him to do anything—even at gunpoint."

Trudy shrugged. "All I know is we've still got all flights inbound and outbound on this base strictly regulated and so does UNEC. They always contact us before sending any flights our way and it's not like the General to skimp on protocol."

Max scratched his short-trimmed beard and glanced nervously at the radar. "You make a valid point."

Another voice came through the intercom then; one that made the couple's eyes bug out with surprise. "Hey, are you bastards going to let us land or not?"

Max grabbed the headset off of officer Laker's head without ceremony. He slipped it on and fiddled with the mouthpiece. "Jake? Is that you?"

"Morning, Max," greeted the other man light-heartedly. "It's good to hear your voice."

"Jake...how?" Sputtered the biologist, completely at a loss.

"I'll explain it after we touch down," answered Jake. "Now give us landing confirmation so we can get the ball rolling. Oh and Max...we're going to need you to send a medic team and get an operation room primed. We've got an injured lady on board with a bullet in her gut. She's lost a lot of blood."

"Yes, of course, Jake!" Max was beaming with excitement and so was Trudy. "We'll see her well looked after! Your family is here and they'll be ecstatic to see you."

"They're here?"

"Yes," answered Max. "I can notify them right now and—"

"No, Max...do me a favor and keep it under your hat," Jake interrupted. "I want to surprise them. Has my grandkid been born?"

Max shared a surprised look with Trudy. "How did you know? Grace gave birth to a healthy little girl sometime after midnight."

"A girl," repeated Jake. He laughed. "Holy shit, I'm a grandparent!"

"You can go straight to the avatar compound to hold her yourself, as soon as you land," Max said with a smile.

* * *

"I can't _wait_ to hear how the hell he pulled this off," Trudy said to Max as they watched the foreign Dragon ship come in for a landing. Beside them, Ramona and Lee stood waiting as well, having heard the news that Jake Sully was coming in for a landing. Katherine and Sebastian were there too, as well as several avatar operatives.

Jake was getting a bigger welcome than he probably expected.

The ship touched down and the pilot cut the engine. As the rotors slowed and stopped, the boarding ramp dropped open and Max motioned to the waiting med team to start moving. As he predicted, the first people to exit the gunship were a medic and some MP's, carefully carrying a gurney between them with a dark-haired human woman strapped securely to it.

"That's Commissioner Archer," Trudy said when she recognized the face behind the exopack. The woman's copper skin had taken on a sickly tone and gone a couple of shades paler. She looked to be unconscious.

"I want her prepped for surgery immediately," Max hollered to his medical team. "Let's not waste any time, people!"

Trudy was about to speculate on how she got a gunshot wound in the first place, when Ramona nearly broke her eardrums with a shout of exuberance. "Look, there he is! There's Jake!"

"Thanks, Mona," Trudy gritted out, "We wouldn't have noticed the big blue guy in the loincloth without you screaming his name."

Ramona ignored her sarcastic response, starting forward eagerly to greet the former Omaticaya leader. Lee and the others quickly followed suit and so did Trudy and Max. Trudy shook her head as everyone crowded around Jake and she pushed through the crowd to greet him.

"How do you like your homecoming, Jarhead?"

Jake grinned at all the people surrounding him. "It makes me feel pretty special. Oof! Hey Mona. You've got a hell of a grip for a little woman."

"Let me have my moment," she insisted, still hugging his leg. "We were all scared shitless you were going to end up dead, Sully!"

"Okay, you've practically cut off circulation in his leg," Lee said with an apologetic grin at Jake and a chuckle. "Come on, babe, give the guy a little room to breathe."

Ramona allowed her lover to peel her off of Jake and she hastily wiped her eyes and sniffed. Max shook his head and grinned at the zoologist before offering his hand to Jake. "You look good for a man who's been in jail for all this time. Tell us what happened, Jake. Did you break out or did something happen within the legal system?"

"I've been acquitted," answered Jake. "After Tsu'tey and Gracie testified, they bumped my trial up without warning and sent me in to testify. There wasn't any break out, but someone did try to have me killed after the jury ruled to let me go. That's how Archer got hurt."

Trudy snarled. "I _knew_ it! I knew those bitches would try to pull something like this!"

"Yeah, you had those bitches pegged just right, fly girl." Jake grinned at her. "You usually do. But listen, before I get into the nasty details, there's something you've got to know first."

Trudy shrugged. "Sure Jake. What's up?"

"I know we all hate the man's guts but I got some help—"

As Jake was speaking, a rather short human—roughly in his late thirties or early forties—descended the ramp. He wore an expensive looking suit and his short-groomed brown hair had some gray highlights here and there. As soon as she recognized him, Trudy reacted without hesitation or thought. She approached Parker Selfridge and punched him square in the jaw, interrupting whatever he was trying to say to the avatar operative that disembarked beside him. Max started to intervene but then he shrugged, evidently deciding Parker deserved to be hit.

"Trudy, hold it," Jake shouted, grabbing her before she could take another swing. "Easy, easy!"

"Sorry," she growled, glaring at the recovering administrator. "I've got this impulse control problem, when it comes to RDA goons."

Jake turned her around and looked into her eyes. "I know how you feel, but just calm down and listen to me, all right?"

Trudy shook her smarting hand, gave one more mistrustful glance at Selfridge and nodded grudgingly. "This better be good."

"I wouldn't be standing here right now if it weren't for him and Archer," obliged Jake. "Is that good enough for you?"

Trudy frowned uncertainly. "He's gotta have an ulterior motive, Jake. You _know_ that rat only ever does anything if he'll get something out of it."

Jake glanced behind him at Selfridge, who was wiping blood from his lip and watching the conversation with understandable wariness. "I'm sure he's got some selfish reason for doing it," agreed Jake, "but he's working with two people who have proved to me they can be trusted. Without their help I'd be a dead man right now."

She was admittedly confused. "All right, I'll trust your judgment for now and I won't have the little bitch kicked out of here on his ass to make a meal for some hungry forest animal. Yo Wilson, get over here and take Selfridge into custody! I want him watched."

"You got it, Mama Trudy," agreed her copilot as he approached Parker grimly. Selfridge wisely chose not to put up a fight as the officer led him out of the hangar.

Trudy watched them leave and then she turned back to Jake. "All right Jake...tell us everything."

General West came out of the hulking gunship and he overheard. "I can clear all this up for you, Lt. Chacón. I believe Sully has a new grandchild to meet."

Jake smiled at the man gratefully. "That's right. You don't mind taking it from here?"

West shook his head. "I'm used to debriefing. Go and see your family, Jake."

* * *

"That is very good, Sylwanin," Neytiri approved as her daughter held up the clay bauble for inspection. "Leyra will like it."

They were stringing together a baby mobile—an idea presented by Savanna. Neytiri had never heard of such a thing before but apparently, humans kept their babies occupied by hanging these toys over their cribs. Deciding that it couldn't hurt and it would give them something to do, Neytiri agreed to help create one.

Norm and Ni'nat were currently inside the tent napping, having exhausted themselves caring for the baby and their daughter. Tom's family and Savanna were still sleeping in the avatar cabin. Ralu sat beside Sylwanin, concentrating on the clay bauble she was working on.

"I want to make one of these for _Sempul_," decided Sylwanin aloud as she began to paint her ornament.

"These are supposed to be for _babies_," reminded Ralu. "Your father is too old for them."

Neytiri smiled and bit off a piece of string to thread through her bauble. "Jake is much younger inside than his age. A child's toy may amuse him after all."

Sylwanin looked up from her work and she started to remark on that, when something behind Neytiri caught her attention. She squinted against the sunlight and an expression of surprise and delight spread over her young face. "_Sempu_?"

Neytiri looked at her daughter sadly. She had thought Sylwanin was finally over imagining seeing Jake everywhere. "Daughter, you know that—"

Ralu's gasp and one of the guarding hunter's whisper of surprise gave Neytiri pause. She looked at Ralu and saw her put a hand to her mouth, staring wide-eyed at the same spot behind Neytiri's shoulder as Sylwanin. A thrill went through her and she turned around and got to her feet slowly, hardly daring to hope. The glare of the sun made it hard for her to make out the details of the masculine Na'vi figure approaching the garden. She shielded her eyes with her hand and stared, taking note of the strong physique, the way he moved and the style his hair was braided into.

"Jake? _Ma Muntxatan_?" She whispered it, afraid to say it too loudly or believe it too readily.

Then the sun went behind a cloud and she saw his face and his smile clearly.

"Jake!"

Neytiri dropped her bauble carelessly and she began to run toward the approaching male. He picked up the pace too and she heard his familiar, beloved laugh. He caught her as they met and he lifted her against him, holding her tight. She showered his face with kisses, unmindful of her amazed, smiling clan mates and friends who watched the spectacle.

"Jake," Neytiri murmured between kisses. "My Jake...how? Did you escape?"

"Yes and no," he answered. "UNEC let me go but some old enemies tried to make sure I didn't make it out alive. I'll explain everything later." He kissed her soundly and set her on her feet. Sylwanin was running full speed at him, shouting and waving her arms with glee. Norm and Ni'nat came out of the tent to see what the fuss was all about and when they spotted Jake, they hastened to join the growing crowd of Na'vi surrounding him.

"Hey, Sweetpea," Jake said as he lifted his daughter with a grunt and held her tight. "I can't believe how much bigger you've gotten already."

The Omaticaya hunters began to hoot and shout in celebration. Jake was too absorbed in his family to pay much attention to the shouts, though he did spare clan members a smile and a nod of thanks. Tsu'tey and Grace came out of their resting tent and Jake went still, staring at the bundle Gracie held in her arms. He gently set his daughter on the ground and ruffled her hair before approaching his son. Tsu'tey smiled at him with happy astonishment and he closed the distance to embrace him.

"You're free now?" asked the young man, "they aren't going to come after you?"

"I'm free," answered Jake as he returned the heartfelt embrace. "Some people might still come looking for trouble but I've been legally pardoned by UNEC. That part's all over with, now."

Tsu'tey released his father and rubbed his eyes, visibly torn between the urge to laugh and the urge to cry. He gestured toward Gracie with a tremulous smile. "Dad, meet your granddaughter, Leyra."

Grace smiled shyly up at Jake as he approached. He stared down at the newborn infant in her arms with an expression of wonder on his face. "Here," she offered, holding the child out carefully to him. "You should hold her, Uncle Jake."

Jake took the baby with a reverence that said he was already in love with her. He stared down at the sleepy infant and when Leyra yawned toothlessly, he grinned. "Wow, you really are brand new, aren't you? Your ears are still a little wrinkled."

Neytiri came up beside her mate and she rubbed his shoulders, placing a kiss on his right shoulder before looking down at their grandchild. "She has your eyes."

Jake shook his head. "She has Tommy's eyes." He looked up from the baby and examined Gracie. For a moment, Neytiri thought he was going to break down and cry but he gave the young mother an aching smile instead and he leaned forward to kiss her on the crown of her head.

"Thanks, gorgeous," he whispered to Grace.

Neytiri's vision blurred at that point and she was forced to look away and wipe her eyes.

"I don't know why you're thanking me," Grace replied with a shaky little laugh. "I didn't do anything millions of other women haven't done before me."

The baby gurgled and fussed a little and Jake lifted her against his chest and gently patted her back. "Maybe so, but this baby is extra special to me." He looked a little concern as he took in her pallor and wan expression. "How are you holding up, kid?"

"I'm okay," Gracie assured him. Norm came up beside her and put a supportive arm around her. She looked up at her father with fond exasperation. "Certain people have barely let the grass grow under my feet since I gave birth."

"That's because certain people worry about their daughter," Norm countered. He smiled at his friend. "_Kaltxi_, Jake. You always know how to make an entrance."

Jake laughed. "_Kaltxi, tsmukan_. You're still the same old Norm, too. One of your girls whimpers and you're on it like white on rice."

Norm shrugged. "She had a hard birth. In fact, she should be laying down resting right now." He steered Grace to the tent, ignoring her weak protests. "You need to recover your strength, Gracie."

"I want to hear about what happened to Uncle Jake," she complained.

"I'll tell you all the details later," promised Jake as he shifted little Leyra in his arms. "You should listen to your Dad, kid. Having a baby isn't easy work and you need some rack time."

"I can tell you've been hanging out with military people," Tsu'tey said to him wryly. "You sound like Aunty Trudy."

Jake chuckled and made a goofy face at Leyra. "I guess being around all those MP's day in and day out brought out the old jarhead in me. Wow, this little lady has a grip on her." He playfully tugged his finger, which was held fast in Leyra's miniscule grasp. "I'll bet she's going to have her grandmother's pitching arm."

Tsu'tey grinned. "As long as she doesn't knock anyone out like _Sa'nok_ did to E'quath that one time."

"I did not knock him unconscious," protested Neytiri. "I only stunned him."

Jake kissed her on the cheek. "Yeah, but that's only because he has such a hard skull. You're dangerous with a baseball when you want to be."

Neytiri smirked. "I have never harmed anyone since then. I did not understand the rules and I was told he was stealing our base. I acted without thought."

Jake laughed aloud. "Poor E'quath...we were lucky to convince him to keep playing, after that."

"What about the wedgie Tom tricked you into getting?" Norm said when he came back out of the tent and overheard the conversation. Ni'nat giggled, evidently recalling the moment vividly.

"You looked very uncomfortable, my Jake," Neytiri said, smiling with amusement as she too recalled the incident. There were so many fond memories to share...had so much time really passed?

"I could have done without a reminder of _that_ little prank," grumbled Jake. He looked around. "Speaking of my brother, where _is_ the nerd? Trudy told me they're here too."

"They're all asleep in the avatar cabin," answered Norm. "Kato and Savanna were sleeping out here but they moved inside when the sun started bothering them."

Jake nodded. "Tom's going to crap when he sees me. So, what else have I missed? Fill me in so I can catch up."

* * *

"And that's the entire report of events as I know them," West finished. Everyone in the boardroom was staring at him, some with dread, some with amazement and some with bitter acceptance.

"So the RDA is trying to make a comeback," sighed Lee. Ramona rubbed his shoulder and heaved a sigh as well. "We should have expected it."

"Some of us _did_ expect it," Trudy reminded him. "I've always expected it, from the day we kicked their sorry butts off Pandora."

Max nodded and took his glasses off to wipe at them. "People with an entrepreneur mindset like that don't just go quietly into the night, no matter how hard you strike their power base. Constant vigilance is the best defense."

"But what about Selfridge?" Katherine asked. "Granted, I don't know him as well as people who were here before I arrived but I've heard almost nothing good about the man. Should he really be allowed to stay here, with his ties to the RDA and the things he's done before?"

"I'm in agreement with my wife," said Sebastian, "and not just because we're married. Parker Selfridge has a history of being dangerous when he feels desperate; capable of doing all manner of terrible things."

Harris raised his hand like a kid in class. "Uh, I hate to be _that guy_, but doesn't that pretty much describe everyone in this room?"

Wilson snorted and shook his head. "If you're trying to say anyone in here is like that asshole—"

"But we are," insisted Harris. "I mean, how do we know what was going through Selfridge's head when he did all those things? That guy Quaritch was pulling some major strings and people tell me he was a scary dude. I've even heard Dr. Patel describe Selfridge as desperate, more than once."

"That's a valid point," Max said, "and the 'shock and awe' campaign was the Colonel's pet project. Selfridge just didn't act to stop him."

"He gave the nod to hit Hometree," Trudy reminded. "Don't act like it was all just neglect on his part, guys. The man helped make it all happen."

"But you weren't here when they broadcasted the live feed of Hometree going down," insisted Max gently. "I was. I saw his face and I'm telling you, he got no satisfaction out of what he did. As for the rest, Quaritch literally took this place over and as Harris said, the man was scary. I'm not sure Selfridge could have reined him in even if he had the guts to try. Things got pretty crazy here, by the end."

Trudy gave him a disturbed look. "So what are you saying, Max? We should give him a pass because the big scary Colonel was too much for him to handle?"

"No, of course not," Max corrected. "Please aim your sarcasm somewhere else. Parker Selfridge has a lot to answer for but consider this for a moment: Jake would be lost to us if Selfridge hadn't contacted the General and made arrangements to get him out of there. Jake who—by the way—was pardoned for the deliberate death of two men and the accidental death of one. He hunted these men down and killed them, not in self-defense or open combat, but in pure, aggressive vengeance."

"What does Jake's actions have to do with Parker Selfridge?" Joyce asked in confusion.

Trudy sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, getting the point her fiance was gently trying to work in. "Because Jake got a pass for murder and nobody here has a problem with that, since he's our friend. Kudos, Maxi. You play one hell of a devil's advocate."

Max shrugged. "I just think it's important to consider these things. We all know that Jake isn't evil, despite what he did. How can any of us be sure the same isn't true of Selfridge? How well do any of us _really_ know the man? We had a work relationship with him before everything went to hell and that was about it. If there's a possibility—no matter how slim—that he's sincerely trying to make up for the things he's done, then we have to give him that chance."

Wilson grunted and picked a pebble out of the tread of his left combat boot. "Sometimes your humanitarian nature pisses me off, Doc. The guy is an asshole."

"Being unlikable isn't a crime," insisted Max.

"But sending gunships to blow up a village full of helpless kids and babies sure as hell is," Ramona said, "Or at least, it should be. I wasn't here when it happened, but I saw that footage and I don't know how anyone could live with themselves after doing that."

"I don't think he's 'living with himself' at all," Max said. "I think he's just getting by. But I've already explained how I feel about it and I don't have the ultimate say in this."

"But isn't it possible that his saving Jake was part of a plan to get intel on this base?" suggested Lee. "If you were trying to make a good impression with someone, saving the life of a person they care about is one surefire way to do it. What if this is just a cover-up to spy on us?"

Trudy thought about it for a moment. "General West, what's your take on this?"

"Are you sure you want to hear it, Lieutenant?"

She nodded. "Yeah. You've been working with the guy and you collaborated with him to get Jake out of there. I think your opinion holds some weight here."

He gave a nod and he turned the chair at the end of the table around. He straddled it and said his piece. "My take on this is that if Selfridge is trying to put one over on us, he's doing a damn good job covering it up. In my opinion, he's a haunted man. Still, there's a saying straight out of the book of war. '_I keep my friends close and my enemies closer_.' If there's a chance he could be in collaboration with the enemy, would you really want to send him back there to do more damage?"

"Damn good point," Trudy agreed. "But the question is, would he do more damage at UNEC or here?"

"Odds are he can't _go_ back to UNEC now," Max surmised, "not if he's really turned against the RDA loyalists."

"Well, that would be one way to find out whose side he's on," Katherine said with as smirk. "Send him back to UNEC and if he's still alive after a week, he's clearly a mole."

"Even I'm tempted by that idea," Max sighed, "but I'm not prepared to gamble a person's life to confirm whose side he's on...not even someone as morally bankrupt as Selfridge."

"Then we keep him under watch, restrict his access and see what happens," Trudy said. "Does everyone agree?"

Everyone reluctantly raised their hands in agreement; except for Ramona. She stubbornly crossed her arms over her chest and raised her eyebrows when they all looked at her. "What? I'm not cool with this."

"Come on, babe," coaxed Lee. "We've all got to agree on this or we'll be here all night and Trudy's idea makes sense."

"The man killed little Na'vi babies, Lee. _Babies_."

"Refresh my memory," Sebastian said with a puzzled scratch to his head, "_Why_ haven't you had children of your own, again?"

Ramona rolled her eyes. "Just because I don't want any babies myself doesn't mean I'm okay with killing or abusing them. Kids should be protected and loved, not blown to pieces. Anybody that would knowingly hurt a child deserves whatever comeuppance they get, as far as I'm concerned."

Katherine lowered her hand. "When you put it that way, I'm not so sure I can agree with this vote to let him stay here, after all."

"Darling, please," Sebastian urged, "be reasonable!"

"I _am_ being reasonable," Katherine argued. "Think of the Omaticaya children we've come to know and love, Bastian. Now imagine them burned alive with napalm. I don't know about you but that image is unforgivable to me."

"I'm not so sure I'm for this plan either, now," Harris said, lowering his hand.

"Oh, come _on_," griped Wilson. "Not you too! You people seem to be forgetting that if we don't keep the jackass here, we'll be sending him straight back to his collaborators like the General said!"

"Then we should dump him in the forest and let him take his chances," Ramona offered with a shrug.

"That would be murder," Allen objected.

They began to argue passionately and Max decided he wasn't going to get anywhere until everyone got it out of their systems. He left the board room and the sounds of his companion's unrest blessedly faded when the door shut behind him.

* * *

"Master Sergeant Ellis, I need to speak with you for a moment."

Darren nodded in concordance and politely gestured for the doctor to have a seat. "What's on your mind, Dr. Patel?"

Max sat down and rested his elbows on the desk. He steepled his hands together and frowned as he began to explain. "We have a situation that could very well lead to security risks. I'm sure you know who Parker Selfridge is?"

Ellis nodded. "Just about everyone on this base knows who he is and what he's done with his time on Pandora. What has he done that threatens this colony's security?"

"Nothing yet," answered Max. "We have him in custody." He went on to explain everything that happened with Selfridge, Archer, West and Jake. "So you see, we have a dilemma. Ordinarily everyone is able to reach a satisfactory agreement when making big decisions like this, but we have divided opinions on the matter."

"That doesn't surprise me." Ellis tapped his pen absently on the desk. "The man was a big player in the RDA's plans. Of course people don't trust him."

"Even so, I'm pushing for him to remain here on this base," said Max. "Whether he's an enemy or not, we need to keep an eye on him. Maybe some day he'll prove himself but until then, I want you to be prepared to have him monitored at all times."

"Of course," Ellis assured him. "I can start making arrangements right away."

"Good," sighed Max. "I'm going to go and visit his cell, to explain to him what's going on and tell him the Commissioner has been stabilized."

"Wait, Dr. Patel," stalled Darren when the biologist started to get up, "while you're here, I have some news and it involves Dr. Sully."

Max paused and sat back down. "Why do I have the feeling this is going to be related to his project?"

"We can't be certain yet, but it's probably a good possibility," answered the marine. "Last evening when he was in the medical/research building picking up some supplies, Dr. Sully noticed someone following him. One of my men made a backup copy of surveillance feeds and sent it in for our people to use to identify the suspect. Unfortunately, the man in the feed has no record at all on this base. He may as well not exist."

Max felt sick with dread. "Have you asked around in the building where he was last seen?"

"That was the first thing I sent people to do when the results on an ID came back negative. A lot of people report having seen the man but nobody knows who he is—unless they're lying."

"Well, you can't very well round up every clinic and lab worker for interrogation," Max sighed. "Maybe we should consider assigning personal bodyguards to Dr. Sully, while he's here working on this project. Maybe it's an extreme approach but I'd rather not have my friend murdered."

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," agreed Ellis. "Do you want me to get started on assigning personal guards to Dr. Sully?"

"Yes, I...oh, wait a minute." An idea came to Max like a bold of lightning and he wondered why it didn't come to him right away. "Ellis, do you have that video feed available on your computer?"

"Yes."

"May I download it onto my holopad? I have an idea that may save us some trouble."

Intrigued, Ellis sought out the file on his computer and moved aside for the biologist to transfer it to his interface device. "May I ask what this idea of yours is?"

Max smiled.

* * *

Parker lifted his head out of his hands and looked up at Max as the biologist strode into the cell. He stood up and straightened his suit a little, trying to retain at least a little dignity. "Afternoon, Dr. Patel. So, what's it going to be? A lynching? A firing squad? Maybe the visiting Na'vi have some special monkey justice they'd like to mete out on me, like flinging some sh—"

"Stop talking now," Max ordered. Even when he was telling someone to shut up, he was polite about it.

Parker obliged, more because of the stern look on Max's face than the cordial suggestion.

"We're trying to reach an agreement on what to do with you," Max explained. "If you really _are_ a traitor to the RDA, sending you back to UNEC would be a death sentence."

Selfridge shrugged. "Probably, yeah."

"But if this is all an elaborate scheme to infiltrate Hell's Gate and report back to your superiors, then keeping you here would be a high risk to us."

Parker nodded. "Yeah, I agree. Tough call."

Max regarded him somberly. "Then again, keeping you under close watch here might prevent you from scheming altogether."

"Been reading Sun Tzu, eh?"

Max grimaced. "You can be a very annoying man, Selfridge."

"Then I guess you'd better send me back with the Dragon ship when they come pick it up," suggested Selfridge sardonically, "otherwise I might bug the hell out of you."

Max compressed his lips and dug into the left pocket of his lab coat. "I'm going to give you a chance to do another good deed, Administrator." He turned on his holopad and brought up a file. He turned the device toward Parker and showed him a zoomed-in image of a man captured on security video.

"Do you recognize this man?"

Parker could have made the doctor work for an answer, but he wasn't in the mood. "Yeah, I know him."

"Really? Just like that. Who is he?"

There was _one_ reason he could think of to procrastinate giving the answer. "First, I want to know how Commissioner Archer is doing and I want to be allowed to see her."

"She's stable," answered Max. "She hasn't regained consciousness yet and she isn't out of danger yet, but we're doing everything we can. I can take you to see her right after you tell me about the man in this security feed."

Parker thought about it for a second and he decided that Max Patel was too honest a man to go back on his word. "All right, I'll tell you what I know about this guy."

* * *

Some twenty minutes later, Parker was escorted into Pamela Archer's recovery room and given a ten-minute visiting time. He took a seat in the armchair beside her bed and he watched her for a while, his eyes flicking between the slow, steady rise and fall of her chest and the instruments monitoring her heart rate, brainwaves and breathing.

"You know, that was a crazy stunt you pulled in court," he whispered conversationally to her. "Bringing in Sully's body like that? You risked pushing him right over the edge—which would have been ironic, since you were trying so hard to keep that from happening. I still don't get how you convinced that old voodoo lady to hand over the corpse. Maybe because you have some things in common with the natives here. All I know is I damned near shit myself when you wheeled Sully's corpse in and by the look on his face, he almost did too."

Parker grinned and he reached out to pat her limp hand. "You're a hell of a woman, Pam. So listen, I don't have much time, but I figure since you're unconscious there's no better time than the present. I've got to tell you something."

He took a deep breath and stared at her for a moment before getting out of his chair and leaning over her. "I've got a little crush on you. I just needed to get that off my chest. Don't worry; I don't expect anything. I'm not going to mention this again, in fact. I just want you to pull through, got it?"

* * *

Tom and his family came back to the gardens with Savanna after getting rested up and they were just as shocked to see Jake as Neytiri had been. He and Norm explained everything to them and he spent some time with them after lunch, before dragging his mate to the avatar bungalow for a little personal time and pampering.

"You were right, my Jake," Neytiri murmured as she leaned back against her mate and sighed. "I should not have waited so long to try this."

The couple was relaxing in one of the deep, large bathtubs in the avatar cabin. It was a bit of a squeeze but the tubs were made for Na'vi-sized bodies, so there was just enough room for both of them. Neytiri ran her palms over Jake's thighs, resting on either side of her body beneath the heated water. In all her comings and goings at Hell's Gate, she had never tried a hot bath before. She always took quick showers or bathed in a forest spring not far from the base. She had taken advantage of natural hot springs before to ease cramped muscles, but stewing in a tub of artificially heated water seemed wrong to her.

"I _told_ you it was nice," Jake murmured in triumph, nuzzling her cheek with his lips. "I can't believe I finally convinced you to try it, Miss: '_I want to bathe, not cook myself'_."

Neytiri chuckled and cuddled against him, shutting her eyes with pleasure as he began to lather her body with the plant extracts they brought. "I will admit that it is a pleasant thing to share with you. I would not wish to do it all the time, though. Luxuries should be enjoyed sparingly."

Jake caressed the soapy trail between her breasts and he nibbled her ear. "Yeah, you wouldn't want to have too much fun, right?" He teasingly skimmed the soft skin of the outer swell of her breasts with the back of his nails. He smiled when she shifted restlessly and arched her back, instinctively displaying said body parts in a silent request for him to touch them.

"Jake, you always tease," she complained huskily when he caressed her ribs in a slow, sensual glide. "We have not been together for weeks."

Feeling the ache of unanswered need himself, he was forced to agree that now wasn't the appropriate time to play seduction games. Still, he didn't want to jump straight into it. "Half the fun of mating is getting there," he purred, "and I've missed the journey as much as I've missed the destination." He kissed her neck and obligingly cupped her breasts, massaging them with admiration. The soap made her skin slippery and it turned him on even more.

"Jake," she sighed, reaching for their queues as he pleasured her. She turned her head and kissed his seeking mouth passionately, moaning as _tsahaylu_ was established. She shuddered against him, helpless to stop the tide of orgasmic pleasure she felt from the intimate contact and his skilled touch on her body.

"That's my baby," Jake murmured breathlessly, experiencing her climax with her. "God, I can't wait to take you into the forest and—"

"Jake, Neytiri? Are you in there?"

Jake groaned at the sound of his brother's voice on the other side of the door. Still coming down from the shared bliss, he took a moment to catch his breath before answering. "Yeah Tom...we're kind of in the middle of some 'us' time, you know?"

"I know and I'm sorry," apologized Tom, "but I thought I should warn you that the kids are planning on throwing a party for you tonight. Just a heads-up."

Jake's annoyance turned to amusement. "A party, eh? Sounds like fun and Eywa knows, we could all use more of that. I'm up for it."

"I'm glad you're being a good sport about it," Tom said. "I'll let them know. Uh, carry on with...whatever you were doing."

"Oh, we will," promised Jake. He submerged a hand between Neytiri's thighs and she gasped. He intended to take his sweet time and enjoy every inch of her sleek body.

* * *

While Jake and Neytiri were renewing their physical relationship and the kids were preparing for the "welcome home" party, Trudy was interrogating a man that Baxter Howell arrested and brought in. The young marine crossed paths with the suspect by chance, while he was doing his inspection rounds in the bio-dome. He caught sight of the guy across the street and he recognized him from the video as Tom's alleged stalker.

Unfortunately, shouting: _"Hey you!_" while bearing down on a person nearly two and a half times smaller than himself was not the way Baxter should have handled the situation. The man took one look at the avatar operative and ran for his life. The suspect's puny human legs couldn't outdistance Baxter and as the marine had already demonstrated to one pregnant woman and several hospital personnel, he was quite the sprinter. He caught up with his target in no time—partly because the suspect was so busy checking over his shoulder that he failed to notice the street sign looming up before him. He ran into it face-first with a musical "cling!" that could be heard for half a block.

Max contacted Tom and informed him that they had the man in custody and Tom joined him, Howell and Ellis in the observation room while Trudy questioned the suspect. Seeing the dried blood smearing the man's face and nose, Tom frowned. "Did you guys even give him a chance to explain himself before you started roughing him up for answers?"

Baxter appeared a little chagrined as he answered the question. "Uh, that was actually kind of an accident, Dr. Sully."

Tom looked at the taller man curiously. "How do you 'accidentally' bloody a man's nose? 'Oops, I'm sorry...your face ran into my fist'?"

"More like 'oops, I'm sorry your face ran into that sign while I was chasing you'."

"Corporal Howell isn't known for subtlety," Ellis explained dryly. "He's possibly the least disciplined marine I've ever met."

"And that's why you had me promoted," Howell countered with a smirk. "I can see right through you, Top."

"Do I need to pull rank on you to get you to take this seriously?"

Baxter sobered just a little and he stood at attention and saluted Ellis. "No Sir."

"I'm having trouble visualizing a fearsome assassin that panics the minute someone addresses him and knocks himself out on a street sign." Tom peered through the one-way mirror. Indeed, the man in the other room wasn't acting anything like a hired killer. If anything, he seemed confused, angry and more than a little frightened.

"Don't be too sure," Howell warned, losing his humorous attitude altogether. "I found some kind of injection delivery device on him when I searched him. It was loaded with a syringe of some kind of medicine. Maybe that could be explained away since he was wearing lab clothes and working in the research building, but he also had a CARB hand pistol and a retractable knife."

Tom raised his eyebrows. "That's a heavy arsenal for a lab tech or a doctor to carry around with them."

"Agreed," said Max with a nod, his brown eyes staring through the glass at the suspect. "The substance in the syringe is currently being analyzed but if I were to venture a guess, I'd say it could be a viral weapon—intended to be used against you, Tom. According to my source, this man was sent here to spy on your project."

* * *

"Why did you run when Corporal Howell approached you to ask you some questions?"

The man blinked at Trudy incredulously. "Lady, I don't know about you but I wasn't going to stand there while some blue giant ran me over. The guy yelled at me and then he came at me like a linebacker on a football team. Holding my ground against that would have been like hiding from a titanothere behind tissue paper!"

Trudy resisted a smirk. "Most people don't assume an active duty MP would charge at them like that without good reason. He could have been trying to save your life, for all you know."

"Well, he obviously wasn't," offered the man with a pointing gesture at his face. He wheezed when he inhaled through his nose—which meant it was fractured, if not broken.

"According to Corporal Howell, you did that to yourself when you ran into a street sign. Are you accusing one of my men of lying, Mister uh...wait...what did you say your name was again?" She snapped her fingers, putting on a show of trying to recall it.

"I told you already," answered the suspect. "It's Smith! Peter Quinton Smith!"

"Uh-huh." Trudy reached up and absently curled the ends of her ponytail around her fingers. "You know, if you're going to use a fake name you could at least put more effort into it than that. 'Smith'? That's the most generic bullshit name you could ever pick. Don't even get me started on 'Peter', bud."

"You people are insane," he ranted. "You can't just arrest a guy off the streets for no reason and interrogate him like this! People are going to find out about this and so help me—"

Trudy put a booted foot on "Peter's" chair, right between his legs. He shut up with a gulp and she gave him a nasty smile. "I don't think you get it, Mr. Smith. You were brought in here because security cameras showed you following Dr. Sully through the research/med building between eighteen twenty-two and eighteen forty-one hours last night. Someone's already tried to put his lights out once and he's an important person to the people here at Hell's Gate. If you know what's good for you, you'll drop the attitude and start being honest with me."

"I'm telling you the truth!" insisted the suspect desperately. "I'm here on a temporary working license from UNEC and I'm helping to document medical samples! I work with Dr. Winston in Oncology and you can check in with him on that!"

"We already have," Trudy said with a nod. "He confirmed that you've been working with him but he doesn't know much else about you. Plus, your ID doesn't check out and somehow, you avoided getting listed under the base's records. How'd you manage that?"

"I don't know!" The man threw his hands up in exasperation. "It has to be some kind of computer glitch with the identification filing system! You people have my ID to prove I'm who I say I am!"

"Yeah, there's a problem with that," Trudy informed him. "UNEC doesn't have a record of you either. Funny how both colonies magically lost all information regarding your ID, isn't it? I've got information that indicates your real name is Michael Dennis Walker."

He shook his head and spread his hands. "I don't have an explanation. Look, you have the wrong guy! I've never tried to hurt anyone in my _life_ and I'm not about to start now!"

Trudy heaved a sigh, shook her head and rubbed her eyes. She turned around to face the mirror. "Okay guys, I'm done bullshitting with this clown. Bring in the big guns so we can get out of here."

"What 'big guns'?" demanded the prisoner. "I have the right to an attorney! Whatever you're planning to do, I have civil rights!"

* * *

Selfridge joined the others in the observation room a short time later and he grimaced as he watched "Mr. Smith" grow more and more agitated.

"The guy would make a killing if he took up acting for a living," Selfridge announced.

"So all of that is just for show?" Max queried, gesturing at the glass.

"That guy could set his own grandmother on fire and talk about the weather while he's doing it," Parker explained. "He's a pro."

By the looks on the faces of the other men in the room, they were wondering if he was also a 'pro' actor like the man in the room. Knowing it would be useless to get defensive, Parker chose a more constructive route.

"I'm ready when you are, Patel."

* * *

The suspect was railing non-stop and Trudy dearly wanted to punch his lights out.

"I'm not in with the RDA! I make minimum wage and I'm just trying to earn a decent living while I'm stuck here on this rock! Why won't you listen? You can't do this to me! I'm not—"

The door slid open and Parker Selfridge walked in with Max.

"Shit." The suspect abruptly dropped all pretense of innocence as he looked up at Selfridge, who made it clear by his expression that he'd already explained the truth to someone and he wouldn't cover for any attempted lies.

"And then some," agreed Parker. "Let me guess; you were supposed to take out Tom Sully the night they were supposed to take out his brother Jake."

The captive shrugged, taking on a whole different demeanor. "Maybe I knew you were coming and I'm just rehearsing lines. Maybe this whole thing is just a setup to get into Hell's Gate's unmentionables."

Parker shrugged. "They probably already think that without you baiting them. At any rate, they know who you are now and they know you take orders from Stone. You're better off cooperating with them than fucking around. Tell them what they need to know, Walker. It's not going to be too pretty for you if you don't."

"And you think it's going to be any prettier if I give in and spill everything I know?" The prisoner laughed harshly. "Remember who we work for, Parker."

That sentence reminded Selfridge of something. "Chacón, you'd better check the cuffs of his shirt sleeves for a little white capsule—"

He barely had time to complete the sentence before Walker raised his handcuffed wrists to his mouth and bit down on one of said sleeves. Trudy dove for him at the same time and the door burst open to admit Ellis and Howell. Tom and Max came in behind the two soldiers and they shouted as Trudy wrestled with the prisoner, trying to keep him from accessing whatever hidden item he had sewn into his sleeve.

"Shit...guys, he's convulsing!" Trudy narrowly avoided getting her fingers bitten off as she tried to pry the prisoner's mouth open. A white foam was spewing from between Walker's lips and his eyes stared blankly up at the ceiling as his body twitched uncontrollably.

Tom and Max reached him at the same time and they exchanged a grim, helpless look as Walker gagged and turned blue.

"Cyanide," Tom said when the body lay still.

Parker grimaced. "I had a know how to pick 'em. They go for agents that either don't have much to live for or support human advancement so completely, they're willing to die for it."

"It sounded to me like he did this because it would be a quicker death than what the RDA would offer if he cooperated with us," Trudy said.

"That too," agreed Selfridge.

"Why didn't you tell us about the cyanide earlier?" demanded Max. "This could have been prevented if we had known from the beginning."

"It slipped my mind," answered Parker. "It's been a really long couple of days and I haven't had two winks of sleep since this before the trial. Sue me."

"Sounds pretty convenient," accused Trudy with a narrow look at Parker.

"Okay look," intervened Tom, "We have a dead man in the room now and we have our confirmation that the RDA sent him to put me down or at least stop my research project. Can we please move past the arguments and finger pointing for now?"

"Good point," agreed Trudy. "I'll have someone wheel this dude in for forensics just to be safe. Ellis, you and Howell escort this thing back to its cell." She nodded at Parker meaningfully.

"What, no 'thank you'?" Selfridge prompted when the marines flanked him and instructed him to move.

"Administrator," Max advised, "Now would be one of those times I would ask you to try and practice verbal restraint. We still haven't come to a conclusive agreement over what to do with you. Consider that, while you're in your cell."

Parker wanted so badly to blurt out a rude response—even though Max was really the only person on this base besides West and Archer that had treated him with any fairness so far. Bearing the man's attempted diplomacy in mind, Selfridge tried to respond with some manners. "I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

Because Na'vi allies visited so often over the years, someone with a brewer's mindset eventually decided to start making and storing native moonshine. The idea behind it was to offer hospitality to indigenous visitors, since it was a long-standing human practice to offer one's guests alcoholic drinks. Since the Na'vi couldn't very well take shots of Jack Daniels or drink glasses of wine without poisoning themselves, it was considered a very good diplomatic idea to begin the mini Na'vi brewery.

What the brewers club at Hell's Gate hadn't anticipated was the lack of turnout for the product. Some avatars drank the stuff but overall, the majority of it sat aging in the basements, untouched. Na'vi weren't in the habit of getting sloppy drunk when visiting the human settlement. This of course put a significant damper on the plan...until a mixed group of human, Na'vi and avatar youths decided to throw a huge "welcome home" party for one Jake Sully.

Suddenly the moonshine stores that were collecting cobwebs were being bought out with authentic Na'vi jewelry made of sea glass, shells, clay beads and hardened plant bits. One of the young hunters responsible for the influx of business even made a promise to speak in front of one of the brewers' daughter's gradeschool class about Na'vi lifestyles and the care and feeding of banshees.

Pleased with the amount of booze they had procured for the event, the twins, Savanna and a couple of young hunters from both clans happily carted their purchases back to the avatar compound. After all, brewing up enough moonshine for so many people on short notice would have been impossible.

Andrew had the terran liquor covered for human consumption. Kato and Karyu put together some fireworks—all of which were constructed by their own hands instead of bought. Savanna started painting faces for the event and Dustin was at home putting together some human finger-foods.

Thus began the night of Excessive Drinking and Bad Decisions.

* * *

They had the event outdoors in the avatar compound, since it provided the most comfortable setting for the visiting Na'vi. The humans had to use the "Lift and sip" trick with their exopacks to enjoy the food and beverages but nobody minded. Tsu'tey carried Leyra around with him in a hastily crafted baby sling. Neither he nor Grace imbibed in alcohol, but they enjoyed the food and the company. Grace retired early, still weak from childbirth. Tsu'tey hung out for a little longer, until the baby began to fuss with hunger. He exchanged hugs with his family and left to bring Leyra to her mother for nursing.

Jake actually practiced more restraint than Neytiri when it came to consumption of moonshine, but that was partly because of the serious conversation about his brother's safety that occured. He hardly paid attention to his drink as Max explained the events that occurred earlier that day with Tom's would-be assassin and Parker Selfridge.

"The lab results came back for the substance loaded into the injection device," Max explained when Tom asked about it, "it was a virus—a kind of beefed up Malaria, in fact. My guess is he intended to try infecting you first, before resorting to something more messy like gunshot or stabbing. Considering that you specialize in working with bacterial cultures that can fall into the category of hazardous or deadly materials, using a viral weapon against you makes a certain morbid sense. It could appear that you slipped up and exposed yourself by accident."

"Thus lessening the chance anyone would suspect foul play," added Sebastian. "That's devious."

"You sound like Sherlock Holms," Trudy accused Bastian. "Anyway, the dude is dead and gone now, so any more answers we get won't be coming from his mouth.

Tanhi glared at her mate. "I cannot believe you kept this from me."

"Only until I knew I wasn't being paranoid," objected Tom in a low voice, casting a look around at the other party-goers to be sure nobody was taking too much of an interest in the conversation. "I know how you and the kids are, Tanhi. If I was wrong about that guy and one of you made shish-kabob out of him, I would have never forgiven myself."

"I do not know what _sheesh-kavav_ is but you put yourself in needless danger," she insisted. "I am your mate and you should have trusted me."

"She's got a point, bro," Jake said, siding with Tanhi. "People are after you now because of this thing you're working on and your family makes for some pretty awesome bodyguards."

"Speaking of bodyguards," Trudy intervened, "We're going to assign some to Tom while he's here."

"I can guard him," Tanhi said in a somewhat offended tone. "He is my man."

"But do you think that's enough?" Norm challenged. "You're a great warrior, _Olo'eyktan_, but you're only one person and you need to sleep and eat like anyone else. I don't want to be disrespectful to you or your family, but think of how ruthless the RDA can be. Extra allies watching over Tom might be the smartest way to go here."

"I promise the operatives I assign won't get in the way of your daily activities," Ellis said. "And they'll have the advantage of quick communication and surveillance technology at their disposal. Food for thought."

"I think it would be wise to consider the offer," Neytiri coaxed after sipping her drink. "Jake and I will watch over Tom as well, but these Sky People who wish to do him harm are vicious, sister."

Tanhi considered that and she nodded, looking at Trudy and Ellis. "I want to know about each warrior you choose to guard my mate. I will not have strangers responsible for his safety."

"Let's not blow it out of proportion," Tom muttered, looking uncomfortable with all the attention.

"Uh, someone has tried to kill you _twice_ so far, Tom," Jake pointed out, "I don't think anyone's blowing it out of proportion. We just want to keep you alive, _tsmukan_."

"I've already chosen Corporal Howell as one of the bodyguards," Ellis said. "I thought you would feel comfortable with him, seeing as he's already rescued Tom once and he brought in the man that was moving in on him."

Tanhi nodded, relaxing a bit. "I approve. Who else?"

"I'm going to volunteer Harris to take a shift too," Trudy said. "I've worked with him for years and I trust him."

"Good choice," agreed Tom.

"My wife Janet may be available for a shift as well," Ellis murmured. "I'll speak to her about it tomorrow and we'll see what her schedule looks like. Is this satisfactory to you, Ma'am?" He looked at Tanhi expectantly.

Tanhi threaded her fingers through Tom's and nodded. "It is."

Jake smirked at the Ikran chieftess. For all her stern gruffness, anyone could see that her mate, family and clan meant everything to her. Every _Olo'eyktan_ had a duty to protect his or her tribe but Jake had never met one that took as much pride in the responsibility as Tanhi.

"Well, now that we've depressed ourselves talking about assassins and bodyguards," Max said, "I think we should join the festivities. Giving the teens permission to drink could end up becoming a nightmare if we don't keep an eye on them, too."

"I think you're a little drunk, gorgeous," Jake murmured to his mate when she hiccupped and stumbled against him.

"No, I only tripped on something," argued Neytiri proudly, refusing to admit the truth.

Jake laughed and put an arm around her. Another firework shot into the air but this time, it streaked across the sky a little too close to one of the defense turrets. Tom quickly stopped the twins from launching any more of them when it became obvious that they were getting too tipsy to do it safely. Jake guided Neytiri's faltering steps over to the "launch area" and he wasn't surprised to hear Kato and Karyu arguing against their father. Tanhi joined Tom's side and she put an end to it.

"We are guests in this village and I will not have you setting fire to the structures in your drunken state."

Kato looked at his mother, then at his sister. "I thought we were adults. Why is she treating us like kids again?"

"Probably because the alcohol pickling your brains has crippled your judgment," said Tom. "Now pack it up, you two. Being adults means being responsible and if you're going to keep drinking you need to stay away from flammable things and stick close to the party."

Karyu hiccuped and shrugged. "Whatever. Uncle Jake, Aunt Neytiri, do you wanna take any of thish to Hometree with you when you leave?"

"Hmm." Jake eyed the homemade fireworks with interest.

"No." Neytiri shook her head—which made her immediately clutch at Jake's arm to keep her balance. "Too many trees and plants close together. It could start a forest fire."

Jake grimaced and conceded her point. "Even drunk, the lady has more common sense than I do. You should give them to your friends here or take them home with you when you go, kids."

Leaving them to it, Jake walked with his mate, Tom and Tanhi to where the Na'vi musicians were playing. He took another drink from his cup and rubbed his cheek against the crown of Neytiri's head affectionately as they stopped to watch the dancing. Some of the humans and avatars attending the party also watched with interest as the Na'vi dancers swirled, pranced and altered the intensity of their spot pattern to match the rhythm of the music. Jake had never figured out how to consciously control the luminescent spots on his body, but some of the dancers—particularly the Omaticaya women—were pros at it. It was like watching a star-flecked light show on their lithe bodies. Jake noticed that more than one of the watching avatar males expressed appreciation for the dancing women and he chuckled.

"We sure have some beautiful women in the clan."

He realized it wasn't the smartest thing to say to his tipsy mate when Neytiri glared at him. Jake quickly tried to correct his error. "I just mean our ladies get a lot of admiring looks. _I_ wasn't looking...those other guys are. Come on, you _know_ I think you're the most gorgeous thing on Pandora!"

Neytiri suddenly flashed a saucy grin at him and her tail entwined with his. "You are cute when you become flustered, ma Jake." She lay her head on his shoulder and put an arm around his waist.

Jake sighed, even as he smiled with answering amusement. "I'm going to get you back for getting me all worked up like that."

She shrugged. "You don't frighten me."

Sylwanin spotted her parents and she broke away from the dancing to run up to her father. "Dance with me, _Sempul_!"

Jake smiled at the little girl and he handed his cup over to Neytiri so that he could grant her request. "Anything you want, Sweet-pea."

* * *

"Hey Dustin," Kato shouted, startling his sister so bad she yelped, "You want some fireworks?"

Dustin turned at the shout and he paused his conversation with his parents and the Thomas family. Unlike the twins, he was practicing some moderation and he was only mildly buzzed. "Maybe we could put them in storage until New Year's eve," he suggested with a shrug. "There's usually a fireworks show then."

"Okay," Kato answered cheerfully. He saw his mate approaching and he gave her a big, sloppy grin. "Hey babe! Where were you?"

"I was off praying to God and Eywa that you two wouldn't blow off something important while you were shooting those things," answered the hybrid. She sipped her cup of moonshine, following Dustin's lead with the moderation. "I was also helping Andrew keep vomit out of his queue. He got sick in the bushes over there." She grimaced and gestured at the row of native bushes near the fence. Andrew was staggering away from them, holding his queue absently in one hand. Evidently, he had over-estimated his avatar body's alcohol tolerance and now he was paying the price.

"Here, I'll help you two pack this up," offered Savanna when she saw Karyu make a clumsy grab for a rocket.

Karyu let her take it and the huntress sighed, searching the crowd for something. Savanna paused and regarded her friend curiously. "Looking for someone?"

"He didn't come," remarked Karyu with another little sigh. She was practically pouting.

"Who?" Savanna frowned at her friend.

"Greenie," answered Karyu. She turned to face her brother. "He's your friend now, right? You invited him?"

Kato was evidently having a brain fart, because he clearly had no idea what she was talking about. "I've got no idea what you're talkin' about, sis."

Savanna got it then and she had to slap a hand over her mouth to muffle peels of laughter that threatened. "She means Baxter," snickered the hybrid when she could draw enough breath to speak. "Oh my...I think we should put your sister to bed, Kato!"

"I don't need a bed," groused Karyu. She reached for her cup that she had left sitting on the nearby wooden bench and she drank down what was left in it. "Unless Howl...Howler is in it," she finished after lowering the cup again. She wiped her mouth and her head wobbled a little as she looked to her sibling.

Kato blurted a laugh. "I _knew _it! You want to get down his pantsh!" He covered his mouth on a burp.

Karyu narrowed her eyes at him. "Don't be so smug. I'll kick your ash."

"I think the word you're looking for is ash...uh...ass," corrected Kato. He started laughing again. "Karyu and Baxshter, shitting in a tree..."

"Sav, if you know what's good for your man, you'll get him away from me," warned Karyu.

Savanna wasn't about to test her friend. Sober, Karyu was intimidating enough when angered. Drunk, she might just take Kato's head off without even meaning to. The hybrid put her arms around her mate and coaxed him to come with her, aiming their path toward Dustin and the now miserable Andrew. "Come on, Kato. This is a really bad time to tease her, okay?"

"Kay," he agreed amicably. Evidently, Kato was a happy drunk. "We can get more nectar."

"Um...I think you and Karyu have both had enough," Savanna warned cautiously. She continued to urge him away and she looked back in the direction of her friend, intending to invite her to come and drink something non-alcoholic to start the sobering process.

Karyu had vanished.

"Oh, no."

* * *

Baxter's head had just hit the pillow when someone began to bang on his door. He growled in frustration and tossed the sheets off as he sat up. "Hold on a freaking minute," he called. Under his breath, he muttered; "Someone _wants_ me to lose it."

He got out of his bunk and walked to the door, expecting to find his superior or one of his fellow officers standing there with some sort of pressing information. Instead, he found Karyu Sully leaning against the wall. His surprise was complete when she lifted her right hand and poked his chin dimple with her pointy finger.

"_You_ didn't come to my Uncle's party," she slurred, pressing down on the dimple. "You. That offensh me."

Baxter stared at her, finding her inappropriately adorable in such an obviously sauced condition. "Yeah, I just got off duty. I would have come if I could get out of it but you gotta do what you gotta do. It looks like you've had plenty of fun without me, though."

She closed one eye and stopped pressing her finger against his dimple. She raised the finger and twirled it around for no apparent reason. "I had an epiphany. That's the right word, right?"

He tried not to laugh. "If you're talking about getting a moment of clarity, I think so. I'm not really the guy to ask about—"

She cupped the back of his head and pulled his face down to hers before he could finish the sentence. Her kiss was almost bruising in intensity and Baxter was treated to the same feeling of being thunderstruck that Karyu felt when he laid a wet one on her earlier that same day. He could tell she was inexperienced but despite the sloppy nature of the kiss, the raw passion behind it made it very, very hot. He sprung a boner so fast it was like a jackknife flipping open and it was a wonder he didn't skewer her with his wood, right then and there.

"Okay, hold up," Baxter gasped, breaking the lip-lock with her. Mindful of the hall cameras, he put an arm around her and pulled her into his bunker. She started to try and kiss him again but he stalled her, hating himself for passing up an opportunity even as he tried to be a gentleman.

"If this is going to happen," Karyu informed him breathlessly, "I want to be awake for it." She started to kiss his chest and throat almost feverishly, her short-trimmed nails raking over his back with aggressive passion.

Howell lost his train of thought. What Karyu lacked in experience, she more than made up for in vigor. Every part of him screamed at him to pick her up, toss her on the bunk, yank his boxers off and go to town.

Instead, he shut his door, caught her wrists and called her name. "Karyu, stop for a second and listen to me."

Her fingers were curved and she struggled against his hold on her, looking up at him resentfully with dilated golden eyes. "Why? This ish what we both want...what we both _need_. So do me already, Green-eyes."

He was again stricken with the urge to laugh and he looked away for a second. "Uh...yeah. That's...real romantic. Listen though...you're obviously drunk and—"

"So?" she cut in. "Guys like drunk women. We're easy to take advantage of, right? I'm throwing myshelf at you. Go for it."

"Wow. Your challenge is tempting but believe it or not, I actually respect you." Baxter picked her up and he ignored her startled oath as he carried her over to his bunk. He eased her into it and he gazed into her eyes, willing her to understand. "I get the feeling you're just trying to get this over with. Since you're not in your right mind, I'm not going to get a straight answer from you tonight."

She pouted. "Why do men have to be so difficult?"

He chuckled and shook his head. "Why do women have to try and drive us all crazy? Karyu, I mean it. You say you want to be awake for it and if we're going to get together, I want you sober. Go ahead and crash and if you remember _any_ of this in the morning and want to talk about it, I'm all yours. I can sleep on the floor or in the chair over there."

She grabbed his arm as he started to move away and she shook his head. "No. Na'vi couples sleep together before they mate sometimes. Sleep with me."

His eyes roved over her slender body and he found the idea more than appealing. Her necklace had slipped and he looked away when he realized he could see one of her nipples. "So you want me to just hold you, right?" He hoped she didn't mind being poked by a frisky crotch.

"Yeah. Come 'ere." She scooted back against the wall and clumsily patted the mattress before her.

Understanding that he could be setting himself up for more trouble, Baxter climbed into bed with her and drew her into an embrace. Her fruity-smelling breath was warm against his chest as she snuggled against him in a way he never would have imagined her doing. She fit him perfectly, her lean curves lining up just right with the lines of his body. He caressed her forehead with his lips and held her a little tighter.

"Thanksh."

Baxter opened his eyes and drew back to look down at the dark head resting against his chest. "For what?"

Karyu nuzzled his chest. "For keeping _Sempu_ safe and being nice."

She was a paradox to him and Baxter felt a pang in his chest as he rubbed her smooth back and smiled. She went from sex kitten to warrior chick to sweet little innocent with no warning. A woman like her could never possibly get boring. "You don't have to thank me for that," he whispered. "Just do me a favor and don't kick me in the nuts when you wake up tomorrow morning and realize where you are, okay?"

"I'll try."

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

_**Sempul**_ = Father

_**Sempu**_ = Daddy; an endearment

_Muntxatan _= Husband; male spouse

_**Kaltxi**_ = Hello; greeting

_**Tsmukan**_ = Brother


	27. Chapter 27

**"Tiger's hunt"**

_Chapter 27: Sweet nothings_

* * *

_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. Think of this chapter as a sort of interlude for character and relationship development before bigger things occur. For those who aren't aware yet, official sources state that Na'vi women do nurse their young—for up to four months. Internal reproductive mechanisms are different but the birthing process, feeding and care of newborns are basically the same. You can find this information in official guidebooks, such as the Pandorapedia online. Go to Pandorapedia dot com and look under "Na'vi - The Na'vi - Appearance & Behavior - Na'vi Mating Practices". Special thanks to Koen for pinpointing the location of that information for me, since I was too blind to find it again myself. **_

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

All over Hell's Gate, people were waking up with regret for the indulgences they partook in the night before. The first to voice a complaint was none other than the _Tsahik_ of the Omaticaya clan. Unfortunately for her, she had chosen a mate that was fond of teasing her—especially when she was the one to make a bad choice instead of him, for a change.

* * *

"Jake...my Jake...cover the window."

Jake turned at his mate's plea and he grinned down at her as she yanked the sheet over her head. "What's the matter, sexy? I thought you said you could handle it?"

"I lied." She peeked out from under the shade of the covers and frowned at him, evidently just miserable enough to swallow her pride. "I drank too much nectar. You may prance in victory after you cover the window, Jake."

Jake obligingly allowed the blinds to fall back into place, shading their section of the second floor from the assaulting beams of morning light. He swallowed his amusement and approached the bunk Neytiri had chosen to crash in—after he had begged her several times to go to sleep. He sat down on the edge of it, nudging her legs aside to make room for himself.

"So, how about a nice, big breakfast? Kato's got some Sturmbeest meat stashed in the fridge here. What do you say to a juicy steak?"

Neytiri grimaced, paled a bit and threw her pillow at him. It bounced off his head and landed on the floor. "Be quiet with your games. If I become ill, your lap will be the first place I aim for."

Jake coughed, trying not to laugh too loud and disturb what few other occupants there were in the cabin. "Offer a lady breakfast and get snapped at." He leaned down, tugged the sheet away from her face and kissed her soundly on the cheek. "I'll go outside and see what they're doing for breakfast. My guess is, Norm probably has some kind of detox tea brewing on the fire and by the smell of it, Tanhi's cooking something nice for everyone."

"I don't want food," groaned Neytiri, burrowing under the sheet again.

"You've got to try to eat something," Jake insisted. "Even if it's just a few nibbles. I'll be back in a minute."

With that said, he left her to her misery and he passed a few vacant avatar bodies on his way to the stairs. Most of the Na'vi guests had chosen to make pallets on the ground near the garden area and sleep outdoors. When Jake made it downstairs, he went to the fridge first and checked inside for anything that might work as a meal for Neytiri without making her puke. He spotted a handful of tetrapteron eggs in a bowl and he made a mental note of that before shutting the door. On his way to the exit, he passed some of the people who had chosen to crash in the avatar bungalow and his eyebrows went up.

"Uh...Savanna?"

She looked up from the sketch she was doodling and she smiled at him in a sunny manner. "Yes, Mr. Sully?"

He pointed at the bunk directly adjacent to hers. "Why are they—"

"Shh." Savanna put her pencil down on her bunk and lifted a finger to her lips warningly. She spoke in a whisper "Don't wake them. If you're hungry, I just finished helping my mother-in-law put together a nice, fruity oatmeal breakfast for everyone. There's plenty to go around."

Jake scratched his head in perplexity and he fought laughter. "Uh...thanks." He leaned over to see what she was drawing and he snorted. "Capturing the moment?"

Savanna put her hand over her mouth to muffle her giggle and when she regained control of herself, she shushed him again and waved him away. Grinning with amusement, Jake complied with her silent demand and continued his trajectory to the outdoors.

* * *

Andrew grumbled when his mother knocked on his bedroom door and demanded he get out of bed. "But it's a public holiday," he protested. "Why can't I sleep in?"

"Because you're becoming an adult and you're going to have to learn to accept some adult responsibilities. Get cleaned up and changed, so you can prepare to link with your avatar."

He winced, remembering how sick he'd gotten in his avatar body the night before. He combed his fingers through his disheveled blond hair and glanced at the clock, noting how early it was. "Uh, I was thinking I'd skip avatar linking today, Mom. I've been training a lot and maybe I should just let the avatar rest for a day or two."

His door opened and Joyce strode in and put her hands on her hips. "I know what you're doing. You want to let the avatar rest for a day because you went wild in it last night and you know you'll have to deal with a hangover if you link today. Sorry, but that won't fly."

Allen came up behind his wife and he smirked at his son as he placed his hands on Joyce's shoulders and added his input. "Avatars aren't just party toys you can use when you want to get wasted without suffering the consequences. They are complex, expensive encounter suits. They're designed to make our work easier and help both the human and Na'vi populations. You need to think of it as your second body and take care of it, son."

Joyce nodded. "You're going to link with yours and deal with the results of your partying like everyone else that got slammed."

"But—"

"No," interrupted Allen before he could finish the protest. "We put a lot of effort into getting you involved in the program and you're going to respect that avatar and learn to take care of it."

He couldn't win and he knew it. "Fine. This is child abuse, though."

His parents exchanged a brief grin. "No, this is responsible parenting," Allen corrected. "You've got a lot of potential and we're preparing you to use it, Andy. Some day, you'll do the same thing for your kids."

"Not likely," muttered Andrew under his breath.

* * *

Kato was roused from sleep by the sound of light footsteps passing by his bunk, followed by a throaty, muffled laugh. He frowned and opened his eyes with effort. The lids felt swollen and some of his lashes seemed to be sticking together. He mumbled a protest when the dull, sickening throb of a bad hangover assaulted his head.

"Sav, I feel like shit," he mumbled thickly, squeezing the warm body he was spooned against. His frown deepened when it occurred to him that Savanna was missing some soft feminine curves and had gained some rather hard, lean muscles. She also seemed to be much bigger than usual.

Kato opened his eyes completely and lifted his head off the pillow, squinting blearily at the person he was snuggled up against. "What the _hell_?"

Andrew's avatar lay on his side, with his back pressed snugly against Kato's front. The Ikran hunter was so astonished that he literally couldn't move or speak. Savanna's voice shook him out of his stupor.

"Hey, lovebird. Did you sleep well?"

Kato eyeballed his mate with sluggish panic, so confused that the pain of his headache was temporarily forgotten. "Why am I spooned up against Andrew?"

"Male bonding?" suggested the hybrid with a teasing grin.

Kato would have babbled a slew of explanations if Savanna weren't so obviously enjoying the spectacle. He was too afraid to move, fearing that doing so might wake the avatar up—even though he knew that regular avatars lost all consciousness when they went to sleep and the link to their drivers was severed. He couldn't have actually _done_ anything with the other male, for Savanna to be sitting there grinning like a cat with a bowl of cream.

"What the hell happened?" Kato whispered harshly. An Omaticaya huntress came into the cabin to fetch something from the refrigerator and when she smirked at him, Kato wanted to stab himself.

"It's pretty simple," answered Savanna with a shrug. "We crammed ourselves into one of these bunks around three in the morning and sometime after the sun started coming up, you got out of bed to use the bathroom. When you came back, you got in bed with Andrew instead of me. I _warned_ you not to mix terran liquor with Na'vi nectar but nooo, you didn't listen."

The traces of said alcohol remaining in Kato's system were the only thing keeping him from hiding in a closet for the rest of the day. "Shit. Why didn't you wake me up and steer me back to _our_ bunk?"

Savanna shrugged and grinned, showing him the sketch she had been working on. "Why would I want to do that? I thought it was sweet, the way you snuggled up to him."

"Savanna, you tear that up right now!"

She pulled it out of his reach when he made to grab for it. "Don't be that way, Kato. It's cute! I'm sure Dusty will agree with me."

Kato couldn't see the humor and his head was pounding hard. "How many people saw us this way?"

"Oh, quite a few," answered the pretty hybrid with an innocent smile. "People in both tribes are already speculating over when you two will mate and have your first child together."

"Ha...ha. Think you're a comedian?" Kato removed his arm from around the avatar's lean waist and he started to get out of the bunk. "You know Karma can be harsh—" 

Andrew's avatar suddenly gasped and opened his eyes, startling Kato so bad he jumped back and almost fell against the next bunk. Savanna yelped and put a hand over her chest.

Andrew sat up groggily and pressed his palms against his temples, moaning. "Oh, this really _sucks_." He looked up and saw his two friends. Taking note of their body language, he frowned and addressed Kato. "Dude, what the hell did we _do_ last night?"

Kato and Savanna looked at each other and the hybrid burst into giggles.

* * *

Karyu slept like a log. She felt smooth skin against her lips and strong arms around her for a while before she drifted back into deeper sleep. After a little while, she felt lips brush against her forehead and the sensual glide of fingertips tracing her spine. It made her shiver and she nuzzled the hard, toned chest that her face was pressed against. She smelled the familiar, pleasing scent of botanical aftershave clinging to her companion's skin and she sighed in her sleep, comforted by it.

The warm, masculine body pressed up against hers retreated at some point and Karyu made a blind grab for it. She heard a low chuckle and felt someone stroke her hair before she detected the sound of bare feet walking away. She faded back into dreams—the regular kind that were often fuzzy and made little sense. It seemed like she was only out again for a few minutes before the sound of something frying reached her ears. She frowned and sniffed, picking up a scent that made her stomach growl. The aroma wasn't what she was used to in the mornings, but the source was definitely food of some kind.

Karyu opened bleary eyes and squinted, looking around in confusion. When she saw where she was, she remembered the night before and the way she'd thrown herself at Baxter Howell. Her eyes were now wide-open and she ignored the throb in her head as she leaned over the side of the bunk and peered in the direction of the smell and sound of cooking food. The bunker was a studio set-up; a single room except for the bathroom. Baxter was standing at the far end of the room, cooking something in some kind of mini grill on the counter. He was dressed in his camouflage pants and a white muscle shirt. His hair looked a little damp and she guessed that he must have taken a shower while she was still sleeping.

Karyu looked around in a panic, biting her lip uncertainly. Some people thought it was a good thing that Na'vi moonshine didn't inhibit the memory like terran alcohol, but she would have given her right arm to wake up ignorant of her own behavior. Howell appeared to be absorbed in whatever he was cooking, so she decided to make a beeline for the door while she could.

Fortune wasn't with her. Just as she sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bunk, Howell chose to glance over his shoulder to check on her. When he saw that she was awake, he smiled and put his cooking utensil aside on a plate.

"Well hey there, Tipsy McStagger." He winked. "How's your head?"

Karyu growled and rubbed her temples. "You're a laugh riot, avatar."

He regarded her with quiet curiosity and an amused little smile, until it made her uncomfortable. "What?" she demanded. "Why are you staring at me like that?"

"Have you thought about what we talked about last night?"

Thinking quickly, she pretended ignorance. "I was drunk. I don't remember. I thought I only dreamed coming here but I guess I pulled another sleepwalking stunt."

He considered her words and a slow smile tugged at his lips. "I think you're fibbing a little. I know moonshine doesn't screw with people's memories. You're saying you don't remember _anything_ about coming here? You don't remember kissing me and—"

"Okay fine," she snapped, "I remember throwing myself at you, okay? If I had been sober, I never would have done that!"

"Really?" Baxter sighed. "So all that talk about 'what we both want' was all made up?"

She bit her lip and looked away. "I wasn't myself."

He shrugged and lowered his eyes—but not before she detected a flash of disappointment in them. "Hey, you drank too much and you went a little wild. It happens to most people, sooner or later."

He raised his eyes again and grinned at her, regaining his playful demeanor. "Besides, I'm not complaining. You can throw yourself at me as much as you want. I'll even paint a bulls-eye on my chest, if you want."

She fought a grin of her own. "Well, I can at least thank you for behaving yourself when I obviously couldn't. So, thanks."

She started to go, thinking she might get out of this with some dignity intact after all. Baxter caught hold of her arm as she turned to go and she barely resisted the impulse to strike out in response.

"Wait," he said, "don't rush off. I still want to talk to you."

"Never grab me without warning, Green-eyes," she reminded him. "It puts me on the defensive and that could be bad for your health."

He released her and held his hands up. "Okay, no sudden grabbing. I should have known better and I'm sorry. I just want to talk to you and maybe feed you some breakfast. I owe you, anyhow."

She tilted her head. "You've already treated me to hamburgers and steak."

"And now I want to treat you to breakfast," he insisted. "You fed me for weeks when I was hurt. Two meals won't make us even but you shouldn't go on an empty stomach. I don't have a stove in here to cook anything fancy but the toaster and egg fryer work just fine. You can eat terran eggs and toast, right?"

She willed her stomach not to growl. She hadn't had a terran breakfast in some time and it did smell good. Unlike some of the other revelers, Karyu was fortunate enough not to suffer nausea with her headache. "Do you have orange juice to go with it?"

"It wouldn't be the same without orange juice." He smirked. "So how about it, Cupcake?"

"I'll give your breakfast a try," she grudgingly agreed. "But don't call me 'Cupcake' again."

He smiled boyishly at her. "I'll resist the urge." He glanced around the small bunker and his eyes settled on his desk. He went to it and opened a drawer to produce a holopad. "Here, you can watch something on this while you're waiting, if you want. I've got some shows in the "videos" folder. Or you can read something off the shelf over there. I don't have a lot of books but if you see anything that interests you, go for it."

She smirked at him, amused by his enthusiasm. "It really doesn't take much to please you, does it?"

"What can I say? I'm a simple kind of guy."

* * *

Lacking space for a proper table, Baxter unfolded two dinner trays for he and Karyu to eat off of. He set hers up in front of the bunk and he set his own up adjacent to it, using his desk chair to sit in. She sniffed appreciatively at the plate of toast and eggs he set down before her and she immediately took the cup of orange juice he offered and took a few swallows. As she enjoyed the tangy citrus flavor and watched him set his own breakfast down, she noticed something sitting on her napkin that made her frown.

"What are you trying to do, drug me?" She pinched the oval-shaped pill off the napkin and held it up between her thumb and forefinger.

He looked up and stopped salting his eggs. "Uh, if I wanted to slip you a mickey, I'd have the sense to put it in the drink instead of out in the open. I'm no genius, but give me _a little_ credit."

Her mouth twitched just a little. "Fine, then what is it?"

"It's a multi-vitamin," he explained. He picked up a similar tablet from his own tray. "See? I'm taking one too. They're specifically for avatar and Na'vi biology."

"Why would you need to take one? You look healthy enough to me." Her eyes briefly swept over him before looking away.

Baxter shrugged. "Avatars on this base don't always get enough of our daily recommended intake. Fresh native meat and fish aren't always available unless we hunt it ourselves. The ones like me can eat human food but that still doesn't give us the nutrients we need from Pandora stuff, you know? The vitamins help make up for that."

"Well, I get plenty of native fair," she reminded him.

"Yeah, but you burned up a lot of nutrients with your drinking," he argued. "It's your choice but it couldn't hurt to have a little boost to help you recuperate faster."

Karyu conceded the point and shrugged. She placed the pill on her tongue and swallowed it down with her orange juice. Baxter did the same with his and he smiled at her as he started cutting his eggs.

"Don't get cocky," she warned airily, guessing he felt a moment of triumph for her compliance. "I only took your vitamin because I feel like a sturmbeest stepped on my head."

Baxter chuckled around the food he'd just put in his mouth and he reached for his orange juice to wash it down. "You really hate compromise, don't you?"

"I can compromise," she protested, pausing with her egg-laden piece of toast halfway to her lips. She frowned, thinking of just _how_ much she was going to end up compromising eventually, when the pressure of clan expectations rose and she had to choose a mate or name a successor. "You have no idea how much I have to compromise, Green-eyes."

He sobered and gave her a concerned look. "Touchy subject, huh? Do you want to talk about it?"

She blinked, looked at him and wished she hadn't. He was so handsome and earnest...and forbidden to her. It would be so easy to make excuses and go for it with him. She had finally come to terms with the fact that she was helplessly drawn to him, and not just because of his good looks and pretty eyes. He had a warm, generous, forgiving nature—completely unlike her. Many of the elders would say a man like him would be a good match for her, to balance out her nature and harmonize her spirit. Those same elders would disapprove of another chieftess mating with an avatar. They would remind her that the Ikran clan had already bent tradition enough.

"Karyu? You look sad."

She snapped out of it and she wanted to throttle him for watching her with such blasted worry in those eyes. "I..."

Baxter smiled when she frowned in confusion and lowered her gaze. "Hey, I'm a good listener and whatever it is, I promise it won't go out of this room. Something's obviously eating you up and I'm the one that put that miserable look on your face. Lay it on me, Princess."

"That's the problem," she muttered, "I _can't_ 'lay it on you'."

His eyebrows drew together. "Huh?"

"Forget it." She grumbled. "My head hurts and I don't know what I'm saying. Can we just eat?"

Baxter shrugged, easy-going as usual. "Whatever makes you happy. I've got some ibuprofen in the medicine cabinet. If you want, you can take a couple after you eat. You're welcome to take a shower too."

She glanced at him warily and he laughed under his breath. "No peaking, I swear. You can lock the door. I'll get you a fresh towel to use after breakfast."

She was going to refuse his offer, thinking she could just have a bath when she returned to the cabin. She considered how much moonshine she consumed last night and the looks she was bound to get from her parents if she returned to the avatar compound smelling like the bottom of a nectar barrel. She put her food down and sniffed experimentally at her arm. She wrinkled her nose when she detected the scent of fermented wild berries. If she could smell it on herself, others were sure to notice it. She looked at Baxter, who was patiently waiting for her answer and eating his meal. He glanced at her as he finished off one of the eggs and he raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Okay," Karyu agreed reluctantly. "I could use a shower, I admit."

He smiled again and he kept eating.

* * *

Kato and Andrew unhappily joined the crowd outside for some breakfast. Poor Andrew took one look at the oatmeal pressed into his bowl and he handed the food over to Savanna and ran back into the cabin, looking quite green. Tom watched him go with some concern and he approached Kato and Savanna.

"How much did he drink last night?"

"Probably about as much as I did," answered Kato, grimacing as the dawn sunlight came out from behind a cloud. "But we had some shots of whiskey with our moonshine."

Tom's brows drew down. "You mixed terran compounds with native?"

"It was just booze, Dad."

The biologist shook his head and examined Kato. "Just because you're capable of consuming native and terran foods without ill effect doesn't mean you should try the same with drinks. Mixing alcohol is bad enough, without adding the factor of ingredients completely removed from each other botanically."

"_Sempul_, I'm really trying to listen to what you're saying," Kato assured in a low voice, "but right now, I'm trying not to follow Andrew back inside to spew."

Tanhi joined her mate's side and she frowned at her son. "You are ill?"

"Just hung-over," answered Savanna, patting his back gently.

Tanhi smirked at Kato. "You brought this upon yourself then, son. Have you seen your _tsmuke_ since you awoke?"

Kato looked around, realizing for the first time that he hadn't seen hide nor hair of his twin. "No. Where is she?"

Tom and Tanhi exchanged a worried look. "I had hopes that you could answer that question, _'itan_," replied Tanhi. She moved in close to the young couple, her yellow gaze subtly anxious. "Karyu can take care of herself, this is true, but..."

"But after what's happened lately, it's more than a little troubling that she hasn't checked in yet," finished Tom, also visibly worried. "Karyu usually lets us know when she's going to be out all night."

"And she informs us of where she can be found," agreed Tanhi. "She said nothing to either of you last night? Try to remember."

Kato again forgot about his own misery as his concern grew. "I really don't remember anything past the fireworks display. Sav?"

She thought back to the night before and she nibbled her lower lip, having her suspicions. She spared a quick glance at Tanhi's worried face and she struggled inwardly for an answer that wouldn't result in Baxter Howell getting shot with a Na'vi arrow.

"I might have an idea, but I can't make any promises," she answered evasively. "I can go and look for her while you and your family finish breakfast."

"That would be appreciated," Tom agreed politely. "Do you have my cell number?"

Savanna pulled her phone out of her pocket and checked to be sure. "Yes, sir. I'll call you as soon as I find her."

She gave Kato's hand one last squeeze before leaving the avatar compound, praying under her breath that she was right about her friend's location, even if it could mean trouble. Better to find Karyu in Howell's bed than lying in a ditch somewhere.

* * *

Baxter did his best not to think of the woman showering in his bathroom as he washed up after breakfast. Not thinking about it proved impossible. He could hear the spray of the shower and he kept imagining the drops sliding over her cyan-striped skin as the water beat against her chest and shoulders. To make it worse, she was humming as she showered. Karyu had a pleasing singing voice, even if she didn't use it often. She probably wasn't consciously aware that she was humming. Baxter imagined her slender hands lathering up that sleek little body of hers and he grimaced down at his pants when they began to show where his thoughts were going.

"Cut that out," he muttered to his misbehaving crotch. He finished scrubbing the plates and he set them in the draining rack beside the sink. He wiped his hands off and looked around for something to give him inspiration. He had to get his mind off naked Karyu, if he didn't want her to see him in this state when she came out of that bathroom.

"Bullets flying...explosions...oh, crap; wrong thing to think about." Baxter's mind went straight to the Nova tragedy and he quickly tried to pull his thoughts back from it, knowing what it would do to him if he dwelled on it.

"Don't think about it," Baxter gasped, planting his hands flat on the counter. "Not that...go back to naked Karyu."

The memory sufficiently stifled his arousal, but he would prefer to be stuck with a boner and be thought a pervert than for Karyu to see him having a panic attack. Someone down the hall outside dropped something and the clatter was loud enough to make Baxter jump. He broke into a cold sweat and bent over the counter, lowering his forehead to the cool surface. He struggled to maintain his breathing and his hands clenched into shaking fists.

"Goddamn it," he panted. His meds were in the bathroom. He'd just have to try and ride it out and keep his cool until his guest was finished in there.

* * *

Karyu finished drying her body and she briskly dried her hair before bundling it up in the towel. She put her garments back on and she made a mental note to change into a fresh ensemble when she returned to the cabin. Wincing at the pain in her head, she opened the mirrored medicine cabinet over the metallic sink, seeking the ibuprofen he had offered her. She found the little bottle and she started to reach for it, but something else caught her interest and she stopped, tilting her head with a frown. She reached for another plastic container instead and she narrowed her eyes at the prescription label.

"_Lorazepam_," she repeated aloud. She stared blankly into the medicine cabinet, recounting what she knew of the drug. Ativan. It was commonly used to treat anxiety and if she was remembering correctly; could become addictive for some patients. She rolled the container around in her palm and considered it for a moment, glancing at the door. Maybe Howell wasn't as together as he tried to appear. While Karyu respected the strength of mind it must take to act normal from day to day, she was also becoming concerned for him.

"It's none of my business," she whispered. "The marine can take care of himself and if he's got to medicate while he's dealing with his issues, that's his call."

It was easy to say that, but she remembered that desolate howl he'd emitted the day his ex girlfriend said goodbye to him. Karyu compressed her lips and closed her fingers around the pill container. She decided to ask him about the medicine, if only to get an idea of how bad his condition was. She could come up with some kind of excuse.

She set the pill bottle on the sink and reached for the ibuprofen in the cabinet. She shook two of the capsules out and popped them into her mouth before replacing the cap and putting the bottle back. "I'm turning into a druggie, hanging around him," she muttered around the pills as she turned the water on and cupped her hands beneath the tap. She washed the medicine down, turned the tap off and wiped her hands before exiting the bathroom with Baxter's medication in one hand.

"Hey Green-eyes, did you know this stuff can be addictive?"

She stopped, forgetting the rest of her rehearsed excuse when she saw the odd way he was standing. He was still by the kitchenette. His back was to her and he was bent over the counter with his head down. He appeared to be panting for breath and the tension in his body was evident. She approached him warily, her heart rate picking up with alarm she couldn't control.

"Baxter?" Her voice sounded small and uncertain in her own ears.

He cursed under his breath and half-turned, tossing a sickly grin over his shoulder at her. "Found my happy pills, huh? Don't...worry. I only...take it when...I have to."

She set the container on the counter and her frown didn't lessen. "What's going on?"

He shook his head and looked away. "Nothing. I just...need to catch my breath. Happens...sometimes. I'm...okay."

"But, all you're _doing_ is breathing," Karyu pointed out. She urged him to step away from the counter and she turned him to face her. "Are you having a panic attack?"

"No!" He shook his head again, though his hyperventilating didn't cease. "Never...panic. I'm cool."

Karyu put her hands on her hips. "Like hell you are. Quit trying to be macho. If you don't get this under control you could black out."

"Bag," he wheezed, gesturing at the drawer built into the counter next to her. "I need...paper bag."

"There's a better way to fix it," Karyu sighed. "I don't know why people still think suffocating themselves with a bag is the best solution. Here, put your arms down and try to relax."

Baxter complied—either because he was getting too dizzy to argue further or because the tone in her voice convinced him not to piss her off with refusal. Karyu placed one hand flat on his stomach, just under his rib cage. She put her other hand on his chest and she looked up at him as she spoke, trying to channel her father and at least attempt to mimic his bedside manner.

"Okay, stop breathing with your chest and use your stomach," she commanded, pressing down on his solar plexus. "Let it out in a slow breath, then draw it back in."

She could tell he was trying to comply, but either her instructions weren't clear enough or he was too deep into the panic attack to control it. He looked away even as he stumbled against the counter. His face was flushed and he struggled to do as she said.

"Can't," he gasped. "Sorry. I...didn't want you to see me...like this. Stupid, huh?"

"Stop trying to talk," she chastised, "you'll only make it worse."

He obligingly shut up but he couldn't seem to get his breathing under control and she could tell he was rapidly approaching the point of blacking out. "You didn't want to seem weak," she guessed, watching his tormented expression with empathy. "I can relate. Maybe it _is_ stupid but pride can be that way."

He managed a weak little smile. "Yeah."

Karyu bit her lip and glanced sidelong at the medication sitting on the counter. It wouldn't do any good to give him one of his pills when he was stuck hyperventilating like this. He wouldn't be able to swallow it. She needed to calm him down and her attempts to instruct his breathing the way her father taught her wasn't working.

"Try breathing through your nose," she advised.

He made a pathetic attempt and she decided she needed to cover his mouth to keep him from instinctively gasping through it. She could have looked for some tape or simply put her palm over his mouth, but something made her choose an entirely different method that shocked her almost as much as it did him.

Karyu slid the hand resting on his chest up to cup the back of his head and she drew his mouth down to hers, muffling his gasps with her lips. For a couple of seconds, he stopped breathing altogether and she pushed insistently on his stomach, silently reminding him that air was still a requirement. He exhaled unsteadily through his nostrils and drew in a quick, shallow breath. She kissed him harder and tried to direct his diaphragm motions with her hand, putting pressure on his abs when she wanted him to exhale and relaxing it when she wanted him to inhale.

"Shh," she murmured, breaking the kiss briefly to encourage him. She kept her mouth close to his. "Deep, steady breaths."

His lips parted and before he could say anything or draw breath through his mouth, she kissed him again. His arms went around her and he pulled her closer, even as he struggled to even out his breathing through his nose. He made a low, ragged sound in his throat that could have been distress or arousal—perhaps both. Karyu traced his parted lips with the tip of her tongue impulsively, caught up in the feel of his mouth pressing against hers. His tongue sought out hers and the kiss went from close-mouthed and simple to a wet frencher in two seconds flat. He unwrapped the towel around her head and dropped it to the floor, combing his fingers through her damp hair.

She knew it was getting out of hand, even though it seemed to be doing the trick. He was breathing deeper and slower; which was a good thing. The bad thing was that each moment they spent doing this brought them closer to losing their senses and humping each other silly. She tried to pull away but he held her tighter. His tongue stroked hers in a way that made her dizzy, as if _she_ were the one out of breath. He was trembling but now she couldn't tell if it was because of the panic attack or the kiss. She placed both hands on his chest, intending to push him away. Instead, she rubbed her palms over the firm surface beneath the sleeveless shirt, feeling his heart pounding beneath her hands.

"Baxter," Karyu tried to warn between kisses, "Mmph..."

His lips sought hers out again and she forgot what she had wanted to say. She embraced him and clung to him like velcro, helplessly enthralled. She mewled, shocking herself again. A huntress didn't _mewl_! And yet, she did it again when he cupped her bottom and groaned her name. The sound of her own helplessness vocalized snapped her out of her daze.

"Okay, that's enough," Karyu gasped, pushing Baxter away insistently.

He didn't argue or resist. He obligingly took a step back and he stood there panting, looking at her with eyes that practically glowed green with arousal. His gaze caressed her all over before settling on her face again. His voice was uneven when he spoke, but at least he could manage a full sentence without gasping for breath now.

"Now, _that's_ the kind of therapy I can get into," he said. "Maybe I should stop taking my meds altogether and just come to you for smoochies from now on."

"It was impulse," she tried to excuse, blushing profusely. "I was trying to calm you down."

"Calm me down?" He looked incredulous and he glanced down pointedly at the tent in his fatigues. "Kitty-cat, I think you need a new dictionary. Horny isn't exactly calm, you know?"

"I see that," she muttered, trying not to stare. "People could camp under _that_ tent."

Baxter laughed breathlessly as Karyu slapped herself in the forehead and groaned into her hands.

"I'm not touching that one," he wisely decided. "You might hurt me."

She grimaced, inwardly thankful that he was being gracious enough not to tease her about the way she blatantly speculated the size of his manhood. "Take your medicine, Green-eyes."

He sighed and nodded, turning to procure the bottle from the nearby counter. He took one pill from the container and he popped it into his mouth with a shaking hand. He approached her and she tensed a little, but he was going after the cup he'd left drying in the dish rack. He took her queue out of the sink and draped it over her lap before pouring some water for himself and swallowing the medication down. Karyu watched his throat work and she ached to kiss it and take those trembling hands in her own.

"There," Baxter said as he put the cup aside and looked at her. "All gone."

She nodded. "Good."

Baxter looked her over again and his cheeks darkened a little. He dropped his humorous, confident demeanor and became boyishly contrite. "Um...thank you. In all seriousness, I know you were just trying to help. I'm sorry for mauling you like that. Despite what I did in those dreams, I try to be more polite with girls I'm interested in dating. Something about you just—"

Someone began to knock insistently at his door, interrupting what he was saying. Baxter turned and frowned in annoyance toward the door. He checked his watch. "I'm not due to check in for duty 'till after lunch. I wonder who the hell that could be?"

"Well don't just stand there," she urged, relieved at the interruption even as she cursed it. "Go answer it before they bust the door down."

He shrugged and turned. "I can't answer it like _this_." He went to the mini fridge a few steps away and he crouched down as he opened it. He popped open the little freezer compartment and as Karyu watched with bemusement, he retrieved what appeared to be an ice pack for sprains and swelling.

"What are you d—"

He turned away from her, unzipped his pants and yelped as he stuffed the object into them. Karyu's jaw dropped and she blinked. "Are you _nuts_?"

"Funny you should mention nuts," groaned the avatar. "Putting 'em on ice is the fastest way to cool my jets, Princess."

She rolled her eyes and shook her head. "I hope you're going to wash that thing before you use it on any other body parts or offer it to someone else."

The marine snickered. "Which 'thing' are you talking about?"

"You know which 'thing'," she answered, trying not to laugh with him. "Don't be a pervert...and stop calling me 'Princess'."

The knocking on the door grew louder and more urgent.

"Hold on a minute," called Baxter. He took the ice pack out of his pants, dropped it on top of the mini-fridge and zipped back up again. He glanced over his shoulder at Karyu and he gave her a crooked grin before moving away to answer the door.

Karyu took a deep breath as she watched him and she couldn't help but notice how tense his motions remained. She narrowed her eyes, suspecting he was pretending to cope better than he really was. She was starting to learn that Baxter Howell's need to seem in control was every bit as tenacious as hers. If nothing else, they shared _that_ trait.

When Baxter opened the door and greeted his new visitor, Karyu froze.

"Oh, hey Sav. How's your head feeling?"

Karyu's eyes bugged out and she frantically looked around for somewhere to hide. Her gaze fell on the cabinets beneath the counters and she considered trying to squeeze into one of them.

"Fine, thanks," answered the hybrid. "I didn't drink much at the party last night. I'm sorry for barging in on you so early but I'm looking for Karyu. She wandered off sometime last night and nobody's seen her since then. So, where are you hiding her?"

Karyu stopped in the process of opening the cabinet door. She snorted and slammed it shut, marching straight for the door with an air of importance and dignity. She put her hands on her hips and regarded her friend, who was leaning around Baxter to peek inside.

"He's not 'hiding me' anywhere, you brat. I'm fully capable of coming and going where and when I want. I'm not some doll that people can—"

"Save the indignant speech," Savanna interjected, un-intimidated. Baxter stepped aside and she walked into the room and shut the door behind her. "Your parents are looking for you and everyone's getting worried. I'm sure you'd rather me find you here than one of them."

Karyu faltered and glanced at Baxter. She sighed. Who was she kidding? None of this was his fault and it could have been a lot worse, if he hadn't been so damned chivalrous. "Nothing happened," she insisted.

Savanna gave the handsome marine a doubtful glance before looking back at Karyu. "If you say so. It's really none of my business."

"I found her wandering late last night," Baxter excused. "So I let her crash in my bunk. Scout's honor, all we did was sleep." The amazing thing was, nothing he said was a lie.

"We had eggs on toast for breakfast," Karyu finished, trying not to gaze at the man with gratitude in her eyes. "He let me use his shower afterwards."

Savanna grinned. "Mmm-hmm. Well, your family is waiting for me to contact them and let them know I found you."

Karyu didn't quite manage to hide the alarm in her expression. She completely failed to conceal it when she opened her mouth. "Don't tell them I'm _here_!"

Savanna paused in the process of digging her phone out of the little fanny-pack she had strapped around her waist. "Why not? Bax _said_ all you two did was sleep, right?" She winked at the tall marine, who chuckled and glanced sidelong at Karyu.

"But...but that's not the _point_, " protested Karyu.

"Then what _is_ the point?" pressed the hybrid. "They should be grateful that Corporal Howell watched over you."

"Or he'll end up being known from this day forth as '_Ball-less Baxter_'," insisted Karyu, crossing her arms over her chest. "Do you really think my _Sa'nok_ is going to take kindly to news that I stayed here all night? Do you think she'll believe nothing happened?"

Baxter's amusement faded at the mention of the possible neutering. He instinctively covered his crotch with one hand and by the look he gave Karyu, he must have been recalling the time she kicked him in the groin. "Now wait a minute...maybe we should think about this. My junk's suffered enough punishment already."

Savanna frowned in confusion at that but Karyu had to choke back a giggle. Of course, the hybrid had no way of knowing poor Baxter literally put his balls on ice to avoid answering the door in a "rude" state.

"Well, since you saved her mate's life I really doubt Chieftess Tanhi would hurt you for something so trivial," Savanna said after some thought, "but I guess it's best not to take chances. Karyu gets that unpredictable streak from her mother, according to Dr. Sully."

"Then let's definitely think of someplace else you could have found her," he insisted.

Baxter shot another look at Karyu and she felt a stab of old guilt. Was she _never_ to be forgiven for that one little mistake? He shouldn't have grabbed her like that, the day they met!

"Tell her you found me at the terrarium." Karyu suggested. "I like to go there sometimes to check out the Earth plants they have in there, when I don't feel like going into the bio-dome. She'll believe it."

Savanna activated her phone and started dialing on the touch-screen. "Okay. You both owe me one."

* * *

"I'll join you at the exit in a minute," Karyu told her friend when Savanna hung up the phone and suggested they get going.

Savanna looked like she had something saucy she wanted to say but didn't dare act on it. "Sure. See you later, Baxter."

He nodded at her and saw her to the door, opening it for her. "You bet. Tell Kato I'm up for a game of hoops whenever he is."

"He'll wipe the court with you," Savanna assured him with a smile. She waved and left the two of them alone together.

Baxter shut the door and turned to face Karyu hopefully. He was still feeling anxious but the medication was kicking in fast. He was glad he refrained from taking more than one pill, considering he had an important assignment to start on later that day and it involved Karyu's family. "So I'm guessing you want to talk to me about something."

For once, she looked somewhat demure. "I'm sorry." She blurted the words as if unaccustomed to saying them.

Baxter was half-puzzled and half worried. "Sorry for what? Last night? Hey, I told you before, I understand." He was about to tell her he still wanted to talk about what she said to him and try to coax her to give him a chance, even if she could do better for herself than a traumatized marine. Karyu answered before he could do that.

"For kneeing you in the groin, the day we met." She shrugged and looked up at him. "I realized I've never really apologized for that, so I'm sorry."

He smiled helplessly, endeared to her. She was so cute, struggling to apologize without actually looking contrite. "Oh, that. Well, you haven't kicked me again since then. Forget about it."

She nodded, seeming a bit relieved that he forgave her without argument. "Good. Well, I'd best get going." She turned to go out the door and before Howell could try to stall her himself, she stopped in her tracks and turned around slowly to look up at him.

"What?" he asked, self-consciously patting his face in response to the odd look she was giving him. "Do I have something on my face?"

She shook her head and approached him hesitantly, as if fighting with herself. She put her arms around him and hugged him, resting her cheek against his chest. Baxter stood there with his mouth hanging open and a blank look on his face. It seemed to be "Shock Baxter" day, but he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. He put his arms around the unpredictable young woman and held her, swallowing a bombardment of emotions.

"What's this for?" he whispered, rubbing her back gently as he held her. He took a slow whiff of her hair, savoring the damp scent. His breathing was almost back to normal, now.

"You're still shaking," she murmured, not pulling away.

He thought he might have a sliver of understanding, then. Karyu liked to pretend she didn't care but she had an almost compulsive instinct to care for the sick or injured. He'd seen the evidence himself and he'd heard her friends and family mention her intolerance to suffering.

"It'll stop soon," he assured her, afraid of speaking louder than a whisper. "Sometimes it just sneaks up on me, like this morning. Most of the time it's not this bad."

"I don't think you're telling the truth," she said; still apparently content to stay in his embrace. She sniffed at his neck a little and he could have sworn her heard a faint purr in her throat. "I think you're trying to downplay it so people won't worry."

"People like you?" He nuzzled her hair and rocked her a little.

"Maybe." He heard her swallow. "Just...keep seeing someone about your issues. Take care of yourself, Green-eyes."

He chuckled unsteadily. "If I get into trouble, I can always ask you to kiss me and make it better."

She pulled her head away from his chest and looked up at him, unsmiling. "I'm serious. Your heart is still racing. I understand if you don't want to advertise it but when it gets bad like this morning, go to someone for help. I'll kick your ass if I ever find out you've put yourself in the hospital trying to brush it off."

He stared at her. "My heart isn't racing because of the panic attack."

She parted her lips but her voice apparently wasn't working. He took advantage of the moment and he lowered his mouth to hers, intending to give her a kiss she'd remember for the rest of the day.

"I've got to go," she said, pulling away from him and deftly slipping out of his arms. "This can't happen."

Baxter's first impulse was to toss his hands up and demand to know why. Having come to know her well enough to realize she wasn't likely to give him a coherent explanation, he sighed and followed her to the door, deciding that a simple statement of fact was enough for now. "I'm not giving up, you know."

She paused as she opened the door and she looked at him with visible annoyance. "There's a word for males that won't take 'no' for an answer."

"Hey, I'm no rapist," he protested, hurt. "I was a complete gentleman last night!"

"I was going to go with 'stalker'," she replied dryly.

"Oh." Ordinarily he would agree with her, but he was confident that he wasn't wrong about her feelings for him. "Well, I think you like being stalked, Sweetie-pie."

She rolled her eyes. "Now I _know_ you're feeling better. The arrogance is back. Goodbye, Howell. Thanks for breakfast and the shower."

He smiled as he watched her walk away down the corridor and he hardly noticed the lingering trembling in his hands. He called out to her one last time, startling a passing maintenance man. "I'm not giving up!"

Karyu's response was a rude gesture over her shoulder. Baxter sighed and stepped back inside. Maybe he really _was _unhinged, to pursue such a volatile woman so persistently. Maybe he was a glutton for punishment.

Or maybe he was in love.

He shut the door and rested his back against it, stunned by that last thought. His anxiety spiked again and he shut his eyes and clenched his jaw. The thought of actually being _in love_ with Karyu Sully was a scary one, because he had no idea whether he could successfully win her over or not. He was sure she returned his feelings, but would she ever give into them? As terrible as the Nova incident was, he would almost rather go through that again than have his heart broken once more.

"Cripes...be a man," he growled, angry with himself.

The problem was that "being a man" didn't equip him with a switch to turn off his emotions. All he could do was try to keep them from controlling him.

* * *

Tsu'tey smiled as he ducked into the tent with a bowl of oatmeal. His mate was awake and nursing their daughter. He paused for a moment to take in the scene, thinking it was the most perfect picture ever. Grace was smiling down at Leyra, obviously enjoying the bonding moment with her. Her color was better this morning and Tsu'tey guessed that his _sa'nok_ was probably right; Gracie would be at full strength again in a couple of days.

He himself was exhausted and several times this morning, he'd almost wept for no reason at all. He hadn't spoken to anyone about it because frankly, it was embarrassing. People thought he was wimpy enough as it was, without him admitting the birthing experience turned him into a big crybaby. He crossed the tent and greeted Grace softly when she looked up at him.

"You look beautiful this morning," he complimented as he knelt down beside her on the piled hides, blankets and pillows. "Here, I brought you some breakfast."

"I'll eat after she's finished," Grace assured him softly. She stroked the baby's cheek and smiled down at her. "I know I'll eventually figure out how to nurse her and do other things at the same time, but I don't want to risk disturbing her or interrupting her feeding."

Tsu'tey grinned at the infant contentedly suckling at her mother's breast. "I can't say I blame you. Here, why don't you let me feed you then? That way you can eat without having to use your hands."

"You don't need to do that."

He sighed. "You need to eat too. Your milk will dry up if you're malnourished and then we'll have to let someone else nurse her for you or make formula. You don't want that, do you?"

"Of course not!" Grace seemed genuinely horrified by the thought. She was just starting to bond with her daughter and with the exception of Tsu'tey and immediate family, she didn't like anyone else handling the baby for long.

"Then let me feed you while you nurse," he compromised calmly. Eywa, he was so tired...if he shut his eyes for even a moment, he would probably fall flat on his face.

Grace studied him with a little frown. "On one condition."

He nodded. "Name it."

"I want you to lay down and go to sleep immediately afterwards." She carefully shifted Leyra and she reached out with one hand to stroke aside a loose strand of hair that was hanging over his forehead. "I'm worried about you."

"I'm okay," he lied. His words felt sluggish in his own mouth and he immediately felt bad for being dishonest with her.

It must have shown on his face because she clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth and shook her head. "Tsu'tey, the only way you could have darker circles around your eyes would be if someone punched you in both of them." She traced his lips with her fingertips before withdrawing her hand to give the baby extra support. "You're just one man and you can't do everything. I'm strong enough now to take care of Leyra on my own for a while, and I can ask our parents for help if I need it. You're going to break, if you keep pushing yourself like this."

He lowered his gaze...and then immediately lifted it again when his eyes threatened to shut against his will. "Okay," he agreed; too exhausted to argue. "I promise I'll get some sleep after you eat some breakfast."

Grace smiled at him and she allowed him to spoon-feed the bowl of oatmeal to her. She playfully pretended to nip at his fingers a couple of times, making him laugh. When she finished her breakfast, Tsu'tey put the bowl aside and he reclined beside her on the blankets. He stroked Leyra's soft, downy hair and kissed Grace on the cheek before relaxing as much as he could.

"Would you like to bond while I finish feeding her?" Grace offered. "I know you like to share the experience. Maybe it will help you sleep?"

He nodded and reached for his queue, his eyes already helplessly drifting shut. "I love you," he murmured. He meant it for both females in the tent.

Grace connected her queue to his and she leaned toward him to kiss his parted lips as he sighed in contentment. "We both love you too, Tsu'tey."

He drifted off to sleep, forgetting about the noise of his clan mates coming and going outside the tent. All he could feel was his mate and his daughter, sharing a feeding bond. He smiled as he lost waking consciousness, thinking nothing could be more perfect than this.

* * *

While his friends were either recovering from hangovers, trying to hide where they'd been all night or adjust to being new parents, Dustin Patel was standing over his freshly decanted avatar. He stared down at the seemingly lifeless, cyan-striped body with amazement he couldn't conceal. The hair was still damp from the incubation tank. His father stood beside him with a smile, patting his shoulder.

"Can I cook or what?"

Dustin examined the face that was so much like his own. "So, this is what I'd look like if I were born a Na'vi instead of a human. Wow...I know avatars resemble their drivers but seeing my own face on one is a little jarring."

"You'll get used to it," promised Max. "What do you think otherwise?"

"It's amazing," answered the young man truthfully, knowing his father took pride in his bio-engineering. "Why didn't you tell me it was so close to being finished?"

"We were going to surprise you on your birthday," answered Max, "but your mother and I decided you deserved something for conducting yourself so responsibly last night. With everything else that's been going on and the fact that your...uh...that Andrew has his avatar in operation, we figured: 'what the hell'. So, do you think you're ready to take it for a spin?"

"I...well, do _you_ think I'm ready?" Dustin regarded his father seriously. "I know everyone else is getting an early start in adulthood but I specifically remember you saying the legal age for avatar driving was eighteen, because the brain needed time to mature."

"I did say that," agreed Max with a nod, "and under normal circumstances with anybody else, I would stick to it. You're not just anyone though, son. I'm not just saying that because I'm your father; the board members agree with me. You're endowed with an extraordinary maturity and sense of responsibility. I think I speak for everyone in the Avatar program when I say you can be trusted to not only meet but also exceed requirements for participation. All that's left is for you to climb into the linking pod and have your first run."

Dustin smiled at the flattery, even as he gazed down at the avatar uncertainly. "Shouldn't I take a few more practice runs in the simulator?"

Max squeezed his shoulders supportively. "If you really feel like you need to, we can have the avatar put back into stasis. Nobody's trying to pressure you to do this before you're ready, Dusty. I just thought you should have the opportunity to start early, but it's your call."

Thinking of the resources it would take to put the avatar back into one of the stasis capsules, Dustin shook his head. If his father thought he could do this, then he could. Besides, he couldn't wait to see the looks on his friends' faces when he showed up in his avatar body.

"Let's do it, Dad."

* * *

"He's _still_ in bed? Here, I'll get him up."

Andrew knew that voice and he groaned and stuffed the pillow over his head as it drew nearer. Great...they decided to sic Dusty on him. He was sure Savanna was to blame and he intended to give her a piece of his mind for that...as soon as said mind stopped hurting so much. Footsteps approached the bunk he was lying in and he burrowed deeper under the sheets as someone poked at his shoulder.

"Dusty, you know I love hanging out with you but right now I just need to sleep. My stupid parents are forcing me to stay linked to my avatar until I've gotten over this hangover."

Someone started pulling his sheet down and Andrew made a blind grab for it, shooing his visitors away with his other hand. "Come one, lemme alone!"

"Open your eyes and be social for a little while," insisted Dustin. "I brought you a sports drink to help you detoxify and some aspirin."

"Besides, you _really_ need to look at your boyfriend," Savanna whispered, mindful of the couple's closeted status. "I think you're in for a surprise!"

Her statement made Andrew frown and his first immediate thought was that Dustin had done something new to his hair. Hating the idea of him cutting those dark, wavy locks short, Andy yanked the pillow down and opened his eyes a slit. Thankfully, someone had the courtesy to shut all the curtains in the room so the light was bearable. Andrew blinked in confusion as he looked up at the faces hovering over him. He recognized Savanna, the twins and Grace but he didn't know the Na'vi—no, the avatar—in the middle.

Or did he? He peered more carefully at the stranger, seeing something very familiar in the lips, bone structure and eyes. The avatar was dressed in standard Avatar-issue gray tracksuit pants and a plain white t-shirt. The hair that wasn't braided into the queue fell in loose ringlets to the shoulders, naturally curly in the manner of the Patel family males. It began to dawn on Andy who this avatar was that he was staring at and he slowly sat up, forgetting about his nausea and pounding head.

The voice that came out of the avatar's mouth confirmed his suspicions. "Aren't you going to ask how my morning's going, Andy?"

"No...way. Dusty? Is that _you_?" Andrew stared as the avatar sat down on the edge of his bunk. He looked at the others and saw by their broad grins that he wasn't just imagining things. He reached out and touched the other young avatar's face, amazed to find his boyfriend's features looking back at him.

"Yeah, it's me," replied the avatar. "Here, drink some 'V' and pop these aspirin. You'll feel better."

Andrew mechanically took the cool can of energy drink and held his palm open for the blister packets. "I thought you weren't getting your avatar until your birthday came around."

Dustin shrugged. "That was the original plan, but it matured about a month ago and my parents thought I was ready to try it early." He looked down at his hands and flexed the fingers. "I'm a little wobbly on my feet and it feels kind of weird, but I think I can get used to it with practice. I'll need you to help me train."

"Sure," agreed Andrew, still a little thunderstruck. "As soon as I feel better, that is."

"I didn't mean today," assured Dustin with a grin. He stood up again and Kato supported him as he wobbled. "I can only drive the avatar for a couple of hours on this first run. You can help me get into shape when I've adjusted to it more."

"Count on it." Andrew forgave his friends for waking him up, given the situation. He freed the tablets from the blister packets and put them in his mouth before opening the energy drink and swallowing them down—hoping he could hold his gorge down long enough for them to dissolve and get into his bloodstream. When he was finished, he wiped his mouth and eyed Dustin again. He realized something that made him smile. The little geek's avatar was nearly a head shorter than Kato, and the male twin was average in height.

"Even your avatar is short, Dusty."

"Shut up."

Savanna giggled and linked her arm with Dustin's. "He's still taller than I am—for a change. It feels weird to be the one looking up when we talk to each other."

Karyu frowned and stood beside Dustin, measuring from the top of her head to his with her hand. "He's about the same height as me."

"And you're a little thing," Gracie remarked with a smile at the Ikran huntress.

"Can everyone stop picking on my height?" Dustin grumbled. "How about" 'Gee Dusty, we're so proud of you for linking to your avatar for the first time without puking your guts out', or maybe: 'How do you like breathing fresh Pandora air without choking to death'?"

Kato ruffled his hair. "Sorry, shrimp. We're all proud of you."

"Yes, we are." Savanna laid her head on Dustin's shoulder in a sweet, affectionate gesture. "You're literally the youngest in your class."

Andrew snorted. "He's one of those boy geniuses that end up going to college before he's finished with high school and gets ahead of everyone older than he is, while he's at it."

"With the way things are now, higher education is the last thing on my list of concerns," Dustin said seriously. He cast a look around at his friends and he lowered his voice. "You guys know another war could start because of the things the RDA is trying to do, right?"

Everyone's good mood evaporated.

"Good job spoiling the moment, Dustin," sighed Kato.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, "but I think we all need to be ready for it, if it happens. It's not a pretty thought but it's better to be prepared than taken by surprise, right?"

Karyu offered a bit of hope. "If my _Sempul_ finishes his project, they can track down those terrorists before they get too strong to manage and this can all be dealt with fast."

"But we don't know how strong they really are right now," Dustin argued. "They could find a whole compound of RDA loyalists when they finally track them down. I have a feeling Hell's Gate isn't going to be able to handle this alone."

"Then we'll get the tribes together and open a can of whoop ass on them," Karyu said with a shrug. "I'll be happy to lead a charge next to my _Sa'nok_ and kill the bastards that have been plotting to murder my father."

"The clans and Hell's Gate have united before in the past," said Kato with a nod. "And the RDA was openly hostile and organized, then. Don't forget how Uncle Jake and the united clans drove them out in the first war, too."

"That was with Eywa's direct help," Gracie reminded in a soft voice, lowering her eyes. "The All Mother isn't at our beck and call every time we're in a pickle. We have to respect the damage these people can do and remember they have gunships at their disposal. I really don't want to see war happen, guys. I just had a baby and I want to raise her in peace and safety."

Her final words effectively put talk of war at an end. Dustin graciously apologized for bringing up such a depressing subject. "I'm sorry, Gracie. This is really the wrong time to talk about things like that. We're supposed to be celebrating your daughter's birth and Jake's safe return, but here I am channeling my parents and talking about conspiracies, doom and gloom."

"We should also celebrate you getting your new avatar," Savanna insisted, patting Dustin on the arm.

"There's nothing to forgive," Grace sighed, smiling at Dustin. "I know we can't shut our eyes and hope the danger goes away, but for now I'd like to pretend everything is okay and just enjoy the good things that have happened lately. Can we do that for a few days, at least?"

"Sure," agreed Dustin. The others nodded as well.

"Speaking of good things," Andrew said, pressing a hand against his stomach to try and stop the queasiness, "where's your baby at, Gracie? Oh, and Leyra, too."

Grace chuckled, catching the pun. "Tsu'tey is asleep in the tent and I want everyone to leave him alone and let him rest until he wakes up on his own. He's been doing everything while I recover and he's exhausted. Leyra is with Uncle Jake. He's watching over her for me so I could come in here without risking disturbing any of the people sleeping in here if she starts to cry."

She cast a worried look over her shoulder, towards the open exit of the lodge. "I should probably go and check on her."

"She's only been out of your sight for ten minutes," Karyu protested, "Uncle Jake isn't going to drop her on her head or anything!"

Grace gave the smaller woman a tolerant, patient smile. "Karyu, I know I seem over-protective but this is my first baby and today is the first day I've actually had the strength to hold her for more than ten minutes without getting fatigued. Let me be a little neurotic while I'm trying to get used to being a new mother, okay?"

Karyu seemed a little chagrined and she nodded. "Point taken. Just don't wear yourself out trying to be a supermom like some other women do. You don't have to be perfect and it's not child abuse to take a little time out for yourself, okay?"

"I'll keep that in mind." Grace started for the exit. "But practically all I've done since giving birth is 'take time out' and I really need to bond with my daughter."

They watched her go and Andrew started to say something complimentary about her sense of parental responsibility, but his stomach heaved and he lurched out of his bunk, slapping a hand over his mouth. His friends and Dustin hastily stepped aside to let him pass as he stumbled to the nearest bathroom. He shoved the door open and went to his knees to pay homage to the porcelain god, leaving his friends shaking their heads in pity.

* * *

"Go away," Andrew groaned when Dustin followed him into the bathroom with a dampened washcloth. "I don't wanna puke in front of you."

Dustin rolled his eyes and pulled the taller avatar's queue aside so that he could press the cool cloth against the back of his neck. He squatted beside him and rubbed his back as he heaved. "Quit being so vane. Nobody's perfect and I'm not going to dump you because I've seen you get sick. I've seen plenty of vomit before."

"Making it worse," complained Andy. He heaved violently and Dusty winced.

"Sorry. I'll keep the subject away from...what you're doing."

He stayed with the taller boy until Andy finally stopped getting sick and he flushed the toilet for him and helped him back to his bunk. The others had gone outside and except for the handful of Na'vi sleeping upstairs and the vacant avatars on the first floor, they were alone in the cabin.

"There you go," Dustin encouraged as Andrew lay down on the bunk. He put the damp cloth over Andrew's forehead. "I hear the best cure for a hangover is sleep. Can you really do that without breaking the link or were you just resting with your eyes shut before?"

"Like I said, my parents won't let me drop the link until around dinnertime," answered the taller avatar with a sigh. "Usually the capsule automatically powers down when a driver's avatar body goes to sleep or ends up unconscious for whatever reason, but my parents have disabled the auto-shut down and I'm stuck in this body 'till tonight."

"But you _can_ sleep," reasoned Dustin.

"Yeah, I can sleep. I was snoozing pretty good before you showed up."

"Ingrate," grumbled the young scientist. "I have more aspirin with me and I'll leave it here with you, so you can try to take it later. Maybe with a little rest your stomach will settle enough to hold it down."

"You're going?" Andrew lifted his head a little, holding one hand over the cloth on his forehead.

Dustin checked the watch his father had given him to wear on his avatar. "I've only got about a half hour left before my Dad starts the gradual power-down to guide me out of the link. I'll come back when this session is over with to check on you."

Andrew nodded and shut his eyes, lowering his head to the pillow again. Dustin considered him for a moment, glanced outside and then made his decision. "Move over."

Andrew grunted as the smaller boy started squeezing into the bunk behind him. "What are you doing?"

"Laying down with you," answered Dustin calmly. "None of the natives are going to care if any of them see us. They've already seen you snuggled up to Kato."

"Dude, that was an _accident_," Andrew muttered. "And even if the Na'vi don't care, one of the other avatar drivers could link up and see us."

"So you're not worried about them seeing you sleeping next to Kato but you don't want them seeing you sleeping next to me," reasoned Dustin. "Why...because I'm too obviously gay?"

"No...because...like I said, Kato didn't know what he was doing when he climbed into bed with me and everybody knows we were both smashed last night. You were sober, so we can't use alcohol as an excuse."

Dustin put an arm around the taller boy and squirmed into a more comfortable position—not an easy thing to do with such narrow space. "If some straight guy gets to do this, so do I. Deal with it."

"I'm not going to get you off of me, am I?" Despite his words, Andrew's hand settled over the one Dustin had resting against his stomach.

"No," answered Dusty. "But don't worry; this is my first time in the avatar and that's as valid an excuse as alcohol. If anyone asks, I'll say I got disoriented and I didn't know what I was doing. You were crashed and you don't remember it either. Is that good enough for you?"

"I guess so."

Dustin smiled and shut his eyes. Andrew's closet was slowly starting to creak open. Maybe it wouldn't be too much longer before they could stop hiding their relationship from all but their dearest friends.

* * *

Selfridge supposed it could have been worse...a _lot_ worse. He was a prisoner but he had to admit, they were treating him well. He got three square meals a day and his cell was big enough to contain a bunk, a desk and a chair. They gave him a portable computer for the purpose of cooperating with their demands and he wasn't foolish enough to believe the device wasn't being strictly monitored. He knew they had some kind of super hacker in their employment and he knew that hacker had recently tried to break into encrypted RDA files that were hidden within UNEC files. Whoever he was, the guy must be good because the company's people barely patched the security breach in time to stop the hacker from getting to the files.

Parker looked over the personnel files presented to him. They were only showing him the names and pictures, keeping their personal information private. He was going to be stuck doing this every day for God knew how long, until he scoured every known resident on base. They wanted him to identify any RDA agents he recognized, of course. He spotted a couple within the first hour of clicking through the files and he made a mental note of them. He had to be careful not to reveal too many operatives at once. There were only so many active at Hell's Gate and Parker was cynical enough to believe once he was no longer useful, they would get rid of him. He had to retain _some_ kind of advantage for himself and that meant he couldn't be too cooperative, too soon.

Self-preservation. Who could blame him for that? After everything he'd been through, he didn't trust anyone. Well, _that_ wasn't entirely true. The one person he thought he could trust was currently lying in critical but stable condition in the Hell's Gate medical facility. Max promised to allow Selfridge to see her again today if he provided some names and backgrounds. With that in mind, Parker chose which agents he was going to rat on to show good faith and get what he wanted. It wasn't anything personal, really. He knew what their position within the company hierarchy was, what sort of skills they had and what sort of sabotage they were sent to conduct. Other than that, they were just business associates he cared nothing about.

When his eyes started to sting from staring at the screen, he checked the time on the clock in his cell and he called it quits. He got out of the chair and approached the intercom unit against the wall.

"Hey you," he said, peering through the window of the sliding security door at the guard sitting in the monitoring room, "Tell Ellis I've got a couple of names for him."

The guard didn't look pleased at being addressed in such a manner by a prisoner, but he had his orders regarding Selfridge and he got on his satellite phone to inform Msg. Ellis of the news.

* * *

Ordinarily, this sort of thing would have fallen under Trudy's command but she didn't trust herself not to hit Selfridge again just yet, so Ellis was acting as the middleman. Having no personal history with the former administrator, he was able to treat him objectively and stick to business. Max was the one doing most of the negotiating but he already had his hands full, without having to deal with added paperwork.

Ellis got the names from Selfridge and he didn't stick around to hear any of his demands. He kept it brief, professional and impartial despite Parker's attempt to initiate negotiation terms with him.

"You can take it up with Lt. Chacón and Dr. Patel after I've reported to them," Ellis told him firmly before exiting the cell. He left the secret holding area then, ignoring Selfridge's complaints and demands. He gave a nod to the active guard on duty, who saluted him in return. When he got to his office, he pulled logged onto his computer and entered his security code to gain access to secured files. He pulled up the complete info on the two men Selfridge named and he saved it to his holopad before contacting Trudy.

"He gave me two names, Ma'am. Yes, I can arrange a meeting with the General. Yes, he _did_ give me the impression he was holding back. Whatever you decide needs to be done about that, I'm ready to carry out your orders. Yes Ma'am, it's all been arranged and Howell's shift starts this afternoon. Thank you. I will."

He hung up and began to dial the number of the phone they assigned to General West. Naturally, the communication devices he and his people came with were taken to the tech lab to be analyzed for tracking devices and bugs. The reports hadn't yet come back regarding that, so far.

"General, this is Msg. Ellis. Yes sir, how are you this morning? Good. I have some identification files for you to look at. Yes, Selfridge picked them out. Thank you, General. The Lt. and Dr. Patel want to meet up in her office at 1130 hours. If you can tell us whether you recognize these people and what you know about them if you do, it would be a big help. Much obliged, General. See you then."

Darren ended the call and rubbed his eyes. Personally, he thought it was a mistake to contact UNEC and inform them that they had their missing Dragon ship, even if West thought he could trust the people he chose to speak directly to about the issue. Maybe he was spending too much time around conspiracy theorists but Ellis would have thought it would be smarter to ditch the Dragon somewhere in the wilderness and leave UNEC to find it on their own. Since people were evidently conspiring to get West out of the way to begin with, it might have stalled the RDA and forced them to investigate. Flat-out informing people at UNEC that Jake, West and the rest of the crew were safe and sound at Hell's Gate seemed like a bad move to him.

Then again, attempting to cover up their presence here at the base would have been quite a feat, considering that they were infiltrated with RDA spies too. Word would have eventually gotten back to the RDA that both assassination attempts failed, even if they tried to stage Sully and West's disappearance or death to buy time. Even if they had ushered everyone in with bags over their heads and kept them hidden from public view, Darren respected the reach of the RDA enough not to kid himself.

The question now was whether or not the conspirators would attempt a strike or focus their energy on hiding their numbers and preventing exposure. Either way, people were going to be in danger. The one good thing Ellis could think of in all this was that Jake was most likely bumped to the bottom of their list of people who had to die. His brother Tom seemed to be a bigger target and Darren was sure that if Selfridge wasn't playing a double-agent, he and Archer were at the top of that list now, too.

"I've been hanging around these people for too long," Ellis muttered. He never used to spend so much time mapping out conspiracy theories. Then again, life became much more complicated after the sabotage of his ISV and his arrival on Pandora. A person tended to look for conspiracies after being a victim of one.

* * *

Some forty-five minute later, West was looking over the personnel files with Trudy, Max and Ellis in the Lieutenant's office. "This one I recognize," he said, pointing at the file displayed on the holopad Max had given him to look over. "I saw him come in with the ISV that arrived in March this year. He worked radio communications for a while before transferring to Hell's Gate."

"Is the name the same as you remember?" Max pressed.

Nathan nodded. "Yeah, that hasn't changed. My guess is this man is one of your moles, not an assassin."

"Yeah, seems like the deeper their cover is, the more dangerous they are," agreed Trudy. "Selfridge said this second guy is going by the wrong name on our records. We've got people looking for him first to bring him in and _this_ time, we're having the bastard stripped and put in a jumper before we interrogate him."

"We don't need another cyanide death," added Max with a sigh. He combed his fingers through his gray-flecked curls. "If we can get even _one_ of them talking, this will all get done faster. I don't like putting all my eggs in one basket. Selfridge doesn't trust us anymore than we trust him, which means he's going to be stingy about exposing agents."

"We could make him talk," suggested Trudy, cracking her knuckles. The expression on her face said she wasn't kidding.

"_That's_ exactly why Selfridge isn't going to identify every agent he recognizes right away," Max said accusingly, pointing at her. "We've got to do better than that, Trudy. He needs to believe he's going to get something out of cooperating with us."

"How about his life?" she said with a shrug.

"He knows how the people here feel about him," Max argued. "We have to at least try to make him feel safe here. If he's really on our side, he came to us because he thought it was better than the alternative. We've got to show him that he's making the right choice."

"And that's why I don't interact with the bastard," sighed Trudy. "There's just no way in hell I can tell him he's safe here, Maxi. His ass is mine if he makes one wrong move and he knows it. You're the diplomacy guy and you're going to have to figure out what to use as a carrot."

"You've already got at least one bargaining chip," West reminded them. "Commissioner Archer. If I were you, I'd make sure she pulls through. As long as she's alive and in your care, he's got some incentive to cooperate."

"So he's got a thing for her," guessed Trudy.

West shrugged. "He respects her and he seems to trust her. Whether there's more to it than that is unknown. Either way, she's your carrot. If she's not around I suspect the only thing left to offer him is his life and like Dr. Patel says, Selfridge knows that's not worth much to the people here."

"I don't get the impression that his life is worth all that much to him anymore either," Ellis said with a shrug. "But I don't know him like you all do."

"Trust me, the administrator's surname fits his priorities," answered Max. He removed his glasses and wiped the lenses with a cloth he kept in the pocket of his lab coat. "Maybe it's lessened some over the years but the man's sense of self-preservation is still intact. I think General West is right, though; there's at least one person on this moon that Parker Selfridge might care about at least as much as his own life."

"Then we'd better make sure she doesn't die," Trudy grunted, propping her feet on the chair across from her seat.

"Not _just_ because her life is valuable to Selfridge," Max insisted with a disapproving frown at his betrothed. "Pamela Archer literally saved Jake's life. Even if she hadn't, she's a human being and as far as we know, she's on our side."

"Yeah, yeah. A patient is a patient and you'd probably hand over one of your kidneys to her even if she was the RDA's main spy." Trudy gave him a fond little smirk. "I'm just saying we've got to remember she's an asset, too."

"Military jargon," sighed Max. His little smile contradicted his irritated tone.

* * *

Dustin returned to the avatar compound after lunch, back in his human body and unfortunately stuck with an exopack again. He waved at Savanna as he approached the cabin. She was sitting in the shade outside with Kato, his parents and her father. Guessing they were discussing the upcoming wedding, Dustin didn't approach them. Kato waved him over as he started to walk past and since he couldn't very well ignore his friend, he put his plans to check on Andrew on hold. He approached the group and smiled at them as he joined them beneath the big, leafy jungle tree.

"Hi," he greeted.

"Hey, I'm glad you're here," Kato said. "Since you're going to be my Best Man, I need to set up a meeting time with you in the big terrarium before the wedding. You've got to hold Sav's ring."

"The terrarium?" Dustin repeated. "I thought you wanted to get married at the park in the bio-dome."

"It is too open," Tanhi answered. "Too many places for killers to hide."

Dustin felt like he'd been hit in the stomach. With all the concerns he had about a war starting, he completely failed to consider the possibility of someone taking a shot at Tom or his friends at the wedding. Unsurprised that the warrior chieftess thought of such a thing when others involved in the ceremony failed to, Dusty nodded.

"We can close off the terrarium for the event and have guards stationed at the entrances and around the building," Sebastian explained with a little sigh and a worried look at his daughter. "Though now I'm beginning to wonder if a small gathering at our apartment might be best. Katherine and I wanted something at least a little traditional for Savanna but safety is more important."

Savanna unexpectedly glared at her father and huffed with annoyance. "Look, you and Mama made such a big deal out of this. If we have to do this to make you two happy, we aren't doing it crammed up in the apartment."

"Sav!" Dusty ogled his friend, unused to hearing her talk to either of her parents that way.

"What?" she demanded crossly, turning her glare on him. "Kato and I have been bending over backwards trying to make them happy but all they do is complain and put more pressure on us. Your mother had it right, Dusty. It's a ring and a piece of paper and it's not going to change how I feel about Kato or how he feels about me."

"Savanna," Sebastian said in a warning tone, "Perhaps your mother and I have been unfairly pressuring you but we deserve a more respectful tone than this."

"I'm sure my parents will have security as tight as possible," Dustin said hastily, desperately trying to intercept the argument brewing between father and daughter. It was a good think Katherine wasn't there too, else it could have gotten _really_ ugly. "Please, don't fight. This is supposed to be a day of happiness you're planning, right? If nothing else, when it's over with you won't have to worry about it anymore, so you should just concentrate on getting it done and enjoying it."

Savanna and Sebastian both fell silent and glanced at each other, both looking a little chagrined. Tom cleared his throat. "Thank you, Dustin. You have your father's mediation skills. We really should concentrate on making this day special and keeping it safe."

Jake was passing by on his way to check in on his mate when he overheard part of the conversation. "Trouble in paradise?"

Tom looked up at his twin and grimaced. "Just a little dissent concerning where to have Kato and Savanna's wedding. With everything that's been happening lately, a public event may not be safe. We've changed plans and we're trying to keep it quiet but odds are, security is going to have to be maximized."

Jake frowned. "Yeah...if you stick to the location you've got planned."

Tom raised an eyebrow. "Do you have a better idea?"

Jake smirked and crossed his arms over his chest, glancing at Tanhi. "Now that you mention it...yeah."

They gave him their undivided attention, intrigued. Jake wasn't known for book smarts but when it came to strategy, he was a crafty devil.

* * *

Savanna went to tell Karyu about the new wedding plans, as soon as her father got off the phone with her mother and confirmed that they both agreed to it. She had seen Karyu go into the avatar lodge after lunch and she assumed she was taking a nap to clear up the remaining traces of her hangover. She passed Andrew on the way to the stairs inside and she asked if he was feeling any better.

"Now that I've been able to hold down a couple of aspirin, yeah," he answered. "Has Dusty come back by since this morning?"

"He's outside with Kato and our parents," she confirmed. "Um, you might want to have a shower or at least run a brush through your hair, before you visit with anyone. If you've got a change of clothes here somewhere, that wouldn't hurt either."

"In other words, I smell and look like a bum and you're trying to be subtle about it," Andrew guessed.

Savanna shrugged. "That's a valid interpretation."

"Off to the shower, I go."

She grinned as he went to his assigned trunk and opened the digital combination lock to select a fresh change of clothes. She went up the stairs and looked around for Karyu. The only other occupants of the cabin now were the un-linked avatars lying in some of the bunks—including Dustin's. She found Karyu in a bunk at the very corner of the room—which was unusual because the huntress usually preferred to sleep on the bottom floor near the exit, when she stayed in the cabin.

"Karyu?" Savanna approached her friend with a frown.

She was sitting up in the bunk with her back to the hybrid and it looked like she was wearing one of those brimmed caps that military personnel often wore with their active duty uniform ensembles. Her head was bowed and she appeared to be looking down at something she was holding in her lap. Karyu lifted her head at the sound of her name being called and she slowly turned to look over her shoulder at Savanna.

"Hey," Savanna said, instinctively gentling her voice as she closed the distance. Something was strange about the way Karyu was sitting and her sluggish reaction to the sound of her voice being called. "What are you doing?"

"I have to give him back." Karyu looked down at the object in her hands.

Savanna circled around the bunk, as curious as she was worried. She looked down and when she saw what her friend was holding, she became even more intrigued. Karyu was holding the stolen picture of Baxter Howell in her hands. The Ikran huntress stared at it with a sleepy look of confusion on her delicate face. Savanna's eyes went back to the cap and she put two and two together, guessing where her friend got it. What concerned her more than her curiosity about Karyu and Baxter's activities together was the almost drugged way her friend was behaving. Maybe she took something at lunch for her hangover and she was having a bad reaction.

"Have you taken something? You're really starting to scare me." She didn't want to get the other girl's parents involved but Karyu's well-being was far more important to Savanna than her dignity.

"I didn't take anything," Karyu sighed. "I just need to give him back, before it's too late."

Savanna shook her head in confusion. "Who, Karyu? I don't understand what you're talking about..." she trailed off as she looked down at the photo again and she began to comprehend what her friend was rambling about.

"Do you mean this?" She tried to take the picture from Karyu's hands but the other girl refused to let go of it. She even hissed at Savanna, briefly seeming to come out of her daze enough to get angry.

"Okay, I won't try to take it," Savanna pacified, taking a wary step back. "I just thought if you're trying to return the picture, I could do it for you. You aren't yourself, Karyu. I'm worried."

Karyu looked down at the picture again and she stood up. Savanna quickly intercepted her before she could move toward the stairs. "Karyu, please don't. And don't hurt me, either." She looked into her friend's vacant eyes and it finally dawned on her that she wasn't actually awake. "Are you walking in your sleep? Your brother talks sometimes but I've never seen either of you walk before...wait, don't go!"

Karyu started to move around her and Savanna did the only think she could think of—she slapped her friend across the face.

The result was immediate and startling. Karyu gasped as if she'd been drowning and she blinked, staring at Savanna with wide eyes. She dropped the picture she was carrying and it fell to the floor. The glass in the frame broke and Karyu looked down. When she saw the damaged object, she squatted down and mumbled a protest, picking it up quickly.

"Hey, watch it," cautioned Savanna as a couple of shards fell to the floorboards. "You're bare-footed and you'll cut yourself. Let me clean up the glass."

Karyu backed away and watched dully as the hybrid carefully picked up glittering bits of glass and collected them in her open palm. She regained enough sense to decide she was insulted by Savanna's method of waking her up. "What the hell did you slap me for?"

Savanna looked up from her task and got to her feet. "You were sleep-walking...right for the stairs, I might add. I was afraid you'd fall down them and break your neck or something. Come here...I want to talk to you." The hybrid reached out and grabbed the taller girl's wrist with her free hand, urging her back toward the bunk she had found her sitting in.

Karyu allowed it—probably because she was still too disoriented to put up much resistance. "I...there's a reason for this," she excused, blushing as full awareness began to creep back. "I must have fallen into a deeper sleep than I intended when I took my nap and my subconscious mind picked up on my plans to put the picture back where it belongs. Don't ask me why I've started walking in my sleep all the sudden. I don't know why it happens."

Savanna sighed and gently took the broken picture frame from her. "I think I do." She picked shards of glass carefully out of the frame and set them on the end table by the bunk, with the other broken bits she had cleaned up. "It's because of Howell and the vision you had of him, isn't it?"

Karyu shrugged, looking and sounding frustrated. "I've already figured out what the vision meant. He's already played his role in my life. Now I've just got to let him go. I worked myself up to this, building him up in my mind and obsessing over him because I needed to know what it all meant. Maybe I feel this way because I spent so much time—"

"Baloney," interrupted Savanna.

"What's 'baloney'?" Demanded Karyu. "You don't think it makes sense for someone to spend so much time trying to figure someone out that they trick themselves into having feelings for them?"

"Maybe that can happen," conceded Savanna, "but that's not the case, here. You were dead-set on seeing him as a threat, Karyu. You're not the kind of person that would crush on someone she thinks is an enemy. You're stuck on him because he's a great guy, he's into you, he saved your father's life and oh...let's not forget he's _hawt_."

Karyu pursed her lips. "Lucky me, to have a friend that knows me so well she can tell me how I feel."

Savanna sighed and put an arm around her. "I'm not trying to tell you how to feel. I just know you and I think you're trying to make something simple into something complicated, just so you can have an excuse to avoid it."

"I just can't stand feeling this way," Karyu confessed. "There's so much going on and I can hardly think straight because I'm trying to go jump the guy's bones in my sleep!"

Savanna's eyebrows went up and she pulled away to regard her friend. "Oh? Just what all's been happening when you've been on these sleepwalking adventures? How much have you two done together, really?"

Karyu grimaced and looked away.

Andrew came up the stairs with a bundle of fresh clothes in his arms and he greeted the girls before heading down the hall to the bathroom.

"Karyu, I'm your friend," whispered Savanna when Andrew was gone. "Sisters in all but blood, right? Don't you trust me?"

Karyu drew a shuddering breath, shut her eyes and nodded. "Okay, I'll tell you...but first, you have to promise you won't tell Kato. I'll tell him myself, when I feel like I can handle his taunts without killing him."

"Must be pretty serious," guessed Savanna. "Okay, I'll pinky-swear with you. I promise not to tell Kato a word of what you tell me."

Karyu hooked her pinky with Savanna's, took a deep breath and she quickly explained all of the strange dreams, scent transference and the sleepwalking occurrence.

* * *

"Wow, Karyu. I can see why you're freaking out."

"I'm not 'freaking out'," protested the huntress with a cautious look at the hallway.

Andrew had just finished his shower and he was coming out of the bathroom. He was dressed in a fresh set of jeans and a button-up shirt. He towel-dried his hair as he walked down the hall and he stopped when he saw the two females still sitting there. "Are you two going to gossip up here all afternoon?"

"Are you going to mind your own business?" Karyu countered with a raised brow.

"I'm gone," agreed Andrew, wisely choosing not to test her. He went to the stairs and left the two young women in the company of the inactive avatars on the second floor.

Karyu sighed and got off the bunker. She hugged herself and rubbed her arms, glancing at the broken picture now sitting on the end table with the broken bits of glass. "Well, I can't return it like _this_."

Savanna looked at the picture and shrugged. "I guess not. I could find someone in the dome to replace the glass in the frame if you want. There's a picture shop near the market."

Karyu nodded. "Okay."

She walked over to the other side of the room, to the front of the building. She approached a window and pulled the blinds up to look outside and see what her family and clan mates were doing. A couple of them were taking advantage of the obstacle course set up for avatar operatives. Some were playing musical instruments in the shade and she assumed the ones unaccounted for were off hunting with their Omaticaya brethren. She could see her aunt Neytiri off in the distance by the garden with Sylwanin, helping her to weave something by hand. Her uncle Jake was carrying Leyra around with him again. Seeing him dote on the newborn made Karyu smile a little.

It seemed he procured more "baby time" than any of the other adults, since his arrival. When Leyra wasn't with Gracie or Tsu'tey, she was with him. Well, it was no wonder, after all. Tommy had been Jake's pride and joy. Losing him had driven the man to actions he never would have taken in a normal frame of mind. Now he had Tommy's progeny in his arms and who could blame him if he couldn't get enough of looking at her and interacting with her? That child was going to be _so_ spoiled.

Karyu decided she should go out there and join them, before anyone got suspicious and started asking questions about her. She was about to turn away from the window when a flash of camouflage caught her eye. Her jaw dropped and she pressed her face impulsively against the glass, spreading her fingers over the surface.

"What the hell is he doing here _now_?"

Savanna jumped up from the bunk and hurried over to see what she was talking about, but Karyu didn't budge to give her room to peek through the window. The huntress started cussing and her breath fogged the surface of the window. Savanna clucked her tongue and went over to the next window to confirm her suspicions. Sure enough, Baxter Howell had strolled up from a transport rover that had stopped on the road outside the avatar compound. He went straight to Tom Sully and shook his hand before nodding at Tanhi and showing them both something on his holopad.

"It looks like he's here to bring something to your father?" suggested Savanna.

Karyu wasn't even listening. The marine was finding ways to insert himself into her life at every turn. Karyu was so blinded by the need to please her mother and the council that she didn't stop to think his actions might be guided by fate.

* * *

"I'll try not to get in your way, Dr. Sully," Baxter assured Tom after showing him the orders presented by Ellis. "You'll have me until 2200 hours and then Major Harris will come and relieve me. He'll be with you until 0600 and then Sergeant Ellis will take over until it's my shift again."

"_Sergeant_ Ellis?" repeated Tom with a frown of confusion.

"Janet," explained the marine. "Msg. Ellis' wife."

Tom smirked and scratched his head. "Right. I don't know where my head is today."

"Probably stuck on wedding plans," excused Baxter with a grin, "or one of your other projects. I think you can be forgiven."

"We are grateful for your vigilance," Tanhi said, gracing Baxter with a reserved little smile. "You are welcome to eat at our cooking fire with us tonight."

Baxter felt suddenly awkward. "I appreciate that Ma'am, but I've got dinner rations with me if I get hungry and—"

"You are guarding my mate," she interrupted sternly. "There is no reason for you to eat withered, dried rations when you can have a good, hot meal with us."

Tom grinned at him and leaned a little closer to mumble advice. "You're best off accepting the offer."

Baxter fought a grin. "Thank you. I'd be honored to share your food." He glanced at Tom uncertainly and he relaxed when older man gave him an approving little nod. Maybe one day, he'd learn how to say things like that in Na'vi without accidentally calling someone fat or offering to shave their ass.

"Who do we have here?"

Baxter turned to see Jake Sully approaching with the baby in his arms. The face was identical to Tom's, but the hair was styled in a more traditional Na'vi way; parted into multiple braids—some of which were woven into the queue while others hung loose. Jake also lacked the streak of gray in his hair that set Tom further apart from the Na'vi. His build was a little thicker than his twin's but that was no surprise, considering he led a more physically active lifestyle.

"I guess you don't remember me, do you Corporal Sully?" Baxter lifted his shades and offered his hand to the older man. "The last time I saw you, Phelps was still limping from the arrow you shot into his ass."

"I remember you," Jake said after examining his face for a moment. He shifted Leyra with paternal care and supported her with one arm while he shook Baxter's offered hand. "You were in that famous street brawl with Lee, Ellis and the others. You also saved my brother's ass recently. Damn, it's been what, about twenty years? You haven't aged a day."

"He was in cryo, Jake," Tom reminded his twin patiently. "He really _is_ the same age that he was when the accident put him into a coma."

"That's a nice way of putting it," Baxter snorted. "Accident. It was more like drunk stupidity."

"Hey, Phelps pushed people's buttons," Jake excused with a shrug. The baby started to fuss a little and he supported her against his shoulder and patted her back gently. "You're just lucky to live through a shock like that."

"Thanks," answered Baxter. "Congratulations on your acquittal and the new granddaughter. She's a real cutie."

Jake grinned at the infant in his arms. "Thanks. This was a real treat to come home to. I know you'll take good care of my brother, Howell."

Baxter nodded. "Oorah. If anyone tries anything on _my_ watch, I'll be all over them."

Jake opened his mouth to respond but at that moment, Tom looked up at the second story of the avatar lodge and he frowned. "What in the world is our daughter doing, Tanhi?"

Baxter followed his gaze and Jake and Tanhi turned to look as well. Karyu appeared to be pressed up against the window from the inside—literally. Her hands were splayed over the surface of the glass and she looked like she was complaining about something. The window to the left of hers opened up and Savanna poked her head out to wave down at Baxter.

"Hey Corporal Howell!"

Baxter smiled and waved back.

"Savanna!" Inside the lodge, Karyu's shout didn't sound pleased. She had vanished from the window and Savanna suddenly disappeared as well, as if yanked back inside.

"Ow! I was just saying hello," protested Savanna. "It's a lot better than you standing there looking like a fish in an aquarium!"

Karyu appeared at the open window and she stared down at Baxter. He smiled at her, waved and mouthed: "I'm not giving up."

Karyu shut the window hard enough to make it rattle and the blinds came down immediately.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Tsmuke_** = Sister


	28. Chapter 28

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 28: Sacrament**

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. WARNING: Violence. This chapter isn't quite as long as some of the recent chapters, because there are too many scenes coming up to squeeze into it without surpassing the word count limit. There is a flashback sequence in this chapter that will better explain what's happening, for those that find the beginning a little confusing. Thank you everyone for your feedback! _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

The weekend approached and on Saturday, sometime in the dead hours of pre-dawn morning, a convoy of tiltrotors and Scorpion gunships left Hell's Gate, supposedly on a territorial surveillance mission. Civilian residents grumbled and squirmed in their beds, stuffing pillows over their faces to try and drown out the noise. Being rudely awakened rarely resulted in reasonable thought and several residents cursed the military for their lack of consideration for people trying to sleep.

Later that morning, a couple of UNEC Samsons touched down in the designated visitor's landing/takeoff sector, where the UN-C21 assault ship taken by West waited. General West met with the UNEC personnel and the crew assigned to bring the Dragon back home. Trudy accompanied him, along with a hand-picked guard consisting of Wilson, Harris, Ellis and Howell. West explained everything to the major heading the pickup and Trudy relinquished the prisoners to be dealt with by UNEC.

He also informed the major that he had sent in his resignation documents and he would not be returning to UNEC with them. He had been eligible for retirement for the past three years but up until the latest fiasco, he was satisfied to stay on active duty of his own volition. Now the organization had little to offer him except a bullet in the back and he was washing his hands of it. The major warned him that refusing to return to UNEC and file for retirement in person could result in deserter status, but West was adamant.

He had failed to clean up the corruption from within and he believed it was time to try a different method. Hell's Gate had fewer weapons, a smaller army and older equipment but the people there acted instead of talking and they had done a better job flushing out their conspirators so far than UNEC. He believed that any hope of stifling the RDA uprising lay with Hell's Gate and their Na'vi allies. UNEC was too heavily sympathetic to Earth. While loyalty to one's own species was not a bad thing in itself, Nathan was convinced that some of the corruption had been purposely overlooked because of sympathy for brethren back home. The sorry state of terran economy, coupled with family and friends back home on Earth, made it understandably difficult for UN representatives on Pandora to be objective at all times.

Major Sanchez respectfully accepted West's decision, having worked with him long enough to know the man was no coward. He saluted him and Trudy, thanked them for providing fuel and maintenance and took his leave with his crew. As they left, Trudy muttered to Nathan out the corner of her mouth.

"You know this is just going to piss those RDA goons off even more, right?"

West gave her a sidelong glance and a brief smirk. "I'm counting on it, Lieutenant. Nothing gives me more pleasure than throwing a wrench in their plans and pissing them off. I refuse to lay down and die and I refuse to work under a corrupt government."

Wilson snickered. "I like this guy," he muttered to Harris.

Trudy didn't relax until the UNEC aircrafts and their passengers were gone. "My office," she informed her companions. "ASAP."

* * *

"Okay, so we've got _one_ problem out of the way," Trudy said to the other MP's, pacing back and forth over the tiled floor of her office, "but we've still got our little wedding issue to take care of. Ellis, are your people ready to move in?"

He gave her a nod and a salute. Beside him, Howell stood at attention. "Yes Ma'am."

Trudy looked to West. "I know it's not technically official yet, but if you're serious about working with us I can have your office ready by tomorrow, General."

"I can start as soon as you're ready," assured West.

Trudy nodded and turned to Darren. "Ellis, you've been officially promoted to Sergeant Major. You've been in charge of the Marine Corps long enough and it's time your title reflects your responsibilities and rank. Sorry I didn't put something formal together but ceremonies are low on the priority list right now."

Darren failed to hide his surprise and Baxter grinned sidelong at him, barely remembering to remain at attention. Darren saluted her, schooling his features again. "Thank you, Lieutenant."

Trudy sighed and looked down in contemplation. "I hate to say it, but I might as well get rid of the confusion and start going by 'General' now. Outsiders don't take us seriously when they hear someone going by the title of 'Lieutenant' is running the show in security. Spread the word; we've all got to get used to calling me what I am."

"We'll call you 'General' out loud," agreed Wilson, "but you'll always be 'Mama Trudy' to us."

Trudy gave him a little grin and returned her attention to West. "You'll be in charge of the Army Corps branch of security and you'll collaborate with Ellis on your assigned duties. I need people with experience that I can trust to head these branches and I've got to admit, I've been stretched a little thin. Is that acceptable, General?"

West nodded respectfully. "It's more than I expected. I'd like to arrange an orientation meet with the men and women that will be under my authority, as soon as it's convenient. I'll keep it brief but I'd like to see all their faces and commit them to memory. Also, I would prefer the crew that came with me to be merged with the security teams too, Ma'am. I trust them with my life and they've chosen to stay here out of loyalty to me."

"Not a problem," Trudy assured. "I'll have your office set up for you and ready by tomorrow. I'll call that meeting in for you in the morning, too. Today we've got our hands full and we can't interrupt the operations we've got in motion."

"Understood."

Trudy sighed. "I know this is all pretty informal."

"Desperate times, Mama Trudy," Wilson reminded her.

Harris nodded in agreement. "You might move fast when you come to a decision but we all know you think everything through. You and Dr. Patel have never done bad by this colony and a lot of us wouldn't be here today if it weren't for you."

"Yeah, yeah...enough with the brown-nosing," Trudy said, flushing a little with pleasure despite her gruff words. "Just get your teams ready for the operation _you're_ heading and watch your butts."

Harris and Wilson saluted. "Yes Ma'am, General."

Trudy turned to Ellis and Howell. "All right, go make your preparations and do what you crazy jarheads do best. Just try not to kill anyone unless you have to."

"Oorah, General," Ellis replied with a sharp salute. He unlocked the office door and left with Howell, pulling out his secured phone in the process to relay orders to his people and get things moving.

Trudy raised an eyebrow at Wilson and Harris when they remained behind. "What the hell are you two waiting for, an invitation? Get moving and get ready!"

The human and the avatar wasted no time in following her order. They were out the door in seconds, leaving Trudy and West alone together in her office. The pilot sighed and took a seat behind her desk, allowing herself a brief moment of rest. West stood quietly, giving her a moment to gather her thoughts before speaking.

"You never saw yourself in this position," he observed.

She chuckled without humor and shook her head, leaning back in her chair to prop her booted feet on the edge of her desk. "Nah, I'm like Jake. I always figured I'd be taking orders; not giving them. Funny how life works out." She looked up at him with pensive brown eyes. "I sure as hell hope that little runt is right about this, West. If he mislead us, someone's gonna have their wedding ruined for nothing...not to mention the trauma this is going to cause."

"I think your people can handle things with minimal damage," he encouraged, "and if Selfridge lied about this, I'll take full responsibility. You're a good leader, Chacón. Give yourself some credit and remember you can't predict everything."

She lowered her gaze and shrugged. "Can I tell you something that might sound dumb?"

"Go ahead."

She looked up at him again and grimaced, a little embarrassed. "You kind of remind me of my old man—when he wasn't drunk, that is. He used to say stuff like that to me all the time when he was sober."

Nathan smiled quietly. " I take it he wasn't so generous when he was in his cups."

"Nope." She sighed again. "He wasn't abusive or anything, but the drunker he got the more we felt like he didn't see us right in front of him. At least he wasn't a mean drunk."

West nodded. "Small blessings. I'm going to go to the control room and set up. Take your time; we've got another hour before things start moving."

She thanked him and when he left her office, she looked out the window. It looked like a rainstorm might blow in from the west, soon. She thought of Max and her son and she hoped they were okay.

* * *

Ellis paced before his chosen team of operatives, eyeing each marine critically. There were twelve in all. He almost considered cutting their numbers down to six for easier movement, but Selfridge wasn't able to provide a number when asked how many were going to be in on the assassination attempt. He had to trust his men to employ all their skills to do this quickly, efficiently and with as little loss to life as possible. When he came to Howell, he noticed something that made him frown. "Where is your watch, Corporal?"

Baxter glanced down at his bare wrist and he shrugged, remaining at attention. "It got smashed, Sir. I haven't had the chance to replace it yet."

Ellis grimaced. "Well, timing is an issue with this mission and you need one. Go to the supply distributor and pick up a replacement now, Howler. I'll ring it in. We've got to be ready to move as soon as the ball drops."

Howell saluted him. "Yes Sir." He took off, wasting no time. Ellis resisted the urge to shake his head at the younger man as he watched him go. Baxter was as loyal and fearless as they came but sometimes, Darren didn't think his head was screwed on right.

* * *

"Agent Miller, are you ready to move in?"

He pressed down on the receiver strapped around his throat and he responded in a whisper. "We're in position and ready to move in."

"Remember to get your people out of there as soon as the target is down," ordered the voice on the other line. "The confusion should give you and your men plenty of time to get away before the peace keepers show up."

"Understood." Miller gestured to the four men on either side of him, indicating that they should begin moving into position. The wedding was about to begin and he needed to get a clear shot at Tom Sully. He was supposed to be the only casualty in this event, but Miller had his doubts that the man's family would stay in a convenient state of shock for long. Even if they weren't armed, Na'vi were fierce and it was common knowledge that Dr. Sully's mate was a top-ranking huntress. His daughter was a delicate looking thing like her, but Karyu was just as spirited and skilled as her mother. This was _not_ going to be an easy mission.

When he circled around enough to get an un-obscured view of the participants, he immediately noticed that something wasn't right. The girl in the wedding gown was clearly human, for one thing. The tuxedo-clad avatar standing at her side had his hair trimmed short where it wasn't braided into his queue. Not a single participant was wearing tribal garb—something Miller would have expected of the proud Ikran people. The man he had picked as Dr. Sully was too tall, now that he had a closer look at him.

"Hold,' he whispered through the transmitter. "Something isn't right. Is anyone positioned to see Dr. Sully's face clearly?"

One of the men on the other side of the terrarium answered him after a couple of heartbeats. "I can, Sir. It isn't him. This is someone _else's_ wedding. Either someone tipped them off or—"

"Or we've been set up," finished Miller. Maybe the whole wedding was a fake, but there was no time to contemplate it. Out of sheer instinct, he looked up and it didn't really come as a surprise to him to see black-clad marines descending silently on wires from the air-duct system overhead. "We've got to move! It's a sting!"

He didn't know if they had spotted him or any of his men yet but if they didn't get out of there fast, they were going to lose their window. Two of the marines were heading directly for the main door—presumably to secure it and prevent escape. A third was going for the fire exit. He passed through the carefully tended vegetation as quickly and silently as he could and he hoped his men had the sense to stay out of the open. He couldn't worry about them right now...they had their warning and as of this moment, it was every man for himself.

Just as he made it past a large specimen of rubber tree, he came face-to-face with the barrel of a CARB semi-automatic. The avatar marine wielding it had unusual green eyes and he shook his head when Miller impulsively started to reach for his own weapon. He wisely revised his action and dropped the revolver to the ground before putting his hands behind his head. A human marine came up beside the green-eyed avatar and patted him on the elbow.

"Good going, Howler. Ellis has two of them cuffed by the front door."

"This was too easy," responded the avatar operative with a cocky little smirk. "I expected them to put up a better fight than—"

Gunfire rang out, interrupting his criticism. As "Howler" and his human companion hit the dirt, Miller took advantage of the confusion and ran. The wedding guests were shouting and screaming with alarm and some of the marines were trying to calm them down and get them to lie down on the floor for their own safety. Miller heard his would-be captors curse behind him and he silently thanked the company for talking him into doing the permanent transfer into an avatar body. Unlike his human companions, he had Na'vi agility and strength to boost his speed and hasten his retreat.

"Get _back_ here, Motherfucker!"

Evidently, "Howler" didn't appreciate having his bragging rights interrupted and he took it personally that his prey had chosen to run instead of meekly waiting to be cuffed. Miller took one of the paths winding through the artificially maintained forest and he went straight into the women's bathrooms—the only place the marines hadn't yet secured.

* * *

"I just _had_ to be a smart-ass," grunted Baxter as he quickly out-distanced his human companion and closed in on the fleeing terrorist. "Couldn't just keep my mind on the job!"

"Stop your bitching and get the target," panted the human behind him. Olsen was falling further behind with each second. He was a fast runner but Baxter had the advantage of longer legs _and_ speed. He activated his transmitter and reported to Ellis. "We lost our target and we are in pursuit. He's heading for the restrooms and he—"

Another of the terrorists crashed through the bushes at that moment, evidently trying to escape by running back in the direction Howler and the other marine had come from. He collided with Olsen and the two of them went down in a heap. Baxter skidded to a stop and turned as Olsen grappled with the desperate man.

"I got this," insisted Olsen, just before he head-butted his opponent in the nose. The assassin was desperate and off-guard. He stopped reaching for his weapon and he impulsively covered his face. Olsen freed his CARB gun and trained it on the man. "Go on, Bax. This one's not going anywhere and we can't let that other guy get away."

Another round of gunfire rattled through the air, coming from somewhere on the other side of the terrarium. Shouts could be heard and there was no way to know if anyone was hurt. Baxter looked off in the direction of the commotion and he struggled with the urge to go that way to help. His companion was right, though. They couldn't let any of these guys get away, even though by now they had probably informed whomever they were working for that their mission was a bust. Baxter took off again, clutching his rifle securely to his chest as he ran.

He kicked the bathroom door open and went in with his firearm leading the way. "You might as well come out," he called. "Your buddies are being rounded up and there's no way you're getting off this base. We have your identities and even if you make it out of here, we'll catch you eventually. If you cooperate, maybe they'll cut you a deal."

He checked beneath the stall doors, even though the odds of the man failing to stand on the toilet to hide his feet from view were slim. Baxter couldn't look over the stalls because the walls of them went straight up to the ceiling—a privacy measure to address the issue of avatar size. He pushed each door open as he came to it, keeping an eye out for any sign of movement. He didn't find anything but when he reached the end of the line of stalls, his prey took him by surprise. The assassin had chosen to hide on the other side of the last stall and he lunged at Baxter with a nasty-looking CARB knife, the moment the marine was within range. He had taken off the black mask covering his head and face and Baxter had time to notice that he had several piercings in his earl lobes before he had to dodge.

Howell hopped back just in time to turn what could have been a fatal strike into a minor flesh wound. He hissed as the blade cut through his shirt and drew a stinging line across his left shoulder. He blamed himself; he should have known better than to think the guy didn't carry any weapons besides the gun he'd dropped. He was aiming for body parts not protected by armor. The assassin took advantage of Baxter's momentary confusion and he followed up with a kick to the marine's arm. The blow knocked Howell's gun out of his grasp and sent it clattering to the tiled floor. Fortunately, the safety was still on or else it might have gone off and put an abrupt end to the struggle.

"You're a tough bastard," Grunted Baxter as he dodged another stabbing attempt.

"It's a tough line of work," answered the other avatar as he sized the tall marine up.

"Black ops?" guessed Howell with a quick glance at his discarded gun. It was too far away for him to make a lunge for it without leaving himself open to be skewered. He decided to level the playing field a little and he reached down to free his own knife from its sheath around his thigh.

"Among other things," agreed his opponent.

They circled one another slowly, each respecting the damage the other could do if given the opportunity. Baxter made a pass with his knife, more to test the assassin's reaction speed than to cut him. He took note of the slight limp he detected when his attack was dodged. Maybe his new friend pulled something when he was on the run, or perhaps the limp was there before from an old injury. It wasn't much of an advantage but he could still use it.

"You're the guy they had in cryo for all those years," observed the assassin as Baxter foiled another slashing attempt. "Howell, right?"

"Good guess," agreed the marine warily. He didn't find it too surprising that the man knew about him. He probably had information on most of the security staff—particularly the people involved in securing Tom Sully's safety.

"The eyes gave you away. I'll bet you're glad your little Na'vi girlfriend wasn't in here this morning. So where did she and her family go, huh? Off to the Ikran village, maybe?"

"You should worry more about yourself than their location," Baxter warned, narrowing his eyes.

"She's cute," complimented the assassin. "A little mouthy for my taste, though."

"Then it's a good thing she'd never give someone like you the time of day," said Baxter. He snarled and made another pass, nearly scoring a hit this time.

"You don't like hearing people talk bad about women, do you? Especially the ones you're sweet on."

Howell knew to use caution, here. He'd played this game once before, with a man who wasn't so subtle. "Figure you'll work me into a rage so I'll slip up and do something dumb if you talk bad about my girl?"

The assassin shrugged. "If an opponent has a weakness, you take advantage of it."

Baxter hissed as the man followed up with a swipe of his knife. This time, he wasn't quite fast enough to avoid a cut but he moved fast enough to take it on the arm, instead of the throat. He backed off, glanced at the cut and looked at his opponent warily. "You think caring about a woman is a weakness? No wonder you're a terrorist."

"Not a terrorist," corrected the other avatar. "An opportunist, sure. A highly paid, highly trained killer? I'll give you that. Terrorists are cowards, Corporal Howell."

"And shooting an unarmed scientist at his son's wedding is an act of bravery?" Baxter snorted. "That's rich."

"Taking out one target to eliminate a threat to progress isn't the same as blowing up hundreds innocent bystanders with a bomb. I stand by my words: I'm not a terrorist."

"Don't kid yourself," grunted Baxter. "It takes as much bravery to shoot an unarmed man in the back as it takes to detonate a bomb. You just don't want to admit it."

The assassin wasn't taking the bait. He smiled coldly. "While we're on the subject of bombs, did you know my employers have enough of them here on Pandora to completely wipe out an entire native village? I'd hate to think of your loud-mouthed little princess getting blown away, along with all of those babies and children. If this had gone over the way it should have, only one casualty would have occurred. Now they may just have to resort to more aggressive measures and—"

Baxter saw red. He was on the assassin in half a second, giving him no chance to complete his sentence or prepare a decent defense. He felt the knife slip between the fastenings of his body armor on the side as he tackled the other avatar but it was a distant pain; barely notable. He began to punch the assassin in the face, over and over again. It was probably a good thing he was wearing protective leather gloves, otherwise he would have done a lot of damage to his hands—which were still in the process of healing.

After getting over his initial surprise, the assassin began to fight back. He gave as good as he got and the two men grappled, punched and rolled around on the bathroom floor, leaving drops of blood in their wake.

* * *

"Sir! You need to get to the med ward right away!"

Ellis grimaced as Janet applied more pressure to the bleeding wound in his outer left thigh. "I will, as soon as we've got all of the targets rounded up and secured." She shook her head and he could tell she was about to go into "wife" mode and pull rank on him. He laid his hand over hers. "If I thought this could be fatal, I'd go right now. Trust me, Janet."

One of the human marines approached and saluted. "Sir, we have all but one of the suspects secured. Unfortunately, one of them is a casualty. Howell went after the fifth. Should I send backup?"

Ellis frowned, concerned for the man he thought of as a brother. He'd made a judgment call including Howell in this raid, but now he wondered if he made the right choice. Baxter's sheer determination made it difficult to remember the man was in a recovery process of both mind and body. "He hasn't reported in?"

"He's reporting in right now," called a familiar voice. Ellis grunted and tried to sit up straighter. The welcome sight of his friend in more or less one peace set his mind at ease, but truth be told, Howell looked like shit. His lip was swollen and bleeding, his face was bruised in various places and he was going to have a shiner for sure. For that matter, the unconscious man he was dragging by the straps of his gear was beaten to a pulp.

"Howler, status report?" Ellis raised an eyebrow.

"It's all superficial," assured the younger marine with a grimace down at his body. "He got me pretty good in the side, though." He released his prisoner and pressed his hand against the right side of his torso. His shirt and armor were wet with blood and he grunted with discomfort as he put pressure on the injury. The sad fact was that body armor had its vulnerable spots and it didn't provide guaranteed protection—especially against people who know where those vulnerable spots were. Oak-green eyes lifted to regard Ellis again and Baxter frowned in concern when he saw the gunshot wound.

"I'm fine," Ellis said hastily, knowing the other man enough to guess what he was about to say. "Like you, I just took a superficial hit. Better me than one of the civilians." He gave a nod in the direction of said civilians, who had finally calmed down enough to listen to instructions given to them by one of the human female marines.

"Well, superficial or not, we should probably both get checked out, Sir." Baxter allowed one of the other marines to lift his shirt and look at the injury. Other operatives were cuffing the remaining assassin and searching his body for weapons.

Janet looked at the bruised and swollen face of the man Howell had apprehended. "Jesus, Howler...it must have been some fight."

"It was." He grinned. "He might have had me too, if he hadn't said the wrong thing."

"Which was?"

Howell scowled down at the unconscious man. "He threatened someone I care about."

Janet and her husband exchanged a look between them. Knowing Howler as they did, it was a safe assumption that a woman was involved. The fairer sex had a tendency to make him act on his feelings instead of common sense.

"Well, at least this time, you didn't electrocute yourself," sighed Ellis. "Let's wrap this up and get to the infirmary."

* * *

Meanwhile, a poker game was interrupted in the rudest of ways. Anyone on the outside of the small apartment looking in would have assumed the people sitting around the poker table were just ordinary folks having a good time. The army personnel that broke down the door and shouted orders for them to get down on the floor blew away that supposition, however. At least two of the people present really _were_ innocent of any sabotage. Both of the bare-chested prostitutes screamed when the MP's charged in and Wilson had to repeat his order to be heard over their shrill ululations.

"Everybody, get down and put your hands on your heads! If I see one hand trying to reach for anything, it's getting blown off!"

While the inhabitants of the room shakenly did as they were ordered, Wilson glanced at his taller avatar companion. Harris was staring helplessly at the prostitutes as they got down on the floor and Wilson nudged him. "They're tits," he muttered, "you see 'em all the time on your wife...snap out of it."

Harris flushed with embarrassment and he motioned the other MP's to come in and start cuffing. "Victor Coralis, Ivan Markel, Peter Jenkins, Tim Daniels, you've been identified as covert RDA agents and saboteurs of this base."

As he began to read them their rights, Wilson saw one of the suspects make a move and he jumped in front of Harris just as the gun went off. Harris stopped in shock as his shirt was sprayed with Wilson's blood. He caught the human as he sagged and someone else shot the attacker before he could get another round off. The screams of the prostitutes and the shouts of his comrades hardly registered with Harris as he lowered his friend to the floor and tried to stem the flow of blood.

* * *

Dr. Campbell was a tornado of activity, trying to keep everything under control. Unfortunately, all the energy in the world wouldn't allow him to split himself into separate beings and be everywhere at once. They had injured soldiers being brought in and one of the high priority patients was crashing. Ramona Adams was there helping, having been called away from her usual work to assist in the medical wing when things started getting hectic. Every scientist on the base had at least basic medical training and every little bit helped, right now.

"Get her in amnio," Campbell shouted to his companions, "right now!" If they couldn't stabilize her with the use of an amnio tank, cryo would have to be considered. Dr. Campbell would have preferred not to take such drastic measures but he had strict instructions to do anything and everything to keep Pamela Archer alive.

"I wish to hell Max was here," grunted Ramona as she measured out a dose of medication to prepare the patient for amnio.

"Me too," agreed Phillip Daniels—who was the resident avatar medical specialist next to Dr. Patel. Max had a gift and it was ironic that he was away now, when the medical wing was so swamped. "How are the MP's they brought in?"

"I hear one of them died," answered Mona with a sad shake of her head. "I hope it wasn't anyone we know."

Daniels cursed under his breath. "We should try not to think of it and just concentrate on what we're doing."

* * *

Miles away, Karyu sat in the cargo bay of one of the Samsons assigned to carry her, her family and their Omaticaya friends to their destination. The limited space on the tiltrotors forced them to split their families up to make room and she was flying with her brother, Savanna and a couple of Omaticaya hunters. She looked out the window absently and her fingers toyed with the object sitting in her lap. Someone came and sat down beside her and she looked to see Savanna smiling at her.

"What'cha thinking about?"

She could tell by the sly look in the hybrid's hazel eyes that Savanna had already decided she _knew_ what was on her mind.

"Life," answered Karyu truthfully, for once lacking a witty response. She glanced down at the watch she held and she brushed her thumb over the smooth surface of the little digital screen. "How unfair it is."

Savanna sobered a little, but she attempted to bring some humor into the conversation anyway. "That's quite a collection you're building up," she observed. "You have two of his pictures, his hat and now his watch. Are you going to make a little Baxter shrine or something?"

Karyu glared at her friend and stuck her tongue out at her. "You're a brat."

Savanna chuckled and spared a glance at her napping mate. "I understand how you feel. You can't fight love."

Karyu rolled her eyes. "I'm not in love."

Savanna patted her knee. "Keep telling yourself that, Sis." She kissed her on the cheek and got up to join Kato. Some turbulence hit and Savanna was forced to make a wild grab at one of the Omaticaya warriors to keep from falling over. She apologized profusely, blushing at having her dignity stolen.

Karyu grinned at her and she couldn't resist a parting shot. "You asked for that."

Savanna turned and stuck her tongue out in response, before taking her seat beside Kato again. She had the presence of mind to buckle herself in when she sat down. Karyu smiled a little and sighed, looking out the window again. They had already passed over Omaticaya territory and she estimated that they were getting close. The ikrans that had carried the hunters to Hell's Gate would be following a cautious distance behind the choppers. Being linked to their riders, they could rest when needed without losing their trail. Flocked as they were, there was little chance of anything posing a threat to the banshees. They would likely meet up with their riders when they arrived at the destination.

She caressed the watch, even as she considered hiding it somewhere. Her mother had already taken notice in the object and Karyu had _lied_ to her, saying she traded some cured hides for it. She had never outright lied to either of her parents before. She had dressed up the truth a little before or else avoided giving them the _whole_ truth, but she had never truly fibbed. Tanhi—Eywa bless her—believed her daughter's lie. Of course, she didn't know the difference between a man's watch and a woman's. Tom did and the quietly knowledgeable look he had given Karyu made her twitch inside with guilt.

She rested her head against the window and sighed. She thought of how she _really _ended up with Howell's watch and she closed her eyes, replaying the moment.

* * *

_Hell's Gate, the night before:_

"I can't believe we're doing this," complained Savanna in a hushed whisper. "How do you think it's going to look when they review the security cameras and find you putting a picture back on the wall? You're lucky they didn't catch you the first time when you stole it!"

Karyu looked up at the camera and she readied the piece of hide she was carrying. "Be quiet or you'll spoil my aim."

Savanna cast a look up and down the hallway and she muttered uncomfortably. Karyu waited for the sleek little security device to tilt away from her and she tossed the hide up over it, blocking the lens. "Okay, let's get this over with." She pulled her friend's hand and jogged over to the personnel wall, searching the photographed faces until she recognized Howell's. She stopped and stared at it. The picture they had put up to replace his missing human photo naturally featured him in avatar form. He looked so damned handsome in his dress uniform and cap. The navy blue, white and gold colors really brought out his eyes.

"What are you waiting for," Savanna hissed. "Put the picture up so we can go, before someone comes along and sees us!"

Karyu heard her, but she couldn't bring herself to care about the words. She reached out and traced the photo image with her fingertips, remembering how it had felt to have his mouth crushed against hers and his hands on her body. She couldn't have _him_, but she could have this photo. She slipped her leather backpack off and lowered it to the floor, decision made.

Savanna's eyes bugged out as Karyu lifted the avatar picture off the wall and stuffed it into her pack. "I thought we were here to return the old picture, not steal a new one!"

Karyu knew she was being foolish but she couldn't stop herself from completing the action. Now she had a matching set. "Don't lecture me. You get to _keep_ the guy you want."

"At least you're starting to admit it," whispered Savanna. "Now let's go!"

Karyu didn't argue further with her. She snatched her piece of hide off the camera in passing, confident that it hadn't picked up their images before she blinded it. She showed the security guard her visitor tag on the way out and she breathed a little easier when she and Savanna were outside in the open. She hardly noticed the discomfort of her body re-adjusting to Pandora air and she smirked at her "partner in crime".

"You know, you didn't have to come along with me if the thought of getting caught bothers you so much," Karyu reminded her. "All you had to do was say 'no'. I probably could have gotten this done faster if you had, in fact."

"I was curious," admitted the hybrid with a shrug. She looked up at the night sky and she rubbed her arms as a cool breeze came in from the west. "I wanted to see if you could really do it."

Karyu's exhilaration died and she frowned at her friend. "Do what?"

"Give up his picture," answered Savanna. "Don't play dumb. It's symbolic. If you can't give up a photo image of him then you aren't willing to give up the possibility of a relationship with him, either. Face it; you're in love."

Karyu scowled at her. "I think maybe it's time for me to invest in a bullshit filter for your mouth."

"You bring up gags and restraints a lot," observed Savanna with a smirk. "Should I warn Corporal Howell to watch out?"

"I can tell you've been spending too much time with my brother," groused Karyu, trying hard not to laugh. "Believe me, if I want to go after Howell, it won't do him any good to get a warning."

"Um...speaking of Howell..." Savanna pointed at the street ahead of them.

"Nice try," snorted Karyu. "I'm not falling for it, this time."

"Suit yourself," answered the hybrid.

"Hey, what are you two doing here?"

Karyu stopped in her tracks and cursed, blinking stupidly at Baxter Howell as he jogged over to them. He waved at the rover that dropped him off and the vehicle took off, heading for the bio-dome. Karyu gave her companion an accusing look but to be fair, Sav _did_ try to warn her of his approach. The street lamps shone on his mussed hair and reflected on the mirrored sunglasses propped on his head. It occurred to Karyu that the man never went anywhere without his shades—not even at night. Whether that was because his eyes were still sensitive to light or because he was self-conscious of their color, Karyu couldn't guess.

"We were just out for a walk," fibbed Karyu with a warning look at her smaller companion. "Your shift if over now?"

He glanced at his watch. "Yup. Harris is on the job now, 'till 0600 in the morning. I kind of feel sorry for the guy. He's got a mission before noon tomorrow and he'll be lucky to get in five hours of sleep." He frowned and looked over his shoulder, toward the direction of the avatar compound. "I hope he'll be up for it. I'd take a double-shift if I didn't have an assignment in the morning, myself."

"What _kind_ of assignment?" Karyu asked impulsively, frowning.

He smiled at her. "Can't tell you that, Sweet Cheeks. It's classified."

Savanna giggled and Karyu poked her irritably before addressing Baxter again. "Call me 'Sweet Cheeks' again and I'll put my foot up your ass."

"Whatever you say...Princess."

"You're a brave man, Baxter Howell," observed Savanna with a sidelong grin at her friend. "So can you at least tell us what this mission of yours involves?"

He shrugged. "Security of the colony. That's all I can say."

"Hmm, mysterious." Savanna looked between him and Karyu. "Well, I'd best be off. We have an early start in the morning and I don't want bags under my eyes."

"You're going to make a beautiful bride," Baxter assured her with a grin, "even with a few bags under your eyes. I can walk with you two if you want."

"No, I know my way back," Savanna assured him with a meaningful look at her huntress companion. "I think Karyu has something she wants to talk to you about, anyhow. Goodnight."

Karyu gave the hybrid an alarmed look as Savanna turned to go. "Uh...you shouldn't walk alone at night," she said lamely.

"Like I said," Savanna shot over her shoulder with a grin, "I know my way back and I have my gun if anyone tries to mess with me." She patted the weapon holstered at her thigh.

"You little...brat," Karyu muttered. She turned to Howell, who was examining her with curious interest. "What?"

"She said you wanted to talk to me." He crossed his arms over his chest. "So, what do you want to talk about? Are you having second thoughts about your verdict that this 'can't happen'?"

Remembering the way she had calmed his panic attack with a kiss, she flushed. She had no idea what to say and she shot another killing glance at Savanna's retreating form. "You know as well as I do that nothing can really happen between us," she said, practically rehearsing lines she though her mother would want her to say. "You live in an air conditioned building, you cook meals in the microwave and you cover your body from head to toe. I wear a loin-cloth, I live in a tent and I cook my meals in a stone oven or over a fire pit. The only thing we have in common is our duty to our people, Green-eyes."

He leaned closer to her, pinning her with those mesmerizing eyes of his. "So _what _if we live different lives? Does it really matter how I cook my food or what I wear?"

She realized that her attempt to reason with him just came out sounding elitist and disdainful. "I just mean we're too different. I have an obligation to my people to choose a Na'vi mate."

"What about your mother?" Pressed Howell. "She's mated to an avatar. Last time I checked, your father wears human style clothes too."

"I'm not my mother!" She clenched her hands into fists. "I'm under more pressure than she was! Why can't people understand that I have expectations to live up to?"

He sighed and looked down at his feet. "You know, that kind of blind devotion can be dangerous."

"Says the man who would throw himself on a live grenade for his people," she snorted.

He bit his lip and grinned. "You got me there, but that's not really the same thing. I mean, that's a life or death situation, not planning my future. You don't think your people would want you happy more than they'd want you to be with a Na'vi?"

She struggled with that question herself, every single day. "Maybe my grenade is to be with a man I just tolerate for the sake of the clan," she murmured. She rubbed her arms, chilled by the steady, cool breeze coming in—or by the hopelessness of her feelings.

Baxter reached for her and she took a step back, shaking her head. "Don't."

He didn't listen. He put his arms around her and he drew her close. "So you really feel like you've got to pick someone from your clan, huh?"

Karyu tried not to allow his embrace to weaken her and she shut her eyes. "My clan needs to know we aren't losing our roots. It's important to them." His fingertips skimmed over her spine and she shivered, barely resisting the urge to return his embrace.

"I think your happiness is more important to them than you think," he whispered. "So, how much time do I have?"

She pulled away enough to look up at him in confusion. "Before what?"

He gave her a faintly painful smile. "Before you have to choose Mr. Wrong and live in a loveless relationship to make a few old geezers happy. How long do I have to change your mind?"

She swallowed and she tried to ignore the little thrill that went through her at his words. "I don't know...a year? Two years? Why the hell don't you just let it go?"

"Because I can't," he answered simply. He released her and unfastened his wristwatch. "I want you to do something for me."

She regarded him with wary suspicion. "That depends on what it is you want me to do."

He handed his watch over to her. "It's simple. When you look at one of your clansmen and consider whether he'll make a good mate for you, I want you to look at this watch and remember this moment and the chemistry we have together. Think about that and ask yourself honestly if you think some guy from your tribe can give you anything remotely like what we've got, Karyu."

She allowed him to press the timepiece into her palm and she stared up at him with parted lips. "You want me to look at your watch and think of you."

He smiled and nodded. "That's right. And while you're at it, I want you to think of something else that I've finally admitted myself." He leaned close and whispered his follow-up statement in her ear. "I'm crazy about you, Princess."

She blushed deeper and the spot pattern on her body lit up like stars. Her tail lashed in agitation and she struggled against the desire to climb onto him and brand him as her own. She put his watch on her slender wrist and tried to keep her wits about her. "You're crazy, all right."

He laughed. "Just think about it, Karyu. That's all I can ask you to do right now. You know what they say about absence making the heart grow fonder."

"Well, I'll be absent for a long time so maybe your plan will work." She swallowed, hating the regret that came with her statement of fact. She would not be returning to Hell's Gate with her family, after this journey. Kato would be returning with Savanna and Tom would be coming back to finish his research, because despite the danger of lurking assassins, he didn't trust communication lines to relay his work back and forth. Tanhi would naturally be coming back with him, compelled by the need to watch over her mate. In the meantime, Karyu had to take lessons from the council and practice leading her people. She could be away for months, before she had the opportunity to visit again.

"So I guess we won't be seeing each other again for a while after tonight," he surmised.

"I guess not." She was looking everywhere but at him.

He drew her closer and her first instinct was to resist. Then she remembered that this could very well be the last time she ever got the chance to kiss him, if she didn't waver in her resolve to put the council's wishes before her own. Her fingers curled against his jacket as she tugged him closer and she didn't give him a chance to question her sudden change in attitude. She rose to her tiptoes, cupped the back of his head and drew his lips down to hers for a deep, lingering kiss. She put all of her pent up feelings into it, trying to convey everything to him that was in her heart, without using words. He responded to the kiss with searing intensity, lifting her off her feet and holding her tight against him as he worshipped her mouth.

Karyu knew then that no matter how she tried, she would never feel this sort of connection to another male again in her lifetime. She would never feel this kind of excitement when another man put his arms around her this way. Nobody else would make her knees turn to jelly with a kiss, make her laugh without even trying or make her feel...safe...the way Howell did. She kissed him even harder and she decided that if he started carrying her inside with the intention of mating with her, she wouldn't stop him. It was _her_ virginity and how she lost it was her decision...nobody else's.

Baxter set her back on her feet after several minutes and he stepped away, visibly shaken. He took a steadying breath and he smiled at her. "There's no _way_ you kiss a guy like that if you're not really into him, Ladybug. I'm not going to get any sleep tonight, after that."

She tried not to notice the visible reaction his body had to the kiss and she purposely kept her gaze above his waist. Deciding she could at least be honest about this, she confessed the truth. "I just wanted one for the road."

He gave her one of those maddeningly confident smirks and he reached out to caress her cheek. "It's not going to be the last one. Not by a long-shot."

She pushed his hand away, annoyed by his determination and her own fear. "I don't have time for your arrogance. My family is expecting me back at the compound."

He didn't try to stop her as she turned and began to walk away. "Have a safe flight, Karyu. While you're looking at my watch, maybe you can look at the picture you nabbed too."

She stopped in her tracks and turned, looking back at him incredulously. "_Excuse me_?"

He smirked. "Think I didn't know about it? My original photo's been missing from the wall for months. I had a dream one night that an invisible little Na'vi guided me to your tent and guess what I found in your pack?"

She thought her heart was going to stop beating. "You've got an active imagination, Green-eyes. I never took your stupid picture. I have no need for it."

"Okay then." He smiled at her engagingly. "But the next time I dream of you, I'm checking again just to be sure." His eyes went to the pack she had strapped to her back.

She rolled her eyes, barely holding onto her casual poise. "You can keep dreaming, Howler."

Fearful that she would give something away if she lingered, she turned away and kept walking. She felt like the two pictures she had of him were sitting on the outside of her bag instead of the inside. As soon as he went inside to go to his quarters, he was sure to notice that the newer one was missing to and she couldn't do a damned thing about it.

"I'll think about you every day," Baxter promised, seemingly undeterred by her departure.

Karyu kept walking and she smiled bitterly. "I'll think of you every day too, you klutz," she mumbled under her breath.

* * *

_Present day, aboard a Samson tiltrotor:_

"We'll be landing in approximately twenty minutes," announced Dustin's voice through the intercom. "We've reached the mountains and you can see them between the clouds if you look out your windows now."

Karyu impulsively peered through the window and one of the Omaticaya hunters got out of her seat to join her and look. They passed by the familiar, floating land masses that marked the Hallelujah mountains and Karyu thought back to the day she and her twin earned their ikrans...months before they were supposed to. She absently rubbed at the scar on her arm where her banshee had bitten her. She didn't hold it against him. He had only done what was natural and she couldn't ask for a better bond mount.

Kato snorted as he came out of his nap, disturbed from his sleep by the announcement. Savanna spoke softly to him and rested a hand on his knee with familiar affection, explaining that they were almost there. He looked out the window and watched the scenery pass by. He saw the pensive, frowning look on his sister's face and he unbuckled his safety belt and went to her side.

"What's with the long face? I thought you'd be happy about coming here again and seeing Sav and I get married."

"I am," she assured him. "I've just got other things on my mind too."

He glanced at the watch in her lap. "Uh, yeah. You don't think I've noticed you've got my friend's watch? You're really got it bad for the guy, don't you?"

She glared at him and then she put the watch into the backpack sitting at her feet. "That's enough out of you. I don't need the peanut gallery chiming in with opinions at every turn."

"Hey, I'm on your side," objected Kato in a low voice. He glanced around the cabin and when the Omaticaya hunter returned to her seat, he went on. "It isn't fair for you to have to choose between making the council happy and having the mate you want. If Baxter's the guy for you, I'm behind you one-hundred percent. I know you think emotions like love are for sissies so I don't expect you to admit how you feel."

Karyu looked at him and she finally broke. "Maybe I _do_ care about him. Are you happy?"

"I _knew it_!" Kato did indeed look happy. "I'm just going to take this opportunity to say: _'I told you so_' while I can."

She nudged him hard. "Damn you...I shouldn't have said anything."

He sobered a bit and put an arm around her. "Relax, I'm not going to tell our parents or anything. You've got to let me have a _little_ fun at your expense though, after all the crap you put me through when I hit puberty."

Karyu smiled a little. "I did give you hell, didn't I? Well, now you have your vengeance."

"So, what are you going to do? You know he's really into you, right? He asks about you all the time."

She thought about the way Baxter whispered: "_I'm crazy about you_," in her ear the night before and she swallowed. "Maybe. It doesn't matter, though. You know I can't do anything about it."

"That's a cop-out," Kato argued. "You can do plenty about it, if you really want to."

"No, there's where you're wrong," she insisted stubbornly. "You don't have to deal with this kind of pressure every day. Nobody has a problem with you choosing a mate outside our clan."

"Okay, maybe I don't have this kind of pressure to deal with," he agreed. His eyes went to Savanna and he smiled. "But I know that if it were me, nothing would keep me away from Savanna. Nothing. Maybe I'm just selfish but I'd choose exile over a life without her. I know you, too. If you're really in love with this guy then sooner or later, you'll find a way to have him. You don't give up easily, Karyu."

"I have responsibilities," she reminded him. "The clan is more important than my lusty bad feelings."

He shook his head. "Eywa, if you could hear yourself...you sound just like _Sa'nok_, except she never considered her feelings for _Sempul_ to be bad in any way. I think you're just scared."

"Piss off."

Kato hugged her briefly before getting up. "You'll have to face it sooner or later, Sis. If I were you, I'd think about talking to Mother. Maybe you should just be honest with her."

Karyu sighed and resumed looking out the window. It was so easy for her twin to suggest talking to Tanhi. Her expectations of him were limited, compared to Karyu. She had taken his mating with Savanna well enough but news that her successor wanted an avatar marine as a mate would most certainly not go over well. Karyu knew that her mother would never try to force her to do anything but she had great hopes for her. Disappointing the great chieftess was one of the last things in life Karyu ever wanted to do. Her father was her comfort, her friend, her ally. Her mother was her idol. Tanhi represented everything Karyu aspired to become one day and she could not bear the thought of letting her down.

* * *

_Back at Hell's Gate:_

Trudy got the news just as she was sitting down to eat lunch. She barely had time to put her tray on the table when they contacted her to let her know that one of her men had succumbed to his injuries. She left the cafeteria without a word, refusing to believe the news until she saw the proof with her own eyes. She almost knocked down a maintenance man on her way out of the building and she nearly forgot to grab an exopack before heading outside. She shouted at the driver of a passing rover when she got outside and he stopped his vehicle when he recognized her.

"Lab building," Trudy ordered when she jumped into the vehicle with him. "Put the petal to the metal, Private."

"Yes Ma'am."

The MP hastily obliged, driving his passenger to the requested building as fast as he dared. Trudy didn't even wait for the vehicle to stop when the rover slowed down outside the lab building. She jumped out and stumbled a little before running into the building. People hastily moved out of her way as she shouted at them and she passed through the sliding doors with hardly a break in her stride. She charged down the hallways to the infirmary area and she paused long enough to blurt a name when she reached the reception desk.

"You've got an MP named Wilson in there."

The receptionist gave Trudy a sympathetic look. "Yes Ma'am. He's still in room B-4 while they prepare to move him."

Trudy nodded and took off. The fluorescent lights seemed a little too bright to her as she navigated the corridors to reach the indicated room. She slipped when she made it to the right hallway, failing to notice the "wet surface" sign on the floor. She almost skidded into Harris, who had just come out of room B-4 and was walking with his head down. He caught her and steadied her.

"Trudy," Harris murmured. He swallowed and looked away. "It was my fault. I should have paid closer attention and he jumped in front of me. He took it in the throat."

"Just go in there with me," she urged. She still didn't want to believe it. There had to be some kind of mistake. Wilson wasn't the kind of guy to go down from one little gunshot wound. Guys like him didn't just up and croak like this.

Harris opened the door for her and he stood aside as she went in. He joined her after a moment and he placed his hands on her shoulders as she stood over the gurney and stared down at Wilson's rugged, still features. Trudy took one of his stiff hands in hers and she sniffed.

"Dammit...you jackass. How many times have I told you, you aren't Superman?"

Harris bowed his head. "I'm so sorry. If he hadn't jumped in front of me—"

"Stop it," demanded Trudy. She turned around and looked up at the avatar. "You didn't drag him in front of you to use as a meat shield so I don't want to hear it."

Harris closed his eyes and a tear escaped to trickle down his face, coming to a stop above one of his cyan stripes. "I know, but...I should have paid more attention."

Trudy sighed and turned her attention back to their deceased comrade. "This is what we prepare for every day as soldiers. He knew it and you know it too, Harris. The only ones I'm mad at are those fuckers from the RDA. They're the ones to blame for this, not you. That makes how many goons we have in custody now?"

"Seven," answered Harris. "It would have been eight, except Ellis' group met with some resistance too and they were forced to shoot one of their targets dead."

Trudy swallowed hard and blinked back tears. Now wasn't the time to fall apart...not when they still had people to round up and interrogate. "Do you know which one shot our boy, Harris?"

He nodded. "Yes Ma'am. I memorized his face."

"Good. I want you to identify him for me." Trudy squeezed Wilson's lifeless hand and drew the sheet up over his body. No, this wasn't the time for grief. It was time for vengeance.

* * *

_Meanwhile, over the Hallelujah mountains:_

"Moment of truth," mumbled Tom as he dug through his pack for the insulated case.

He didn't really expect it to work just yet, as he still had some fine-tuning to do. Still, the device should at least clear up some of the flux interference now affecting the Scorpion's instruments. He was seated in the pressurized cockpit area, temporarily in the co-pilot seat while he tried his experiment. Tom frowned and hesitated as he pulled out the palm-sized device and stared down at it. He glanced out the window, where he could see one of the Samsons carrying his family, friends and clan mates. The longer this project took to complete, the more opportunities the RDA would have to harm the people he cared about.

"What's the hold up, Dr. Sully?" The pilot looked at him with a frown. "I thought you wanted to test this thing while we're in the air. We've got about five minutes before we'll be coming in for a landing."

Tom glanced at her. Well, no wonder she was crabby and impatient. She and the other MP's that came along on this journey would be stuck in their aircrafts until morning, as they weren't permitted to enter the sacred grounds. Max's family was one of the few human exceptions and Savanna and her family were permitted because of their ties to the Ikran clan. Jake even talked E'quath and Mo'at into allowing Andrew in the valley but that was as far as he could push it.

Tom shut his eyes and spoke a rare, quiet little prayer to Eywa. He asked her to understand that he wasn't trying to trifle with nature for selfish or destructive reasons and he promised her that he would see to it his work was never used as a weapon against the People.

"Just let this work," he murmured in closing. He felt like a hypocrite, begging favors from a deity he had barely prayed to since the plague incident, years ago. Still, the request came from the heart and at its core was the desire to protect the Na'vi.

He plugged the device into the Samson's mainframe with the data cord and he powered it up. He held his breath as he stared down at it. The thick lens in the center of it lit up with swirling energy, spinning round and round in a manner that reminded Tom vaguely of the avatar linking chambers. The idea was to create a counter-charge to the ionized energy in the atmosphere. The charge was meant to repel the flux, enough to allow tracking and navigation equipment to work without interference. Tom had tried to use magnets as an example when he explained the concept to Jake. The positive side of two magnets would repel each other. The same basic idea applied here—provided his calculations weren't wrong.

So far, so good. Now he just needed to confirm that the lab test results were remotely accurate. "Lieutenant, how are your instruments looking?"

The pilot checked and shook her head. "Still a garbled mess...wait a minute." She paused and made some adjustments, peering at the radar screen with interest. "It's trying to clear up. It's not a steady signal but I keep getting a few seconds of crystal clarity, like we're nowhere near the flux. I think your little toy is working, doctor."

Tom leaned over and he dared to look for himself. A grin spread over his lips when he saw that she was speaking the truth. It was still too soon to say "Eureka" but they were very close. Hopefully, his research would be complete before the year was up and they could make plans to track down and converge on the RDA smugglers.

* * *

_Meanwhile, back at Hell's Gate:_

"That's him." Harris nodded at the prisoner waiting in the interrogation room.

"They haven't started on him yet," West informed. He gave a nod at the observation window before studying Trudy with pensive eyes. "Are you sure this is a good idea, General Chacón?"

Trudy smirked without humor, her dark eyes piercing the occupant of the other room. "No, but that's what I've got you guys for. If it looks like I'm going to kill him, you stop me."

West was grim-faced and quiet, turning things over in his head carefully before answering. "I know the loss of your man cut you to the bone, Chacón, but one of the things you've said to me before is that you want this base to operate on better standards than the RDA. Even if they deserve it, is torture the way you really want to roll?"

Trudy looked up at him and she frowned. "You picked the wrong time to try and use Max logic on me, General. A good soldier is dead because of that fucking coward in there and we need information, if we're going to clean up this base."

"But we found cyanide tablets on all of these operatives, Ma'am," Sanders hesitantly reminded. "If they're willing to commit suicide for their cause, torture isn't likely to loosen their tongues."

"Maybe not, but it's worth the effort," Trudy said stubbornly. She looked to Harris. "What about you? Any objections?"

"No Ma'am," he answered grimly. "In fact, I'd love to go in there with you and get in a few hits of my own."

"He's dead meat, if we both go in there," she sighed. She looked to their companions. "I'll try to keep it under control, but you pull me out if it looks like I might snuff the bastard. Deal?"

West nodded stoically. "You have my support, if not my approval."

* * *

"So, Vick...how'd it feel to shoot an army vet?" Trudy dragged the chair over to the one the RDA agent was cuffed to and she straddled it. "Pretty good, I'd imagine. From what I hear, you were dishonorably discharged from the service. How about you cooperate with us and save yourself a lot of grief?"

He stared at her stonily.

Trudy nodded. "Yeah, that's what I figured. That's all right, though." She reached into an outer thigh pocket on her fatigues and she withdrew two pairs of wicked-looking brass knuckles. She looked him in the eye as she put them on. "I know you're not afraid to die, but you're going to hate living, by the time I'm finished with you."

* * *

There was understandable excitement at the Tree of Souls when the guests arrived. Not only would the Guardians get the chance to see a human bonding ceremony, but Mo'at was going to meet her first great-grandchild. Everyone gathered around as Jake and Neytiri led the procession through the path and into the sacred valley. Max and Katherine were the only humans to set foot in the valley. Dustin and Andrew were in their avatars and they caused less of a stir as a result. Some of the villagers had already seen Savanna and her father before, when they still lived with the Omaticaya and the girl used to visit. The rest stared openly at the hybrid and her father, amazed. They had been told about the young woman but they weren't prepared for the sight of her in the flesh.

"She is strange to look at," one woman whispered.

"I think she is pretty," remarked a little girl.

"Yes, she is attractive," agreed a young man, "though very little. Her _Sempul_ looks like a _uniltìranyu_, but he is too small as well."

Savanna was used to getting stares and whispers when people first saw her, so she wasn't overly bothered. At least the Na'vi villagers weren't hostile towards her. Her poor father, however, had become too used to being around people that knew him and no longer reacted to his below-average size. Sebastian's face turned purple with humiliation and he quickly mumbled an excuse to go back to the Samsons to fetch his camera.

"But, your camera is hanging around your neck—" Katherine tried to remind him. He was off before the words finished leaving her mouth.

Max and Dustin were coming down the path when Sebastian hurried past them. Father and son watched the hacker go with bemused expressions on their faces. "What's the matter with him?" Dustin asked.

Andrew came up behind him, suited up in his avatar like Dustin. He shrugged. "Airsickness?" He spotted the enormous, glowing canopy of the Tree of Souls and his jaw dropped. No further comments came from him as he stared up at the willow-like, draping branches.

"I apologize," Mo'at said as she approached the group with E'quath and Peyla. "Our people's curiosity has made him uncomfortable." She looked around at the villagers with an admonishing expression. "They should make our guests welcome. This is a time to celebrate."

All of them—young and old—looked contrite like scolded children. Such was the strength of their respect for Mo'at. She smiled forgivingly at them and hugged her daughter close. "Welcome, _ma 'Ite. Oel ngati kameie._"

Neytiri returned the embrace with a loving smile. "_Ma Sa'nok. Oel ngati kameie_."

Mo'at hugged and greeted Sylwanin next, smiling at the eleven-year-old when she chattered about all the things she and Ralu had been up to since her last visit.

Jake was last in the exchange of the traditional greeting and Mo'at lectured him a little when he embraced her gingerly. "I will not shatter, son."

He chuckled and hugged her a little tighter. "So, tell me what convinced you to let Commissioner Archer dig up the bones of my old body and drag them to UNEC?"

Mo'at had the grace to look slightly ashamed. "It was a difficult choice, _'Itan_. She told me that by showing the humans the shell of your former body, she might convince them that you are no longer one of them. I did not understand everything that she said to me but one thing she made clear: I had a choice between desecrating your burial place, or allowing the humans to keep you in chains. You are alive. Your old body's remains are not. There was only one choice that made sense."

Jake smiled at her. "Well, your decision probably tilted things more in my favor, so thank you. I'm sure you want to meet your great-granddaughter now?"

"Yes," agreed Mo'at with an answering smile. "Let me see this child that carries our Tommy's blood in her veins."

Jake moved aside and offered the old _Tsahik_ his arm. Mo'at took it and with Neytiri at his side, he escorted her to the back of the group, where Norm's family was chatting with the twins and several of the young Guardian villagers. Grace turned her attention away from what a young man her age was saying and she smiled at Mo'at when she saw her coming. She shifted the baby in her arms and with Tsu'tey's help, she loosened the carrying device that held Leyra securely to her chest.

"Grandmother," Tsu'tey greeted. He carefully eased the infant out of the carrying device and cradled her as he approached. "Meet Leyra."

Mo'at smiled and sat down on a boulder with Jake's help. She held her arms out and Tsu'tey handed the baby over for her to hold. "She is a welcome sight," Mo'at said huskily, blinking. The baby cooed and Mo'at chuckled. "Is she always so sweet tempered?"

"If only," Tsu'tey answered with a sigh and shared smile with his mate. "She was really vocal when we were landing. I think the pressure hurt her ears and Gracie finally calmed her down by nursing her. Other than that, she traveled well."

Mo'at nodded. "You chose wisely, to bring her in one of the flying machines. A journey this far on Ikran would have been a danger for one so young."

Gracie smiled broadly as her daughter reached for the ornament hanging from Mo'at's ceremonial crown. "She likes you. I think she knows you're her great grandmother."

Mo'at grinned and gently eased the miniscule fingers away from the sheathed spike on her ornament and she thoughtfully removed the object and placed it in the pouch at her thigh. "She has inherited the best features of both her parents. You did well, Grace."

Grace lowered her head modestly. "Thank you, _Tsahik_."

"I see the villagers have already put up some decorations," Norm observed.

Having no idea what a human wedding entailed, the Guardian clan had done their best to provide a festive atmosphere without alienating their visitors. There were streamers hanging from poles planted in the ground, colored beads and glow-lanterns hanging from cords stretched between other poles, brightly dyed plant fibers draped over bushes and a woven mat beneath the great tree itself, where Kato and Savanna would be taking their vows.

"It looks good," Tom said when he finally looked up from his instruments to see the festive decor himself. "Katherine, what do you think?"

The botanist was staring at the Tree of Souls and she didn't answer Tom.

"Uh, I think Kath has left the building," Jake guessed with a chuckle. "Typical science geek."

She seemed to shake herself out of her daze and her eyes flicked between Tom and Jake. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

"I was asking what you think of the decorations," answered Tom patiently.

She flushed. "It's beautiful. I couldn't ask for a more perfect setting for my daughter's wedding." She turned to Jake and stuck her hand out. "Thank you for arranging this. I know how sacred this place is to the Na'vi and to be invited here to have my daughter's wedding...I'll never forget it."

"Sav's been like family for years," Jake assured her as he took her hand. "And Kato is my nephew. I wanted someplace safe for these kids to take their vows and I can't think of a better place on Pandora."

"We wouldn't be able to do this without your husband's satellite firewall," Norm reminded her. "Sebastian is the only reason Hell's Gate can move around without the wrong people detecting them."

"Which worries me," admitted Katherine with a frown.

"What do you mean?" Ni'nat queried.

Katherine shook her head. "I'm just concerned about someone identifying him and coming after him, the way they've gone after Tom. But this isn't the time to talk about morbid issues like that. We have a wedding to prepare for and speaking of my husband, I'd best drag him back out of the Samson."

* * *

A few hours later, Kato was waiting beneath the Tree of Souls with Dustin at his side as his Best Man. He was dressed in a traditional black tuxedo, which the watching Na'vi seemed to find particularly strange. Stranger still, Max Patel was presiding as the celebrant. As a leader of the colony, he had the authority to grant marriage licenses and that was part of the reason he had come. He looked a bit awkward in his tux, with his exopack firmly strapped into place. Still, he smiled encouragingly at Kato when he saw the young man swallow nervously.

"Deep breaths," Max murmured to the hunter. "We'll keep it brief and it'll be finished before you know it."

Kato nodded. "Thanks, Dr. Patel." He glanced at the crowd surrounding the massive tree and he spotted his mother in the front, standing next to his father. Her amber gaze warned him not to dishonor their hosts with inappropriate behavior and he gave her a brief nod of assurance. He knew very well the strings his Uncle Jake had to pull to make this location available for the wedding and he didn't want to embarrass his family or Savanna's.

Kato tried to look more dignified and he straightened his tie. Some of the villagers began to play a tune on their flutes and the crowd parted to admit Savanna, her father and Karyu. They approached with measured steps while everyone looked on. Karyu was wearing ceremonial tribal clothing and Sebastian was dressed in a formal tux.

Kato took one look at his bride and his mouth fell open. She wasn't wearing a white wedding gown. In fact, she wasn't really wearing much at all, by human standards. Like her Maid of Honor, she wore ceremonial Na'vi garb. The loincloth was bleached white. The material was diaphanous—just transparent enough to make him salivate. The cord binding the loincloth together was yellow in color and the top she wore was fashioned of white seashells, with purple and gold beads outlining the cups. There was a skirt of sorts, fastened to her loincloth to trail behind her like white a white, gossamer wing. Save for her queue, her chestnut hair fell loose around her shoulders and down her back, brushed and shiny. The sides were pinned back with Na'vi crafted bone hair combs. She wore a silver bracelet on her left wrist and a leather-beaded armlet on her right bicep.

Kato shot a suspicious look at his sister after staring at the shelled top for a moment, knowing her craftsmanship. She smirked at him and her eyes said she was indeed responsible for the ensemble. Savanna looked like a cross between a beautiful wood sprite and a native goddess. The luminescent light from the sacred tree cast her in a surreal glow that only served to enhance the image.

"Uh."

"Breathe, son," Tom advised in a whisper from behind Kato.

"In and out," agreed Dustin softly. "Nice and steady."

"Please don't say that again," requested Kato, unable to take his eyes off the smooth curves of the lilac-striped female that was soon to be his wife.

Dustin gave him a quietly confused look. "What did I say?" he whispered.

"I think it was the 'in and out' part," suggested Andrew in a whisper before stepping back into place with the rest of the watching crowd.

"Oh. That."

Sebastian walked Savanna to Kato's side and he kissed her on the cheek before un-linking his arm from hers. He looked like he was barely restraining himself from tossing the girl over his shoulder and running off with her, before she could be claimed in marriage. Katherine stepped forward in the crowd and she motioned for Sebastian, clearing her throat meaningfully when he lingered longer than he should have.

Savanna faced Kato and she smiled up at him, her cheeks charmingly pink. He couldn't resist making a nervous little quip.

"I always thought the term 'blushing bride' was just a metaphor."

She lowered her eyes and shook her head.

"If it makes you feel better, I almost fell over when I saw you," he whispered, forgetting all about the audience. His eyes swept over her again, taking in the sight of her from head to toe. "You're like Tatiana or Galadriel. I can't get over how gorgeous you are."

"Comparing me to fairy tales," she whispered back with a shy little smile. "Well, you're definitely my Prince Charming."

"Corny," whispered a voice off to the right. Kato gave his sister a warning glance, even as he flushed at her observation.

"Are you both ready?" Max inquired.

"Yes Sir," agreed Kato.

Max kept it short but sweet, as promised. "This is a rare and wonderful opportunity. Two cultures are coming together tonight. The union of these two young people is as much a marriage of species as it is a marriage of spouses. As the Na'vi say: Kato and Savanna see _into_ each other. Whenever any two people can do that with complete love and trust, it's a thing to be celebrated."

Karyu lowered her gaze, sobering at those words.

Max gestured to her and Dustin. "The rings?"

Karyu held up the ring she had been given for safekeeping and Dustin did the same. Savanna and Kato took the items and they smiled at each other as they prepared to put them on. In the background, Tom drew Tanhi closer and he smiled before leaning over to kiss her on the crown of her head. Sebastian and Katherine likewise cuddled up, seeing the devotion in the young couple's eyes and taking comfort in it.

"Would you like to say something to one another first?" offered Max.

Kato glanced at the biologist and he wished for all the world the man hadn't said that. He'd be lucky if he could say two words without his tongue lolling out to fall at his mate's feet. He swallowed and looked Savanna in the eyes, trying to gather his wits. "Just that I promise I'll always be good to you. I also promise to try not to be a caveman." He slipped the silver band over Savanna's finger.

Karyu snorted with laughter and a few of the people in the crowd who got the reference chuckled. Savanna smiled and put Kato's gold band on him. "I promise to keep you first in my heart at all times...and I'll try not to nag you too much."

Max smiled at the two of them. "Well said. You may kiss the bride."

Kato was all too happy to oblige. He embraced his bride and lowered his mouth to hers eagerly. He realized that perhaps he was showing a little too much enthusiasm when his father cleared his throat and softly advised him to come up for air before he smothered both of them. Kato released Savanna reluctantly and he was thankful that the tailored pants somewhat hid his enthusiasm from public view. There was still the celebration to get through and odds were, he and Sav wouldn't actually get the chance to consummate their love until sometime after midnight or in the morning.

He stifled his impatience and smiled as people began to approach and congratulate him. He saw his mate glance at him sidelong and he guessed she too was eager to mate for the first time. The way her eyes roved over him in admiration made his pulse quicken and he was soon drifting off into La-La-Land, imagining what it would feel like to finally join with her in body. The only trouble was, they weren't going to get far with it if they linked their queues together.

* * *

They ate at sunset and celebrations went on through the night. Tsu'tey went to seek his rest in the guest tent early, pleading exhaustion. Mo'at cast a concerned look at her grandson and she asked Grace if he was feeling all right.

"Well, I know this might sound strange, but I think he might have post-partum depression."

Mo'at regarded the young woman blankly.

"It's a condition women sometimes get after having a baby," explained Grace with a little smile. "The birthing trauma puts them into a state of depression."

"Ah, yes," Mo'at said with a nod and a thoughtful glance in the direction Tsu'tey went. "This happens to Na'vi females at times, too."

"Do you think it can happen to a male?"

"It can and it does," answered the older woman. "The men share the birthing experience with their women and sometimes, it can leave them in a dispirited state, just like a new mother."

"I'm worried about him," sighed Grace. "I've read that this sort of thing can make some people suicidal."

"Then watch him," suggested Mo'at. She looked at Jake and Neytiri, who were watching Sylwanin and Ralu dance by the bonfire. "Men do not always want to admit when they are vulnerable. It wounds their pride. Sometimes, it takes a loving mate to coax them to speak of it and relieve the burden on them. Tsu'tey may be more reasonable than some."

Grace nodded. "Thank you for the advice. I'll go and lay down with him as soon as I see to Leyra's needs."

Mo'at smiled and bade her goodnight as the young woman got up to go. Grace went to her mother's side and looked down at the infant in her arms. "How is she?"

"She is fine, daughter," assured Ni'nat. "You should visit with your friends while you can. I will look after her."

Gracie thanked her and though she wanted to check on her mate right away, she caught sight of Savanna and Kato smiling and laughing with Dustin, Andrew and Karyu near one of the smaller fire pits. Remembering that Savanna was still a virgin, Grace thought a moment of girl talk might be in order.

"Excuse me, but can I steal the bride for a couple of minutes?" She asked with a smile as she approached.

"As long as you bring her back," Kato said. He couldn't seem to take his eyes off of Savanna and Grace tried not to laugh at him. She led her hybrid friend away from her eager new husband and found a quiet spot near the cliff-side to talk.

"I don't want to keep you for long, but I thought since this is your wedding night I should mention this little trick you can do with a Na'vi man's tail."

"You mean the g-spot at the base of it?" Savanna smiled. "We've been playing with that for a while now."

"Oh." Grace felt a little foolish. "I keep forgetting you have more book knowledge than me."

"You're much wiser," Savanna assured her with a hug. "And FYI, I didn't learn the tail thing from a book. Kato actually asked me to try it one night and it's one of his favorite things to do when we fool around. I think he was doing it to himself long before we got involved...but don't tell him I said that."

Grace giggled behind her hand. Well, why _wouldn't_ boys experiment with it if they discovered it felt good to stimulate the area? "I guess you have everything...um...handled, then."

"Not exactly," admitted the smaller young woman with a glance back towards the festivities and her mate. "The truth is, as much as I want him, I'm scared."

Grace rubbed her shoulder with sympathy. "That isn't unusual. The first time was scary for me too and I had the same feeling mixed need and fear."

"It isn't just that," Savanna explained. "I expect a little pain and I know it's probably going to be a little awkward at first. It's _tsahaylu_, Gracie. I don't think Kato and I can link while we're having sex."

"Why not?" Grace frowned in confusion. "I thought you two were already a mated pair? That can't be possible if your queues reject each other."

"Oh, they don't _reject_ each other at all," Savanna said dryly. "If anything, they're a little _too_ friendly with each other. Every time we establish _tsahaylu_, Kato and I...well...we kind of get trapped in a cycle of multiple orgasms."

Grace blinked. "You mean, as soon as you..."

"As soon as we link," Savanna finished for her. "It's almost immediate and one time, we both passed out before it eased up. How are we supposed to make love under conditions like that?"

Grace was wide-eyed. "It sounds to me like you could make love just fine. You said both of you have multiple orgasms...so does that mean he doesn't...you know..." She flopped her hand meaningfully.

Savanna shook her head and smirked. "Nope. Not until it eases up and usually by then, we're both too worn out to do anything else."

Grace thought about it and even though it made her blush to talk about it, she shared an idea with her friend. "Well, if he doesn't...lose his stamina right away, maybe mating with the bond established isn't impossible after all. If it's that intense, you probably won't even notice the discomfort when he first enters you. This could be a blessing for you, Sav."

"You're probably right," agreed the hybrid. She looked around and leaned closer to the taller woman. "But what do we do about the noise we're going to make while we're doing this? The guest tent they're letting us have to ourselves tonight isn't exactly equipped with sound-proof walls."

Grace chuckled. "I'm sure everyone here expects a newlywed couple to make noise on their wedding night, Savanna."

The hybrid's face went rosy. "But our _parents_ are here in the village. I don't want them to hear us doing...stuff!"

"Hmm, that could be a problem," agreed Grace. Savanna's parents were going to be sleeping in one of the Samsons so that Katherine could sleep without an exopack on, but Tom and Tanhi would be in the community guest tent, only a few yards away from the "honeymoon tent" the Guardian clan had set up for the young couple.

"I've got your solution."

Savanna and Grace both jumped at the sound of the unexpected voice joining their conversation. They gave Karyu a remonstrating look as she sauntered over to them with a sly little grin on her lips. Evidently, she had heard the tail-end of their conversation and she decided to insert her opinion unannounced.

"Okay, let's hear it," Gracie prompted. "What's your idea?"

"If you want some private time with your man, have him change into his hunting gear and call his ikran. There are caves in some of the landmasses close to here and he knows where they are and which ones are safe. Hole up in one for the night and do things to each other that I never want to hear about."

Gracie lifted her eyebrows. "I have to admit, that sounds like a good idea."

"But I thought it was dangerous to fly alone at night," reminded Savanna, "and we can't leave too soon. It would be rude."

"I'll escort you with one of my clansmen," answered Karyu with a shrug. "Just stick around long enough to finish the revelries and when everyone starts going to their pallets, we'll find somewhere private for you."

Savanna smiled at Karyu. "I knew I chose you as my Maid of Honor for a reason." Realizing she'd just said that in front of her other close Na'vi friend, she winced and looked at Grace apologetically. "Um...Gracie..."

Grace smiled and waved it off. "Relax. You two have always been like sisters and it's only fitting that you chose her to be at your side for the ceremony. I was happy to watch. Now, I need to check on Tsu'tey and you should get back to your mate, before he thinks we kidnapped you."

Savanna giggled and nodded in agreement.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

_**uniltìranyu**_= Dream Walker

_**Ma 'ite**_= My daughter

_**Oel ngati kameie**_= I see you


	29. Chapter 29

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 29: Convergence**

* * *

_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. WARNING: This chapter is rated "M" for graphic sexual content and yes, the scene is rather long because I feel these two deserve their special night and there won't be a lot of room for romantic scenes in the next few chapters. Those who have seen or read "The Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy" may get the pun near the end of the chapter. I haven't had the opportunity to do a thorough proofread, so I apologize for mistakes I may have missed. See the end of the chapter for an additional author's note. **_

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

She tried not to stare at him but Kato really did wear a tuxedo well. Savanna admired her mate—now her husband as well—and she was glad that he still wore his hair in the native style, complete with beads woven into the braids. There was something undeniably hot about the reminder that beneath the refined human-style clothing, there was still a wild spirit that could never be contained. She sipped from her painted cup, careful not to drink too much. She didn't want to be rude to anyone so she tried a little of the moonshine and a little of the wine.

She had chosen to dress in native attire to balance Kato's decision to dress as a human. She respected his culture as much as he respected hers and she wanted to show it. Karyu had been wildly supportive of the idea and she did most of the legwork with fashioning her wedding ensemble. It was clear that Kato approved and Savanna smiled softly as his warm gaze kept caressing her. She returned his appreciative looks, anticipating the pleasures they would share even as she struggled with maidenly fears and doubts. Granted, she and Kato had done almost everything _except _intercourse, but she knew for a fact that not many people could resist finalizing it for as long as they had.

"Sweetheart, your father and I are going to retire to the Samson," Katherine said, breaking into the young woman's thoughts.

Savanna tore her gaze off of her husband and she turned to look at her mom. She hoped the direction of her thoughts weren't written all over her face as she smiled at Katherine and glanced her father's way. "Of course. I'm sorry I haven't been paying much attention to you and Papa and I know you can't be comfortable, stuck in that exopack."

"Believe me, after using these things for so many years, I hardly notice them anymore," Katherine quipped with a smirk.

Savanna shrugged. "I still feel bad. You've been so understanding through this. I was sure you would flip when I showed you my wedding outfit."

Katherine eyed the native garb with a faint look of disapproval before sighing. "I'm not exactly thrilled with it, but I have to admit it's a beautiful combination and it's more than the average Na'vi wears from day to day. Besides, you're groom was graceful enough to dress traditionally for us. I think the two of you complimented each other nicely. Just give me some time to get over the knowledge that my little girl is a woman now."

Savanna hugged her carefully, mindful not to jostle the breathing filter and disrupt her airflow. "I love you, Mama." She sniffed and her vision blurred warningly.

"Don't start that," advised Katherine huskily as she returned the embrace. "If you start, I'll join you and the men in our lives will have two crying women on their hands. Go say goodnight to your father while I have a word with Kato."

Savanna regarded her suspiciously. "You aren't going to threaten him again, are you? Please, don't make him look over his shoulder all night."

Katherine chuckled. "Relax. I just want to congratulate the kid and say goodnight to him."

Savanna had her doubts, but she didn't argue with her mother. She went to her father's side and smiled as he took her hands and praised her beauty. They embraced and he whispered that if she needed anything at all during the night, she could come and get him. She knew all of this was hard on Sebastian but he held himself in check admirably and he said only kind words about Kato.

Savanna only hoped her mother was practicing the same courtesy while she said whatever it was she wanted to say to Kato.

"Mrs. Thomas," Kato greeted politely, nodding at his mother-in-law as she approached. The discussion he'd been having with his friends died down and Andrew scratched his head awkwardly, sensing the sudden tension in the air.

Katherine smirked. "Wow, am I really that intimidating? Kato, we're family now so I want you to start calling me 'Mom' or 'Mother'. It isn't appropriate for you to keep referring to me as 'Mrs. Thomas'."

"Yes Ma'am...uh, Mom," Kato responded, fumbling over the new title nervously. He moved away from the others so that they could speak more privately. "Are you comfortable enough? Is there anything I can get for you?"

Katherine shook her head, fighting quiet laughter. The boy might be a fierce Na'vi warrior but he could suck-up with the best of them. She almost said that he could get his nose out of her butt for a start, but she had promised her daughter to be nice to him and he _was_ just trying to be courteous. She knew she hadn't really given him a fair shake and after being confronted by his sister on the matter, Katherine appreciated how much Kato was giving up for her daughter.

"You need to relax," she soothed. She reached up to pat him just above the elbow—which was about as high as she could reach without stretching awkwardly. "I'm not here to 'get you'."

He chuckled nervously and lowered his eyes, shrugging. "That's good to know."

"I just wanted to congratulate you, welcome you to the family and tell you that you look very handsome in that tuxedo."

He raised his eyes and regarded her with faint surprise, flushing a little. "Thank you. Your husband picked out the style."

She smiled. "Sebastian does have good taste in clothes. Here, bend over so I can straighten your tie."

He obeyed and she adjusted the clothing article with practiced fingers. When she was finished, she pulled on the tie to bring Kato's head a little closer. "I know I don't need to remind you to be gentle with Savanna, when the two of you...finalize this."

"No Ma'am," he assured her. "You don't. I'd rather die than hurt her."

She looked into his eyes and measured the sincerity in them before nodding and releasing his tie. She smoothed the material and smiled at him benignly. "Good. We'll see you in the morning, Kato."

* * *

"Tsu'tey, scoot over a little."

He roused from his doze and looked up at his mate. He obligingly scooted back a little on the pallet to make room for her and he put an arm around her as she lay down beside him. There were a couple of other guests in the big tent, but they were passed out from over-consumption of nectar. "What time is it?"

"It's still early," answered Gracie, snuggling up to him. Her tail lazily caressed his outer thigh as she rested a leg over his and kissed his throat. "About four hours from midnight, I think. _Sa'nok_ is watching over Leyra, for now. I wanted to come and check on you."

"Check on me?" he repeated, puzzled. "I'm okay."

"Really?" She pulled away a bit to look at him searchingly. "You've been very lethargic, since the birth of our child. When you aren't trying to take care of me or the baby, you're going off somewhere alone and I'm sure you aren't always going to the bathroom for that long."

He flushed. "I really don't want to talk about my bowel movements."

Grace bit her lip and controlled her grin. She stroked a loose braid of his back into place over his shoulder and caressed his face. "Well, if you aren't having irregularity, then you're going off alone for another reason. Are you...relieving a different need, Tsu'tey? I know we haven't mated since weeks before Leyra was born. Is that it?"

The gentle insinuation that he might be sneaking off to masturbate made him blush harder and he shook his head. "No, that isn't what I'm doing. I can wait until you're ready and honestly, I've been too tired to think about sex, much."

She lowered her eyes. "A young, virile male that's too tired to think about sex. You have to admit, that's unusual. You've always been honest and open with me, Tsu'tey. Don't change that now...not after what we've been through and shared. Are you depressed?"

"I didn't say I _don't_ think of it," he corrected hastily, attempting to save face. He cast a quick glance around to ensure the other occupants of the guest tent were still safely conked out. "I just mean it's not that important right now. I'm still more than capable, if that's what you're worried about."

"Tsu'tey," Grace said sternly, even though she smiled patiently at him, "I'm not accusing you of being less of a man. If anything, your willingness to put your responsibilities before your personal pleasures makes you _more_ of a man, to me. I'm asking you these things because I'm worried about you. Now please, answer my question. Are you depressed?"

He took a deep breath, looked away and blinked. "Maybe," he whispered. "It's stupid, though."

She shook her head. "Tsu'tey, while I was carrying Leyra, _you_ were carrying _me_. Somehow, through everything we've been through, you always managed to keep your head up and lift me up when I started to fall. There's nothing stupid about buckling under the weight of everything you've been carrying on your shoulders, _ma Muntxatan_." She placed a tender kiss on his lips. "What have you really been doing, when you seek your privacy?"

He took a deep, shaken breath and shut his eyes. "Most of the time? Crying." His voice broke for a moment and he became visibly angry and frustrated with himself. "Crying like a weak, sniveling—"

She kissed him again to break off his tirade. "Stop that," she murmured against his lips. "I won't listen to you put yourself down that way. I'd love to see any one of those "macho men" in the village undergo the kind of pressure you have without breaking. I'll bet they wouldn't last half as long as you did."

He trembled with emotion and he tried so very hard not to break down at her kind, understanding words. "You need a man," he insisted in a tight voice, holding her closer. "Not a second infant."

She sighed. "Wow. You've spent waaay too much time listening to Emazu. He really got to you with all of his criticism over the years, didn't he?"

Tsu'tey looked away, still struggling against the tide of angst in his breast. "He's right about some things. A man has to be able to protect his family, at his mate's side or on his own. How can I do that if I turn into a crybaby every time the wind blows?"

Grace stroked his hair and kissed him again. "I don't care _what_ kind of nonsense men like Emazu say. You've got strength they can't even begin to imagine and I feel sorry for them. I want a mate who is honest with his feelings, who will express how much he loves our children and confide in me as much as I confide in him. You're that mate, Tsu'tey."

He swallowed. "I hope you mean that, because I'm about to cry again."

She smiled tenderly at him and drew his head to her shoulder. "Then cry. And from now on, when you want to go off alone to deal with this, I want you to bring me with you. That's how it's supposed to be, isn't it?"

His shoulders shook with his silent weeping as his emotions overwhelmed him again. He nodded and held her tighter as the tears trickled out from beneath tightly closed lids and rolled over her skin. He drew a ragged breath and choked a little. While it was a relief to know that she didn't think him less of a man for his angst, he was aware that his recent turmoil wasn't normal. He swallowed his tears enough to whisper an inquiry to his mate, trusting in her wisdom. "What's wrong with me, Gracie? I've...I've been sad before but never like this. S-sometimes I don't even want to get out of bed."

She nuzzled his hair and caressed his back. "And yet, you get out of bed anyway and you see to Leyra's needs the minute she fusses, if I don't already have her." She smiled and sighed. "Tsu'tey, you're just depressed. It happens to new parents sometimes and it will pass eventually. We just need to swallow our pride and let our parents help with the baby, so we can have some time to ourselves. You need to stop trying to do everything and be a little selfish, okay?"

He managed a smile and his tears began to dry. It was like that a lot of the time; the weeping would come without warning and then almost as quickly, it went away. "I guess it's time for me to lean on you a little."

"And I'll be glad to support you," she promised.

* * *

The evening went on and eventually, people sought out their pallets for sleep. Satisfied that they had properly attended their own celebration, Savanna murmured in Karyu's ear and the two of them coaxed Kato away from Andrew and Dustin to talk to him.

When Kato heard the plan for he and Savanna's wedding night, he bluntly and un-apologetically refused to agree to it. "No."

Savanna looked bewildered and a little disappointed. "But...why?"

"That's what _I'd_ like to know," added Karyu with a frown of suspicion. "You can barely keep your hands off of her and now you're saying you don't want to go somewhere private to _finally_ get what you've been after for so long? Are you baked?"

Realizing that his wife was quickly getting the impression that he wasn't in the mood to consummate their relationship, Kato rubbed Savanna's bare shoulders and looked down at her seriously. "I want you...I do. You _know_ how bad I want you; but our first time isn't going to be in a cave, with roosting stingbats, gravel and jagged rocks to worry about."

"B-but Kato," she stammered, "we've waited all this time and...and," she leaned closer to him and dropped her voice to a whisper, "you _know_ how _tsahaylu_ affects both of us. We'll wake up the whole village, if we try to do it _and_ link at the same time."

He had already considered that and he nodded. "I know, babe." He put his arms around her and pulled her closer. "I don't want to advertise what we're doing to everyone either, but I promised you I'm going to try not to act like a caveman and dragging you off to a cave to have my way with you isn't the way to keep that promise, you know?"

"Clever," commented Karyu with a snort.

Savanna giggled in appreciation for the pun. "But, I don't mind." She toyed with his lapels and gazed up at him with an air of feminine allure in her hazel eyes. "We've made out in worse places before and we're about as committed as two people can be, now. Who deserves this more than we do, Kato?"

He smiled, loving her even more. "I'm happy that you're willing to settle for a dank cave to be with me, Sav. My answer is still 'no'. You're right; we've waited and we've done all we can to commit to each other by the standards of both cultures. We've made all this effort to show everyone how much we mean to each other, so why the hell shouldn't I do the same for you? If it doesn't happen tonight, it'll happen later, when we have all the privacy and comfort you deserve."

Karyu cleared her throat as the couple began to kiss. "Still here."

They pulled away from each other and grinned at her. Karyu took a step back. "Now you two are getting creepy. I'm going to go back to the bonfire with the others and leave you to figure out what you want to do."

Savanna laughed as the female twin made her retreat. She leaned into Kato's embrace and sighed, resting her cheek against his chest. The top of her head only reached his lower chest and he had to bend a bit to nuzzle her there.

"Do you want to go to our tent now, Sav?" He did his best not to put any pressure behind the tone. Even if they didn't mate tonight, he fully intended to run his hands all over her body and kiss her into next week, but he didn't want her to feel rushed.

"I'd really like that," she murmured back, looking up at him with a smile and a promise in her hazel eyes.

Tails entwined, the newly wedded couple walked back through the village to the decorated tent that the Guardian clan had so thoughtfully set up for them. People smiled at them in passing and Kato guessed that his family ties to Mo'at were part of the reason the villagers were so accepting and friendly.

* * *

Karyu watched her parents on the other side of the fire and she debated over what her brother had said to her. He was right about one thing: if she never asked, she'd never know if Tanhi could come to accept Baxter as her choice and support her against the council's inevitable arguments. Karyu had a woman's needs now and she knew in her heart that Eywa wished her to choose a mate soon. Whether that mate turned out to be a male from her own clan or Baxter Howell, the frustration she felt would only keep building until nature's demands were satisfied.

What she felt wasn't so much a procreation urge as a growing desire to explore the pleasures of the mating act and familiarize herself with a partner's body. She knew from what she had been taught that this was a perfectly normal part of becoming a woman, and it could be many years before she was actually ready to conceive a child. Karyu was thankful for that last part and she hoped she had a long, long time to go before she was stuck waddling around with an extended belly.

"You look very pretty tonight, Karyu."

Startled by the unexpected compliment, she looked at the Ikran hunter standing near her and she blinked. He was around her age and he'd apparently decided to break away from the group of young Guardian hunters he was chatting with to drop a random bomb on her head. She struggled to remember his name. He was one of the males she had vaguely noticed before because he was put together nicely. His shoulders were broad and his lean build had nice muscle tone. His face wasn't bad, but it wasn't nearly as handsome as Howell's.

"Omocan," she greeted, finally remembering his name. From the corner of her eye, she saw Dustin and Andrew watching with interest and she collected herself with care. "It's the garments."

His eyes swept over said garments appreciatively, lingering on the beaded loincloth for a moment before taking in the shell top. "You have a way with stringing shells and beads. The colors and pattern brings out your beauty."

She raised one eyebrow, taking note of the wooden cup in his hand. "You're drunk. Stop waxing poetic before you embarrass yourself."

He flushed a little, but he nodded respectfully. "I meant no offense, Chieftess' daughter."

She sighed, feeling a little sorry for him. If the guy was crazy enough to approach her then he must harbor _some_ honest attraction for her beneath the haze of nectar. "Let's just forget about it. Go and enjoy the rest of the night with your friends."

He gave her a tentative little smile and another nod before walking away, sensible enough even in his cups to know when to back off. Karyu shook her head a little as she watched him and she checked out his butt superficially. It was nice, but not as well shaped as Baxter's tushy. Of course, she could see more of Omacan's tush than she'd ever seen of Howell's but she was sure that kind of firm curvature wasn't just a result of the way army fatigues fit the body. Her thoughts immediately went to the wristwatch she had stashed in her little backpack in the guest lodge and she sighed. Now she wasn't going to be able to look at another male without automatically thinking of him or his stupid watch.

"Well, what'd you think?"

Karyu looked at Dustin, who had sidled closer to her with Andrew while she was distracted. "About what?"

He nodded in the direction of the retreating young hunter. "Him."

She shrugged. "He's there."

"Really?" Dustin looked a little surprise. "You didn't think he was a little...good-looking?"

Andrew gave the shorter avatar a hairy eyeball. "Did _you_ think he was a little good-looking?"

Dustin got a little flustered and he sipped his wine from his custom painted cup. "I...well, for Karyu, not for me."

"But you think he's hot," Andrew insisted.

Karyu abruptly took the taller avatar's cup out of his hand and splashed the remaining contents on the ground before giving it back to him. "There. This stuff is making the alpha bullshit rise and you don't need anymore. Dustin was just trying to play matchmaker—which isn't necessary—and I'm not in the mood to listen to a lover's spat."

Dustin chuckled at the slack-jawed look on Andy's face. "That's what you get."

Karyu smirked. She noticed that both of her parents looked as though they were ready to seek their pallets and Karyu decided she needed to follow at least some of her brother's advice. With a little drink in her, Tanhi might be more open. It was the perfect opportunity to test the waters. "If you two will excuse me, I have to go jump in a fire pit."

Her statement effectively nudged Andrew out of his stunned condition. "Huh?"

"What's that?" added Dustin, watching her with honest concern.

"Metaphor," she excused, realizing that both of the boys were too buzzed to understand she wasn't being literal. "I've got to talk to my mother about something. You two enjoy the rest of the night."

_Someone _should, because she knew _she_ wasn't going to.

* * *

"_Sa'nok_, can I speak with you for a minute?"

Tanhi regarded her with quietly curious eyes before nodding. Tom glanced at his daughter, noticed her tension and took the hint that this was a mother/daughter moment. Proving again that he knew the women in his life better than anyone else, he took a moment to kiss Karyu on the forehead and compliment her conduct and outfit before kissing his mate on the cheek.

"I'll keep the pallet warm for you," he promised Tanhi.

Tanhi squeezed his hand before he left and she gestured for Karyu to take a set on the woven mat she had just been sitting on with him. Mother and daughter sank down on it together and Karyu waited while one of the Guardian hunters added more deadwood to the blaze and stoked the fire. It would burn all through the night until morning—a common tradition amongst a broad range of clans during times of celebration. The villagers would take turns monitoring the fire until sunrise.

"What is it you wished to speak with me about, daughter?"

Tanhi's amber gaze was steady on her, making Karyu wonder if she'd had enough nectar to relax. Her mother was generally careful not to over-imbibe during public gatherings—particularly when her actions could affect her clan's reputation. Karyu nearly lost her nerve—a thing that only her mother could make her do. She steeled herself inside; almost desperate to find out if there was any chance in hell she could ever have what her twin so obviously had with Savanna. She knew she had to choose her words carefully and avoid being too obvious about her reasons for this conversation.

"Do you think the clan will accept Kato's partnership with Savanna?"

Tanhi nodded and she gazed into the dancing flames. "They will. They have known her since she was small and he has no obligation to mate within the clan."

Karyu winced inwardly. "But I do."

Tanhi looked at her sidelong. "_Ma 'Ite, _there is nothing you must do that you truly do not wish to do. There is no-one in our clan that would try to make you bond with a male you do not want."

"But to be a good leader, I'm expected to mate within the clan and provide offspring," reasoned the younger huntress softly.

"True," agreed Tanhi with a nod, "but that is not to say you _must_ do these things. Some women cannot produce children. Some don't find compatible mates. Some do these things but find that their offspring are not suitable to bear the responsibilities of _Olo'eyktan_. As I have told you before, the most important responsibility you will have as clan leader is to protect and provide for your people. You may choose someone within the clan to lead if something happens to you, as I did with Peyla. The council will decide if that choice is sound or not."

Karyu had heard all of this before but she knew her mother was trying to reassure and guide her. What she needed the most was still out of grasp. "Then it really doesn't matter who I pick as a mate or whether I have children," she reasoned. "I can always pick someone else in the clan for the role."

"You can, if that is the best choice available to you." Tanhi looked at her squarely. "But I know the council would rather see another generation of our line leading the People, if it is possible. You know this as well."

Karyu silently cursed her mother for doing such a good job leading the tribe. She cursed her people for being hypocrites, while she was at it. They loved the things Tanhi had accomplished but they hated the thought of another _olo'eyktan_ choosing an avatar instead of one of their own as a mate. They didn't want more of the Sky People's blood being passed onto future leaders but they had unanimously agreed that Karyu—a "half-breed"—was best suited to succeed Tanhi in the role of chieftess. They saw the same qualities in the daughter that had made the mother such a fine leader and they wanted the next generation to have that benefit as well.

She decided to try a different angle. "If the council had opposed your choice to mate with _Sempul_, would you have gone along with it?"

Tanhi stared at the fire, going still for a moment. "It was already done when I informed the council of our bond. You know this."

"But if they had asked you to stop seeing him before that happened," Karyu elaborated, "would you have? You might have 'accidentally' become mates but that wouldn't have happened if you hadn't been sleeping with him." She couldn't bring herself to use raunchy language to describe her parents' relationship and activities.

Tanhi considered the words. "If the council had asked me not to see him when it first began, I probably would have listened."

"What about after you started to love him?" Karyu persisted, grimacing as the "L" word left her mouth. It was hard to say that word while thinking of Howell, simply because it forced her to evaluate her true feelings for him. She didn't like to admit defeat.

"What a face you make, when speaking that word," Tanhi observed with an amused little smile. She sobered quickly and she looked in the direction of the large guest tent, where her mate and many other visitors had retired for the night.

"Could you give him up?" Prompted Karyu, "Even after falling in l—after having feelings for him?"

Tanhi's yellow gaze peered into hers and Karyu had the horrible feeling that the woman could see straight through the smokescreen and see the conflict, heartache and need in her soul. She might as well be wearing an: "I heart Baxter" t-shirt, or maybe one that said: "Karyu+Baxter 4-ever". That was what all those twitterpated girls at Savanna's school wrote all over their personal belongings, when they were stupefied by a crush.

"Why do you ask these things tonight, daughter?"

Karyu blurted the first thing that sprang to mind. "I'm trying to understand why people in love do stupid things," she answered—honestly enough.

Tanhi chuckled softly and she reached out to stroke the younger woman's hair fondly. "You are such a free spirit, my daughter...yet your wisdom is greater than your years. Yes, love makes fools of even the most sensible people. I am sorry to say, I was no exception."

Karyu smiled a little and took advantage of the moment to lay her head on her mother's slim shoulder. "Then you wouldn't have given him up," she guessed, "if the council had tried to make you choose."

"Your _Sa'nok_ is not perfect," sighed Tanhi, still stroking her hair. "I think I would have chosen exile over losing my Tom, by the time I began to love him."

"Really?" Karyu hadn't even thought of exile. She couldn't imagine her people banishing her mother over such a thing, but perhaps they weren't as loyal to her back in the days before the twins were born. "Do you really think they would have kicked you out of the clan if they opposed your relationship and you didn't give in?"

The _olo'eyktan_ considered the question for a moment and shook her head. "No. They would not have gone that far. I believe the council would have demanded that Peyla come forward to take my place as clan leader, but they would not have abandoned me for my choice in mates."

Karyu lifted her head off her mother's shoulder and looked into the fire. "Then the only thing you really had to lose was your right to lead the clan."

Tanhi looked at her thoughtfully. "I had honor to lose, Karyu. My choice would have been selfish and as you said; love makes people do foolish things. I was fortunate that the clan supported my choice."

Karyu sighed heavily and picked up a stick to toss into the bonfire. "I get it. We don't _have_ to have approval, but if we don't we're shaming ourselves."

Tanhi regarded her somberly. "Yes...'we'. As leaders of the Ikran people, we must make choices that others don't have to make. We must think of how our actions may affect our clan and we must put the needs of those who follow us above our own. I failed to do that, but they forgave me. You must do better, _'Ite_."

Karyu's heart was heavy as she nodded and lowered her gaze. "I will, _Sa'nok_."

* * *

Breathless mouths sought one another out in the dim light, cast by the glowlamps hanging from the tent ceiling. Hands caressed, tickled and teased as the newly wedded pair explored one another through their clothes. Tongues met and parted, husky endearments were made and bodies came together in a tight embrace. They had waited for this long. They had done so much already and logically, they shouldn't have been so nervous.

At least, that was what Kato thought as he stroked his mate's arm and murmured her name. Her fingers were uncoordinated as she fumbled with his tie. Her soft, plush lips were eager against his and her body responded favorably to his touch, even as it trembled. He was in a similar state of tense anticipation, trembling almost as much as she was. His dress jacket soon followed the tie and Savanna was turning her attention to his shirt, now. He glided his hand over her ribcage and down to her hip as they reclined together on the pallet of soft hides. It wasn't exactly a fluffy bed with candles and rose petals but it was romantic by native standards.

"It's okay," he promised her huskily as he carefully released the gossamer skirt from its fastenings. "Remember, we don't have to go all the way tonight. I'd never hurt you."

"You're shaking just as much as I am," she pointed out with a breathless laugh. She unbuttoned his dress shirt halfway and slipped her hands into the opening, exploring his chest with her fingertips.

He laughed as well. "I guess that doesn't help you feel more secure."

She kissed his throat, just above the clavicle. "Actually, it makes me feel a little better to know you're nervous too."

She finished unbuttoning his shirt and her lips caressed his skin, dropping lower to his chest as she pulled the garment open to expose his torso. Kato removed the combs from her hair and set them aside, before brushing her thick mane aside to unfasten the cord behind her neck that supported her top. He finished undoing her top and he pulled it off of her. Her thigh pressed against his hip as she lifted her knee and stroked his leg with her bare foot.

"Lift up a little," begged Savanna huskily when he broke the kiss to lick and nibble her throat. He obeyed, supporting himself on one elbow and rocking to the side a little to give her the space she needed. She started to unzip his trousers, pausing when he tweaked her nipple and nibbled her ear. She murmured in delight and he teased the other nipple, encouraged by her response.

Kato spoke her name in a soft, breathy voice when she got his pants undone and freed his stiffened sex. He took a moment to enjoy the feel of her hand grasping it and sliding up and down the length before he returned his attention to pleasuring her. He tried to take his time and not rush it, even though every stroke of her talented hand threatened to turn him into a panting beast. He loved the dusky lilac color of her nipples and areolas and he alternated between lavishing attention on them and palming the fullness of her breasts.

He eased his body off hers, calming himself with some effort. He was careful not to pull out of her reach and spoil the wonderful massage she was giving him. He rolled onto his side so that he could finish undressing her without putting his full weight on her and he lowered his mouth to her breasts and pleasured them one at a time with lips and tongue. She arched her back and stroked his hair with her fee hand, softly begging him not to stop. He sucked on the silky, pebbled flesh of her left nipple as he loosened her loincloth down and removed it with as much care as he could muster. Once it crowned the growing pile of their garments, he sought out his next goal and he released her nipple to kiss her on the mouth again.

Savanna mumbled his name as his fingers began to caress, press and rub the swollen little nub crowning her loins. She undulated beneath him and he in turn pumped his hips slowly, encouraging her reciprocal stimulation. He released her lips to kiss the tip of her nose, her chin, her cheeks and even her eyelids. He took slow, steadying breaths as he trailed his mouth down her body again, feasting his lips on her soft skin. Her breasts were rising and falling rapidly now and the sensitive flesh beneath his fingers grew moist and slippery with her arousal.

"I love you," he murmured, pausing to lift his head and gaze down at her with all sincerity. "I don't care how mushy I sound. This is one of those times I have to say it."

She gazed back up at him with soft shining eyes and smiled. "Karyu isn't here to pick on you for being romantic. I love you too, Kato."

He kissed her and ran he fondled her carefully, hoping to bring her to that gasping, blushing state of pleasure that enthralled him so much. He loved making her come, loved watching the expressions her pretty face underwent and the way she made those soft little sounds of delight. The stroking of her hand on his erection made it difficult to concentrate and he had to fight the desire to climb onto her and get rude.

Almost as if she could read his thoughts, her next words shocked him to stillness. "I want you inside of me."

Kato stared at her, hopelessly tempted but determined to be a good mate to her. "I thought we agreed it could wait for when we have more privacy from prying ears," he reminded her.

She stroked his arousal gently and she slicked her thumb over the viscous drop of fluid that had formed on the glans. He groaned and bowed his head as she stimulated the tender little hole at the tip and his ears laid flat against his head with the effort to hold back.

"We're mates and this is our wedding night, Kato. I want us to have what other brides and grooms have, the night they get married."

"You aren't worried about people hearing us?" Kato asked huskily. He began to thrust with her strokes and he hoped to Eywa she was sincere...because he was about to explode with need for her.

She bit her lip and glanced at the shut tent flap. "It's like Grace told me; people expect newly wedded or mated couples to make at least a little noise on their first night together. We'll just have to be really careful to keep it down, so your parents don't hear it."

"You're _absolutely_, one-hundred percent _sure_ about this?" Kato's breath shivered on his lips and he reached down to still her stroking hand. "Because if we start doing this...I mean, I'll stop if I'm hurting you or if you really want me to but—"

She rose on her elbows and kissed him, interrupting his queries. "I'm sure." She slid her hands down his body and she began to push his trousers down around his hips, urging him to remove the last clothing article on him. "We're not sneaking around anymore and we don't have to save ourselves. This is the right time and I'm tired of things getting in the way—like these pants; for example."

Kato laughed when she grunted in annoyance over being unable to get the trousers down past his buttocks. "It's because of the hole in the back for my tail," he said. He helped her with it, reaching down his pants in the back to thread his tail through the material as Sav pushed it down. When that obstacle was cleared, he rolled further onto his side and wriggled out of them.

He looked at his mate hungrily; taking a moment to drink in the sight of her naked, perfect body. She reached for him as he slid one hand up her leg, over her hip and over her ribs. He eased on top of her again, gently urging her to part her thighs for him as he stroked her body and kissed her. She rested her palms on his chest and gazed up at him as she lifted her knees and angled her pelvis for him. He saw her throat move tellingly as she swallowed and he kissed the spot.

"If I hurt you, just punch me," he whispered.

She huffed a nervous little laugh. "I'm not going to hit you for something you can't help. I'll be okay."

He smiled at her before bracing himself and reaching down between their bodies. He positioned himself and bumped against her experimentally, pressing the head of his sex against her entrance. He rocked forward and breached her slowly, easing in just past the tip. He released his shaft and supported his weight on his elbows as he kissed her, soothing away the pained little sounds she made. He wished he could say something reassuring and more than that, he wished he could share the experience with her through _tsahaylu_. She had her eyes tightly shut and her hands were clenched into fists against his chest.

"Sav, I'm not moving further until you're ready for more, okay?"

She opened her eyes and sucked in a slow breath. She opened her hands and stroked her palms over his chest before embracing him and rubbing his back. "I'm ready."

He wanted so badly to believe that and fill her completely, but he felt her quivering around him and he could see pain in her eyes. "I thought we were going to be honest with each other, babe."

She bit her lip and she slid her hands down to caress the small of his back before settling on his bottom. "I don't want to prolong it, that's all. I'd rather the hard part be over with fast."

"And I promise I'll try to do that for you," he answered. He lowered his head and nuzzled her hair. He would have to bend a bit to kiss her on the mouth now, due to her smaller size and the position they were in. "But I'm not going to force it, okay? I don't want the memory of our first time to be of you screaming in pain."

She relaxed a little and traced patterns on his skin with her fingertips. "I don't want that either. I'm ready, Kato. I promise; it doesn't hurt as much now."

He would have preferred to hear her say it didn't hurt at all, but he supposed that wasn't going to happen. Vaguely thankful that he wasn't the woman in this relationship, Kato pushed forward until he felt resistance. He listened to his instincts and he withdrew a little before bucking forward firmly, breaking through the impeding barrier swiftly. He was surprised that it went so smoothly but his partner's reaction reminded him that she was the one suffering the brunt of it.

Savanna's fingernails dug into his back and she made a pained little sound. He looked down at his mate and he faltered, almost losing his erection at the strained look on her face. He supported his weight on one elbow and caressed her body, attempting to soothe and pleasure at the same time. He bowed his back so that he could kiss her on the mouth and he fondled her breasts before slipping his hand down between their bodies and searching with his fingertips.

"I'm going to make it better," he promised...though in truth he wasn't so sure he could. He didn't know jack shit about this part of sex beyond things he'd seen or read in porn and educational material. His hand trembled as he sought the flesh that might make her pain diminish and make the experience more pleasurable to her. He tried to calm himself and he cursed as he began to soften inside of her.

"I'm sorry, Kato," Savanna whispered, noticing the effect her distress was having on his libido.

Her apology only made him feel worse. "You don't have anything to be sorry for."

He kissed her again and he gently stimulated the tender pearl of her clitoris. He could feel how tight her flesh was stretched around the girth of his deflating sex and he thought it was probably a blessing that he was losing some of it. Maybe she could adjust better while he wasn't in a fully erect state inside of her. He mashed his guilty feelings down and concentrated on stimulating her, hoping to make good on his promise to make it better.

Savanna began to explore his body with her hands again after a few moments and he noticed her tension fading. Too afraid to rush it and hurt her again, Kato kept going, shifting carefully so that he could nuzzle her throat, nibble that spot on her shoulder the way she liked it and suckle her nipples until they were erect and hard. He could sense the difference as his steady ministrations brought her pleasure. The little nub he was fondling with his fingers was swollen again, as was the flesh surrounding it. He was hardening inside of her once more and he looked at her face for any sign of discomfort as he steadily regained his erection.

"How is it, _Syulang_?" Kato whispered when she shut her eyes and licked her lips.

"It's better," she answered. She rubbed the back of his thighs with the heels of her feet and squeezed his bottom. "It feels...weird...but it doesn't hurt so much."

He was so reluctant to hurt her that he couldn't quite believe her. "You aren't just saying that, are you?"

She opened her eyes and looked up at him. Giving him a tremulous, yet mischievous little smile, she reached for the base of his tail.

"Hey, quit that," he warned, trying to tug the appendage out of her grasp without dislodging himself from inside of her or pushing further into her.

"I don't want to," she answered stubbornly.

The teasing tone of her voice was a little off, suggesting that she was still suffering some discomfort. He would have given her a second warning, but she persisted in stimulating his weak spot and a resonant purr vibrated in his throat instead. His teeth clenched and his tail lifted to sway over their joined bodies like a charmed snake. He rocked on top of her, his shaft quickly swelling the rest of the way to fullness inside of her. She moaned softly but she offered no complaints.

"Come on, Kato," Savanna murmured coaxingly, undulating beneath him seductively. Her breath caught a bit and she whimpered.

He maintained enough presence of mind to keep fondling her clitoris as he began to move. "Take it easy," he begged shakenly, trying with all his might to resist moving his hips too sharply. Eywa, she fit him so perfectly. As he eased his stiff length forward and back inside of her tight warmth, he thought nothing could possibly match the feel of her.

Savanna was a tenacious young woman but she was no fool. She did as he advised and she tempered her stimulation of his tail, manipulating just enough to get him back on track before stroking the base of it in her hand and letting go. She embraced him and gasped his name as he began to gently thrust. She cupped the back of his head to draw him down for a kiss and he panted into her mouth as he obliged, emulating the motions of his pumping sex with his tongue. With each moment, her body seemed to accept him more and it only got better as it happened. He released her mouth and tossed his head back, struggling not to bellow with pleasure.

"Kato," Savanna called, forgetting that they were supposed to be keeping it as quiet as possible.

"Shh," he advised unsteadily, bowing his back and descending again to kiss her. "I'll go slower if it's too much, babe."

She shook her head and looked at him with both pleasure and pain evident on her flushed features. She was beginning to move against him, striving to match his motions and find the most pleasurable angle for both of them. It seemed as if she felt a compulsion to do it; her gasps and moans had a desperation to them that made him want to mate with her all night long.

Savanna bit down on another ragged moan, her tension rising. She started to cling to him desperately and she pleaded with him between kisses, begging him to keep going. He muffled her cries with another kiss and he added his groans to them. He thrust faster and when he felt her clenching around him, he stopped stimulating her with his fingers and he concentrated on supporting his weight with both arms. He felt her strength waning as the inner spasms quieted and she fell back to the pallet and panted, stroking his back as she watched him.

Suddenly, Savanna picked up her queue and then reached for the trailing end of his. Kato slowed his pumping and he tried to warn her not to do that, but he was vulnerable in his rut and his reaction wasn't fast enough. She put the ends of their queues together and the tendrils eagerly, lovingly entwined.

Kato crushed his mouth against hers quickly and awkwardly; hoping to muffle the inevitable shouts of ecstasy he knew would soon be erupting from their throats. It was a sloppy, unromantic kiss but Kato was in no position to make it "nice". He was lucky he didn't chip one of his or Savanna's teeth.

The first wave of neurological convergence swept through the mating couple and they both gasped. Savanna held Kato tight and wrapped her legs around his waist, stilling his motions. They braced themselves in anticipation as their feelings and sensations met and flowed into each other. The pleasure they were both feeling grew with the bond and they kissed passionately, seeing each other and the world around them more vividly than before.

The explosive rush never came, however.

Kato paused in confusion and Savanna's expression relaxed into the same puzzled look. The sensual flow was still there, but it wasn't overwhelming like usual. He had expected to come immediately and keep coming until he passed out on top of his mate, but the resonance of shared sensations seemed to be pitched at a more bearable rate, now.

"I don't understand," Savanna murmured, catching her breath. She stroked his braids and looked up at him questioningly. "Kato?"

He was at a loss too, and the condition he was in didn't help him think any clearer. He swallowed and tried to concentrate through the sensations, mentally reviewing every time they had shared _tsahaylu_ and the circumstances surrounding it. He finally could think of only one answer.

"It has to be because we're mating," he whispered. He gently moved within her and he smiled a little, feeling both his own pleasure and hers. _Now_ he knew he wasn't hurting her any more, though he felt the underlying ache she was experiencing. "It's the only thing that's different, this time. Genetics might be initially responsible for it but I think our pent-up frustration might have lent a hand in the intensity of our link before. This...this is more like the _tsahaylu_ I always hear about."

He began to rock again, watching her face as he flexed his hips. Her lips parted and she moaned softly, running her hands over his chest and stomach. Kato shut his eyes and let the feelings consume him. He quickened his thrusts gradually, fighting his instincts out of the lingering fear that too much enthusiasm on his part would harm her. Her hitching gasps and moans were music to his ears and when she held him tight and kissed his heaving chest, he gave in and put more force behind it. Savanna reciprocated as best she could and together, they found a rhythm and positioning that worked best for them both.

"Kato," Savanna moaned when they were both getting close to peaking, "can I?" She gripped the base of his tail meaningfully and he could sense her curiosity through the link.

He was very close anyway and he wanted to see how she'd react to feeling what he always felt when she did that. He nodded and kissed her. Those artistic, talented fingers pressed, rubbed and kneaded the erogenous spot and Kato began to purr loudly. He was beyond caring if anyone outside happened to hear the rumbling sound. All that mattered to him at this moment was his mate and the pleasures he was sharing with her.

"So..._that's_ what it feels like," gasped Savanna. "No...wonder you purr...so loud."

He laughed despite the consuming bliss he was in. "I see you."

She smiled at him. "I see you, Kato."

She continued to stimulate him as they matched their movements again and soon the couple was writhing against each other, trying their best to keep their voices down. Together they reached heights of sensation that human beings unfortunately would never know in the flesh. Kato gave Savanna his seed the moment her body coaxed it from him in her orgasm. He shuddered over her and he did his best not to collapse as he filled her with everything he had. When he was spent, she lay gasping beneath him, caressing his face and watching him with an expression of quiet wonder.

Kato shifted on top of her, withdrawing from her carefully before kissing her with unhurried, sated affection. She stroked his hair and when he lay on his side and pulled her close, she rested her head against his chest. They remained linked and they caressed and kissed leisurely, both of them marveling over what it was like to finally experience _tsahaylu_ without being reduced to a state of baser, carnal responses.

The young couple fell asleep in each other's arms, dreaming of their future together.

* * *

_The next morning; somewhere on the continent north of Australis:_

She and her brother were hunting together when the _tawtute _flying machines passed overhead and spoiled what would have been a fine kill. The Sky People weren't supposed to pass through or over this territory and yet they had done so several times this year. The first time was just before the Great Gathering at _Ayvitrayä Ramunong_. Knowing that the clans to the south were at peace with the aliens at Hell's Gate, it was assumed they were only on a scouting trip.

Lately, the appearance of these human engineered flying machines occurred more often and this time, the noisy things passed low over the canopy of the sibling's chosen game trail. The aircrafts disturbed the canopy in passing and the noise frightened away the impressive _yerik_ buck that Teikru was just about to bring down. The Mune'tsyal chieftain stabbed his spear into the ground and kicked a small mushroom over, cursing at the top of his lungs and shaking his fist at the sky. The humans in the metal contraptions didn't see him or hear his outrage, of course. The tiltrotors continued on their way and the siblings were able to catch enough of a glimpse through the canopy to count two of them.

"We must see where they are going," Decided Teikru, once his temper calmed enough to think rationally. "There have been too many disturbances. Even if they are not invading our territory, I don't like these _tawtute_ passing our lands so often without permission or warning. You said the southern tribes assured you that their alien friends would not do such a thing without contacting us first."

"They did," agreed Alyara. "The Omaticaya_ olo'eyktan_ is no fool and he has no love for the Sky People. He would not say they are honorable if he did not believe his own words."

"Whether he believed them or not, his words could be poisoned with deceit."

Alyara's expression darkened. "Emazu is no liar. He is a fine warrior of the People, like you."

Teikru looked up at the trees, picking out one of the more impressive specimens of _txepvi_ trees nearby. In their part of the world, these trees grew much taller than the ones native to the southern continents, reaching heights almost as impressive as the Australis _tautral_ trees. "You must climb up and look," he demanded of her, rubbing his left thigh through the protective hide leggings he wore.

Understanding why he was asking her instead of doing it himself, she handed her spear and her short bow over to him. With skill born of both training and natural instinct, she jumped onto the trunk and began to shimmy up to the top. The elbow-length, fingerless gloves she wore for grip, protection and warmth helped her keep a firm hold on the trunk. The leather wraps around her feet helped as well, providing protection to the soles and top of her feet without covering her toes and inhibiting grip. She was mid-way to the top when Teikru distracted her.

"Sister, what do you see?"

Alyara paused and opened her mouth to speak—only to have a drop of resin fall into it from one of the tubular leaves at the top of the tree. She grimaced and spit the substance out before looking down at her brother with annoyance. "I have not reached the top yet, impatient one."

Teikru compressed his lips and lapsed into silence, though the frustration on his upturned face was evident. He could not climb the tall _tautral_ safely, himself. His leg hadn't recovered enough from his hunting injury to shimmy up the trunk the way his sister was now doing, though he could still get around in the heavily branched trees nimbly enough. Alyara took pity on him, understanding how it hurt his pride to have to rely on someone else to climb above the canopy to investigate.

She took a moment to secure her grip before resuming her ascent. She didn't climb all the way to the crown of the tree. Once she made it above the thickest part of the canopy, she stopped and peered out over the vivid landscape, seeking the retreating airships. She spotted them easily after a moment and she narrowed her eyes, taking in the details.

"You were right," she called down to her brother, "there are two of them."

"Do they bear any markings?"

She strained her eyes and hugged the trunk with one arm so she could shield her vision with one hand. "Yes. One bears the marks of the Omaticaya clan and the other has the strange markings of the Sky People on the side. I cannot read them."

"Where do they go?"

She mentally reviewed the landscape before answering. "They are moving to the _Wew-hufwe ayram_. We can try to follow, but it will be difficult on ground. We would do better getting our ikrans from the nesting grounds, first."

He considered their options for a moment. "Come down," he finally said, grim-faced. "This is something we should discuss with the council. It makes no sense for the aliens to put Na'vi markings on their machines."

She began to descend. "The Omaticaya explained that the Hell Gate people do it as a symbol of their loyalty, and so the clans will know it is them when they move over or through Na'vi territory."

"They have not met with us to discuss flight through our territory," he reminded her. "I think the Omaticaya _olo'eyktan_ may be wrong for putting his trust in them."

"I only know what they have told me," she confessed, grunting as she reached the bottom and jumped the last few feet to the ground, "but I have seen those Sky People markings on other flying machines that have passed over before. They are not from the Hell Gate."

"We will decide the best action to take," he assured her, looking up at the sky. He handed her weapons back to her. "This is a matter for the spiritual leaders as well as the warriors. The safety of the clan must come first."

Alyara nodded her agreement and together, they secured their belongings and navigated the forest back to their village.

* * *

He made the announcement to his people as soon as they arrived in the village. The Mune'tsyal clan stopped their chores and activities to listen to their young leader as Teikru described what he and Alyara had seen while out hunting.

"I don't know if these outsiders are a threat to our people or not," he said in closing, "but we all know the things Sky People have done to the People of other clans before us and they are coming here without seeking out our council or permission. I am not willing to risk the same thing happening to our clan as what happened to our Omaticaya brethren to the south. Remember, these aliens tried to destroy our most sacred tree...our link to the All Mother. I want the council to gather this evening and we will decide what to do about this."

There were hoots of agreement and nods all around. Children asked questions of their parents, frightened by the _olo'eyktan's_ grim tone and the undercurrent of danger in his announcement. Teikru watched them with regret and his sister joined his side and reminded him that there were worse things than fright for little ones to deal with.

"You would do them no good by pretending there is no danger," Alyara murmured, her gaze sweeping over the people, the sturdy lodges and the many curing and weaving racks in the center of the village.

Smoke escaped from vent holes in the roofs of many of the lodges, allowing families to cook or brew in the shelter of their homes. There was of course a community fire pit, where the villagers happily shared the responsibility of roasting large game to share with the clan...but in this climate, hearth fires were important for the overall well being of each family. The surrounding forests and mountains lent a deceptive scene of peace and beauty to the village. While beautiful and crisp in the closest thing Pandora had to a conifer ecosystem, the territory was quite dangerous. Right now, the clan was in a state of respite from a harsh winter. The gift of spring and the following summer wouldn't last for long, though.

Alyara saw all of this reflected in her brother's eyes and she gave him an uncommon little smile and patted his arm. "It was one buck, _Tsmukan_. We will have opportunity to bring home many more, before the seasons turn again. This is the time of year we do not have to worry so much about our meat supplies."

"I would agree, if it were not for the intruders," he muttered. "We need supplies, _Tsmuke_. If it comes to evacuating our people, we must have the means to keep everyone fed and healthy for the journey. We must also have enough for everyone while in hiding."

"We can do nothing for that now," she said firmly. "Our hunt was spoiled and that is that. Look, your mate approaches. She will want to see to your leg and feed you. I will look at our supplies and select gatherers to go into the forest this afternoon. You are no good to us if you let your injury worsen again."

He looked at Marali as the _tsahik_ approached, climbing up the hill to where he and Alyara stood. Theirs had been a pairing of traditional custom and truthfully; they hadn't really liked one another in the beginning. Now they were expecting their first child and she was in the first visible stages of her pregnancy. Her eyes went to his left leg when he unconsciously rubbed his thigh and her noble features took on an expression of faint concern.

"Come," urged the _tsahik_, "I have hot soup waiting in our lodge. Alyara, will you join us?"

"I must count supplies and see to gathering duties," answered the huntress, "but I thank you for the offer, sister."

"I will bring you a bowl to eat while you work," insisted Marali, "After I see to my mate's leg."

"My leg is fine," argued Teikru. "It has been months since it happened and it is almost healed."

Marali pursed her lips at him and she reached up into her headdress to withdraw a rather sharp, wooden ornament. She poked him in the thigh with it, right where the healing gash was concealed beneath the leathers. He grimaced and his leg buckled a little.

"Don't lie," lectured the _tsahik_ with satisfaction as she supported him around the waste. "You were fortunate not to lose the use of that leg completely, mate. It will take time for the injury to heal in full. Now, come to our lodge and eat so that I may see to it."

He sighed and nodded in compliance, trying to ignore the smirks exchanged between his mate and his sister. No matter how great the chieftain, there was always some female telling him what to do.

* * *

The hearth fire was dying, now that there was nothing to cook or boil. The clan was careful to only use dead wood and dried plant materials for their fires, never cutting down live trees or stripping too many leaves and fibers from the local plant life.

"You have angered it," observed Marali as she rubbed the salve into the scarred tissue on his thigh.

Teikru sat stripped to his loincloth in the lodge they shared, reclined against the back wall on their sleeping pallet. He took another spoonful of soup and grunted in response to her comment, watching her as he ate. He admired the way the dying firelight danced on her features. She was a pretty woman...one of the prettiest in the clan. She was far too bossy, however. That particular character flaw of hers was rather easy to forgive when her skilled hands worked their magic on any part of his body. Her strong fingers kneaded the muscle as she smoothed the medicinal salve over his injury. It ached, but in a good way...like any massage on a sore or tense muscle.

"I almost had him," he said between bites. "It was a large buck. He would have provided meat for five families, but the _tawtute _came and spoiled it."

"Don't pout," she admonished with a little smile, keeping her gaze on her work. "It is not fitting for the _olo'eyktan_."

"I am not pouting," he objected, flushing. "I am having a conversation with my mate."

"Then talk to me about these _tawtute_ and what you feel we should do about them," she urged, looking up from what she was doing to meet his eyes. "I hope you are not considering fighting them, Teikru. We are a small clan and you know the winter was hard on us. Our warriors need to recover from the cold season. They are all still too lean...including you. The ikrans and _pa'li_ are also in need of nourishment."

"Yes, I know all of this," he groused. "How reckless do you think I am? I will not suggest we take a war party and attack these intruders immediately, _Muntxatu_. Even as a newly made hunter, I was never so foolish."

"But I know how your pride is," she insisted softly. "You have felt the need to prove yourself to us since your injury. You think we don't see a strong leader when we look at you. I worry that this could influence your judgment in a bad way."

"That is why we have a _council_," he reminded her in frustration, trying to ignore the sting of truth in her words. "I cannot lead an attack without the approval of the members of the council and as the _tsahik_, you have the right to oppose anything I suggest."

She stopped her ministrations to give him one of the soft-eyed looks that always managed to weaken him. "But I don't want to oppose you, Teikru." A smile curved her lips and she settled one hand over the small swell of her baby bump. "Not anymore, at least. We are mates now and we should always come to a peaceful agreement to lead our people, if we can. You said that to me the night we bonded. Do you remember?"

He relaxed and he returned her little smile, shrugging. "Yes, I remember. We have learned to be more patient with each other in the time we have been mated, I think."

"Most of the time," agreed his mate with a teasing glint in her eyes. "So, tell me what kind of solutions you would like to propose to our council tonight."

He had lost interest in the discussion of humans and territorial disputes and war. The sight of her smiling at him, with one hand over her womb and the other resting on his leg, piqued other interests. He finished the last bite of his soup and he put the bowl aside before reaching out to stroke her hair. He began to pull the combs free from her thick braids, removing the traditional headdress.

"I think you know what some of my ideas will be already," he murmured. "I would rather discuss that later. Now I want to practice having peaceful agreements with my mate."

She wiped her hands off and smiled, amicably coming into his arms. The pleasures of mating and bonding were something they frequently agreed on.

* * *

"We should send a scouting party," suggested one of the council members later that evening, when the sun was going down and the clan gathered to discuss the issue. "Have our most stealthy hunters travel to where Alyara saw the flying machines go. They can quietly observe what the _tawtute_ are doing and then we can decide what to do."

"The entire Ikran clan got captured and enslaved trying the same thing, the last time hostile Sky People were in their territory," reminded Marali. "We risk the same fate if these humans are aggressive and even _one_ of our people are seen spying on them."

"Then what will we do?" demanded Alyara, "Leave them to do as they please, until they overtake us and come with their ships to drive us out?"

"I agree with Alyara," said one of the warriors attending the council. "The Omaticaya tried to be peaceful with the aliens that invaded their territory and it cost them their Hometree and the lives of many villagers. These _tawtute_ are too dangerous to be left alone!"

"I would agree with you," said Teikru, "but I know how destructive the Sky People's weapons are and we are not at full strength. We know nothing of these invaders, except that one of the flying machines we saw had the marks of the Omaticaya clan on it. If they are friends of our brethren in the south, they should not be a threat. My sister believes the _olo'eyktan_ of the Omaticaya sees clearly and would not trust the people from the Hell Gate if he did not believe they had honor."

"But what if he is wrong?" asked a huntress. "The _tawtute_ have lied to our people before."

"That is what concerns me too," agreed Teikru. "But if they are here to cause harm, the _tsahik_ makes a good argument. They will not react well to being spied on and the _tawtute_ never go far in small numbers or without great weapons."

"We must know how many there are," insisted an elder.

Teikru looked at his mate, expecting an objection. Marali almost looked ready to give one, but she sighed and nodded. "It is true...we must at least know how many there are."

"Then I will choose a scouting party," agreed the _olo'eyktan_. "We must begin sending supply parties to our refuge as well. Everyone must work hard to gather, hunt and catch food for this clan. We may need to lead families away from the village to hide safely, until we know there is no threat. I will not have my people butchered."

"How long will we have to leave our home, if we do this?" Someone demanded. "Must we give up our lands to these aliens?"

"No," assured Teikru sternly. "We will give up nothing, but we don't know why they are here yet or how strong they are. The Omaticaya have had dealings with these Sky People before, if they are really from the Hell Gate. We can seek aid from them if we must. They have _Toruk Makto_ and they have defeated Sky People before."

"What about our brethren on the islands to the west?" queried an old woman, "we could ask for their aid."

Teikru exchanged doubtful looks with his mate and sister. They were of the same mind regarding the Swizaw clan. While the travelers selected from both clans to attend the great gathering at _Ayvitrayä Ramunong_ made the journey together, the Swizaw and the Mune'tsyal people generally did not get along well. There were often skirmishes between them and while they were currently under a peace agreement, one of the reasons the Mune'tsyal numbers were low was because the last time their neighbors invaded, they took several people captive and integrated them into their clan.

These things sometimes happened in times of famine, when rival clans lost members to hunger or sickness. When that happened and tribal skirmishes took place, the goal behind an invasion was simply to capture some young adults to make up for lost numbers. To preserve peace, the kidnapped Mune'tsyal agreed to stay with the Swizaw and make lives for themselves there in exchange for the promise that no further aggression would be made against the Mune'tsyal. They were allowed to visit their parents, siblings and friends from time to time, but they gave their word to make the Swizaw village their permanent home.

It was said that once, the two clans were one and they split up when a large dispute over traditions occurred. Half of them went west to establish a new clan and the rest remained behind. Ever since then, the two clans had skirmished like angry siblings and passed members back and forth. Everyone in both clans could trace ancestors back to the other.

"I don't think we should get the Swizaw involved in this unless we must," Teikru finally said, reading the same trepidation in the eyes of his female companions as he felt. "We all know they do not work well with us."

An elderly male snorted. "They would be too busy arguing over the way to skin a sturmbeest to fight the Sky People."

Marali smiled. "Yes, they probably would." She turned to her mate. "I like the idea of asking the Omaticaya. You said their symbols were on one of the _kunsip_ you saw this morning. They may have answers for us. I would attempt to send a message through our _Utral Aymokriyä_ in the hopes that it might reach their _tsahik_, but the best way to seek their help would be to send someone."

Teikru nodded in agreement, his eyes immediately settling on his sister. "Alyara, you know the way to the Sacred Grounds. The Guardians there can guide you to the Omaticaya lands. Choose your travel party and make plans to leave tomorrow. I will have the _Nek'tum tsu'yahnee_ prepared for you."

She gave a nod of consent, ever loyal and rarely questioning. It probably helped that the Omaticaya people had made such a good impression on her.

* * *

Savanna woke to the sound of the villagers moving around outside and the feel of her mate's arms around her. She yawned and she took a moment to listen to Kato's heartbeat and enjoy his warmth. She shifted a little and she gasped in discomfort at the sting between her thighs. She felt sticky and she had a feeling that if she looked down, she'd see blood. It was a perfectly normal part of losing virginity for women but it was damned inconvenient...not to mention messy and embarrassing.

"Mmm." Kato stirred, roused by her movements. He nuzzled her hair and rubbed her back. "I could get used to waking up like this."

Savanna temporarily forgot about her personal issues, shoving them aside in favor of enjoying a bit of morning cuddles.

"Good morning," she whispered, snuggling against him. It occurred to her that the morning came with some wood, on his part. It was poking her in the belly. He certainly couldn't help it but his condition reminded her of _her_ condition and the mess she still needed to clean up. "Um...Kato, do you think you could get a bowl of warm water and a sponge or washcloth of some kind for me?"

"Why? If you want a bath I can take you to a spring not far from here." He kissed her forehead.

"I need to clean up before putting any clothes on and going outside," she explained, blushing.

Sleepy-headed as he was, it took him a moment of thought to catch on. He looked down and when he saw the traces of dried blood on her thighs, he grimaced and stroked her hair. "Oh...damn, I'm sorry about that. Are you okay?"

"Just sore," she answered with a kiss. "And stop apologizing for something you couldn't prevent, okay? Just get me something to clean up with."

"Sure thing. I'll be back as soon as I can. Just relax, babe." He got up and dressed in his pants, shoes and shirt before leaving to gather what she needed.

* * *

With some embarrassment, Kato asked Mo'at for some herbal salve that would ease Savanna's aches and pains. The old _tsahik_ gave him a jar from her personal stores and beyond a knowing little smirk of amusement, she did nothing to embarrass him further. Karyu was another matter, of course. When she saw him heating a stone pitcher of water over the community fire pit, she immediately put her plans on hold to come over to him and tease him.

"So, will she walk again or is it too soon to tell?"

Kato looked this way and that to be sure nobody heard her before speaking out the corner of his mouth. "Cut it _out_, Karyu. You're an awful friend, you know that? You should be checking in on her, not making fun of her."

Karyu's smirk faded a little. "So you two really..."

He nodded. "Yeah, we really." He pulled the pitcher away from the fire and set it on the ground with the tongs before picking it up with a piece of protective hide. He poured a little of the water in the empty bowl he had with him and tested the temperature.

"I thought you wanted to wait until you got back to Hell's Gate and had somewhere more private," reminded the huntress with raised brows.

He shrugged and gathered the pitcher and the bowl. "I did, but one thing led to another and that plan went out the window. Here, why don't you take this stuff to her and have some girl talk while I grab some breakfast for us?"

Karyu took the items without argument and left, evidently too concerned for her friend to continue picking on him, now that she knew they'd done the "deed".

* * *

"Thanks for bringing me this stuff, Karyu," Savanna murmured. She had a long t-shirt on to hide her nudity and her wedding outfit was packed away in her bag. She dipped the sea sponge into the bowl of warm water and she gingerly began to clean herself up. "I would have been a little self-conscious, doing this in front of Kato. Some things I prefer to be private or between us girls."

"Did he hurt you?" Karyu noticed the traces of blood and her expression darkened. "That horny pervert...I'll kick him in the balls for—"

"Calm down," Savanna urged with a pained little smile. "Your brother didn't pounce on me and ravish me, the way you obviously think. He was very gentle. Do you see any bruises or marks on me?"

Karyu studied the hybrid and she shook her head. "No...except for that hickey on your neck."

Sav self-consciously rubbed her throat with her free hand before dipping the cloth in the water again and wringing it out. "Well, there you go. Don't go beating Kato up for something he couldn't help, okay? A little blood is normal for most women their first time...you should know that."

Karyu shrugged. "I know, but you're so small, compared to Kato. If you have trouble walking, I can piggy-back you to the Samson when it's time to go."

Savanna giggled. "I'm not _that_ much smaller than you guys. You aren't much taller than I am and Kato is average in height for a Na'vi." She crawled forward to take the little bowl of salve and she winced. "Um...I might take you up on that piggy-back offer, though."

* * *

They began to prepare to leave after breakfast and Tom discussed plans with Jake, Neytiri, Norm and Ni'nat. "Tanhi and I are going back to Hell's Gate with the Thomas family and Kato. I still have work to do on my project and it's going to go a lot faster there than in my trailer at the village."

"So Karyu's going back to your village alone?" Jake asked, seeking out the petite huntress with his eyes. She was outside Kato and Sav's "wedding tent", talking to them along with Grace and Tsu'tey.

"She must continue her training," Tanhi answered before Tom could. "She has put it off for too long and she must be prepared for the day she leads our people."

Jake looked the Ikran leader up and down. "You look pretty healthy to me, Tanhi. Don't you think you're pushing her a little hard?"

"Jake," Neytiri warned, seeing Tanhi's expression darken.

"What? Where's the harm in letting her come back to Hell's Gate with them or spend some time in our village with us? She can still learn about _olo'eyktan_ responsibilities. Who could teach her better than her own mother? I could teach her a few things too."

"Tanhi, be nice," Tom whispered to his mate when she looked like she had something unkind to say about the kind of lessons Jake could teach her daughter.

"Karyu must be around her own people," insisted the chieftess, keeping her tone polite for Tom's sake. "She has been away from them for too long and they are the ones she will be leading, when it is time for her to put on the headdress. Hell's Gate is not the place for her to be if she is to know her people and learn how to best guide them."

Jake heard something in her tone that made him tilt his head. He looked as though he was going to say something but he thought better of it and shrugged. "Well, you call the shots. I guess I was just looking forward to spending some time with all the kids, since I just got back."

Tanhi relaxed and she looked a little chagrined. "Perhaps another time, when things settle. You are free to visit our village whenever you like, _Toruk Makto_."

"Sure," Jake said easily.

When Tanhi looked away, he shot a look at his twin that asked what in the hell was going on with Tanhi lately. Tom shook his head and made a "cut" gesture across his throat, warning Jake not to bring it up to the chieftess again.

* * *

When people finished saying their goodbyes and thanking the Guardians for the hospitality, they began to board the aircrafts. Jake walked with his brother and after glancing around to be sure neither of their mates were nearby, he asked about Tanhi's determination to have Karyu return immediately to the Eastern Sea.

"Okay, what was that all about after breakfast?" Jake demanded in a whisper.

Tom kicked a pebble away with his boot and stuck his hands into his pockets. "Give Tanhi a break. She's trying to cope with our son moving away and she doesn't want to see our daughter do the same thing."

Jake stopped and frowned. "Why would she do that? Unless something changed while I was locked up, Karyu has always been as loyal to her clan as her mother. What does Hell's Gate have to offer a girl like her?"

Tom sighed and looked up at the sky. "How about a green-eyed marine?"

Jake gave him a blank look. "Which green-eyed...oh, wait. You don't mean Howell, do you? Your bodyguard?"

"That's right."

Jake scratched his head. "When did this start?"

Tom checked his watch. "Truthfully, I think it started after her Dream Hunt and it just progressed from there. At first, Karyu just wanted to know about him but after he got hurt rescuing me from the plant explosion, it evolved into something else."

"You're sure they're into each other?" Jake had a hard time imagining sassy, feisty little Karyu going for an avatar or a human. He always thought she'd eventually choose a Na'vi mate, if she ever settled down at all.

Tom smirked and nodded. "Positive. Karyu refuses to admit it, but the little fighter has a severe dose of infatuation—if not love. I've seen the way Corporal Howell looks at her too."

Jake tugged the younger twin off the path to allow others to go by. "So do you think they've done anything?"

Tom's expression darkened briefly and his gaze went to his daughter, who walking with her cousins, her brother and her friends. He relaxed after a couple of heartbeats and he shook his head. He knew his daughter better than anyone—save perhaps Kato. "No. Not yet, at least. Karyu isn't desperate enough...yet. Her mother has a strong influence on her and she knows Tanhi wants to see her with a Na'vi mate."

"So Tanhi picked up on it and now she's trying to keep Karyu away from Hell's Gate. That explains a lot about the way she's been acting."

Tom nodded. "She actually likes Baxter and she's nice enough to him. She's just afraid of the influence he has on Karyu and she's not blind to their attraction."

That much was obvious, as determined as Tanhi was to keep Karyu away from the base and keep her busy with her training. "How do you know your little starfish will tell you if something _does_ happen between her and this guy? I know you two have a great relationship but if she's afraid you'll say something to her _sa'nok_..."

"She might not come to me," finished Tom with a sigh. "I know. I'd like to think Karyu would tell me anything—especially something that important. I'm not a fool, though. Sometimes parents are 'the enemy' and that's that. I just have to trust that she'll come to me on her own time, if she starts seeing Howell."

Jake nodded and he was thankful that his little girl was too young to start thinking about boys. "Poor kid. Don't take this the wrong way but I feel for your daughter, Tom."

Tom nodded grimly. "Me too." He resumed walking to the path leading to the next valley.

Jake walked with him. "So what do you think of Howell? Other than the fact that he saved your ass...do you think _you_ could deal with your daughter hooking up with him?"

Tom smiled faintly. "He's a good kid. Personally, I'd be fine with it and I would support her choice. If it were only up to me, Karyu could pick whoever she wants without anyone raising a stink about it. Na'vi society doesn't really work that way, though."

"Yeah, but sometimes the rules get bent."

Tom looked at him sidelong. "Don't throw Tanhi's hypocrisy in her face, whatever you do. Believe me, she knows she's expecting more out of Karyu than she delivered herself. I'm trying coax her out of this rigid determination of hers but the minute anyone tries to force the issue, I'll lose my progress."

Jake wisely chose to drop the subject. "Okay, I'm done sticking my nose in. I'm just trying to play 'catch-up' and get back on track."

Tom patted him on the arm. "I know it's disorienting to have been away for so long and come back to find so many things have happened while you were gone. You've had a lot of surprises to deal with."

Jake grinned and he glanced over his shoulder when he heard Leyra gurgle and coo from somewhere behind them. "Some of those surprises turned out to be awesome."

* * *

The group of young friends stopped at the aircrafts and said their final goodbyes. Savanna sniffled as she hugged Karyu. "I can't believe you're not coming with us. When are we going to see you again?"

"I don't know," admitted Karyu. She glanced at her parents, who were standing outside their chosen Samson discussing something. Her aunt and uncle had already boarded the craft. "Maybe later in the summer, or after my father finishes his project. _Sa'nok_ wants me to be prepared in case something goes wrong."

"Is that what you really think?" Kato said seriously. He glanced at their parents and leaned closer to his sibling. "That might be part of it but you _know_ what's driving her the most, sis. She's already 'lost' me to Hell's Gate. Don't kid yourself."

"Now you sound like me," she muttered. "I don't want to talk about _that_, thanks. I just want to say my goodbyes and get ready to travel."

Kato hugged her close and sighed. "Don't forget," he whispered into her ear. "I'm on your side, okay? No matter what you decide to do, I'll back you up."

Karyu swallowed and shut her eyes as she nodded. "Okay, no more talk of starting a mutiny against Mother. Do one thing for me and please, don't tease me about it."

Kato rubbed her back. "Sure, Sis. I wouldn't tease you at a time like this."

She lowered her voice even further, to a bare whisper. "Watch over Green-eyes for me. Make sure the big klutz doesn't get himself killed. Tell him...no...don't tell him anything."

"What?" Kato persisted. "It's okay. I won't make fun of you."

She took a deep breath, fighting with what she wanted and what she knew was expected of her. "Tell him I keep his watch with me and I think about what he said, sometimes."

Kato gave her a slightly puzzled look when he pulled away but he didn't ask her to elaborate on what exactly his friend said to her. He nodded and ruffled her braids. "No problem."

Karyu stepped away from her brother and turned to Tsu'tey and Grace. She observed that her cousin's coloring was better today and the dark circles of exhaustion lining his eyes had faded to a less visible state. She hugged him and patted him on the back. "Take care of yourself, Tsu'tey. Grace, make sure this guy gets enough sleep, will you? He's going to make himself sick if you don't keep an eye on him."

Gracie shifted her infant's carrier and smiled at her mate. "You know I will, _tsmuke_. This baby needs her father at full health."

"We'll be returning to our village with our parents," said Tsu'tey. "They'll drop us off on the way. I think I'll sleep better once we're home again."

Karyu looked down at the infant securely strapped to Gracie's torso and she allowed herself a brief moment of doting, stroking the soft, downy hair on the little head gently. "I'll get into contact with someone at Hell's Gate when my party makes it home," she promised as she withdrew her hand. "Dusty, fly that contraption of yours straight and get everyone back safely, got it?"

Dustin smiled and hugged her. "Hey, I got them here without crashing, didn't I?"

She smirked. "You don't do bad when you aren't trying to be a hero."

"Do I get a hug?" Andrew asked uncertainly when Karyu and Dustin parted.

She considered him and his open arms before shrugging and embracing him. "Don't let it get to your head."

Andrew laughed and squeezed the breath out of her, lifting her a little. "If things were different, I just might. You're all right, Karyu."

"Blah, blah, blah," she groused. "Now put me down. I've still got to say goodbye to my parents and get ready to travel myself."

He obliged her, still grinning with amusement.

* * *

Saying goodbye to her parents was harder than she thought it would be. For the first time, she was going to be returning to the village without a single one of her family members. The family lodge would be empty. Her meals would be eaten alone—unless she chose to join the clan. Ordinarily she preferred to eat in private or with her family but for the first time, she realized she might suffer pangs of loneliness. She put on a brave face for her parents—particularly for her father, because Tom kept asking her if she was _sure_ she would be all right without them. Meuia was technically in charge of things until Tanhi returned but as the daughter of the _olo'eyktan_, Karyu was expected to take on some of the responsibility as well, as part of her training.

It occurred to Karyu that her parents had been arguing when she saw them speaking to each other earlier. She could tell by the tension between them and the warning looks her mother kept giving to her father. Poor Tom seemed genuinely aggrieved about leaving Karyu to go home by herself—probably because he knew the kind of pressure she was under and he didn't want her to face it alone.

"I'll be okay," she promised him for the third time as he held her tight. "_Sempu_, don't give yourself a nosebleed. You're stressing too much over this and I'm a big girl now. I'll find a way to manage and if I have to, I'll find somewhere private and do some anger management techniques if the council makes me too mad."

"Here," Tom said, releasing her to take off the ball-link chain hanging around his neck. On it was a key ring. "You hang onto this while we're away. When you need some privacy, use my trailer and if anyone bothers you, tell them you're doing experiments. Trust me, they'll want nothing to do with it."

Karyu snorted a laugh and allowed him to fasten the chain around her neck. "I like the way you think, Dad."

He smiled. He cast a quick look over his shoulder and upon seeing that his mate was discussing something with Ni'nat before the singer boarded, he lowered his voice and offered Karyu one last nugget. "If you want to use the satellite link on my computer to chat to anyone, the password is 'THX-4-ALL-THE-FISH'."

She frowned. "That's a weird combination for...oh...I get it." She grinned, understanding the reference and how it pertained to Tom leaving Earth. "Clever."

"Do you need me to write it down?"

She shook her head. "No. I'm good at remembering alpha/numeric combinations. I don't know who I'd be chatting with over the computer, though."

Tom raised an eyebrow and she blushed, realizing she wasn't fooling him. "Dad, I'm not going to—"

"I'm not saying what you are or aren't going to do," he said calmly. He drew her close to kiss her on the forehead. "I'm just offering use of my computer to you, just in case there's someone you might want to chat with—other than your brother and Savanna or me."

Tanhi broke away from Ni'nat and approached. Tom released his daughter and winked at her conspiringly. Flustered, Karyu watched him board his Samson and she turned to her mother, trying to will her cheeks to cool before Tanhi noticed the flush in them.

Tanhi stopped before her and stroked her hair fondly, tucking a loose strand behind Karyu's ear. "You have never been parted from us for long, _ma 'evi._ I know this is much to ask of you. You are young and I understand what it is like to wish to enjoy youth for a little while longer. I was your age when I began taking on the responsibilities of _Olo'eyktan_. I know you will make me proud, Karyu."

Karyu forced a smile for her mother, wishing she were as sure as Tanhi about that. She couldn't help but feel that so many responsibilities at that age sucked half of the fun out of Tanhi's life and she wondered if she was doomed to suffer the same fate. Her mother had a good sense of humor, when she allowed it to surface.

"_Sa'nok_, try to relax a little," Karyu advised. "Have a little fun with _Sempul_ when you have the spare time."

Tanhi looked puzzled. "You think we have no fun together, daughter?"

"Well, not as much as you _could_ have," answered the younger huntress. "Why don't you try a date night, once in a while? Dustin's parents do it all the time and I think it really takes the edge off for both of them. Maybe you two could try it."

"I don't understand what this 'date night' thing is that you speak of," sighed Tanhi. She smiled faintly. "But, I will ask you _Sempul_ about it and we shall see. You focus on your lessons and do not worry about us. We will keep in contact with you and let you know if anything changes with his task."

Karyu nodded and kissed her mother on the cheek. "Please take care of him...and yourself."

"Always, daughter," agreed Tanhi. "Always."

The chieftess turned away from her daughter, gave last instructions to the hunters of her clan remaining behind to travel with Karyu, and then boarded the Samson her mate had disappeared into. Karyu clutched the keychain hanging around her neck as the rotors started up and the aircrafts took off. She watched them go, with several of the Guardian Na'vi and the travel party from her own clan. She shut her eyes and thought of the watch safely hidden in her bag with the scrunched-up cap and the two pictures of Baxter. How had she come to be in such a situation? She reviewed recent events of her life, remembering a time when things were simple and her path was clear.

A strong, elderly hand settled on Karyu's shoulder while she was watching her family disappear into the blue yonder and she gave a start. She relaxed when she recognized Mo'at looking at her and she felt terrible for nearly decking the old woman.

"Grandmother," she gasped reflexively. "You shouldn't sneak up on me like that."

Mo'at smiled. She was not Karyu's grandmother by blood but like the others close to the Omaticaya Sullys by blood or friendship, the twins thought of Mo'at as "theirs".

"Your path is still before you," Mo'at murmured. She looked into Karyu's eyes and she pressed her fingertips against the little luminescent spots dotting the younger woman's face, one at a time. She traced them that way, as if tattooing them. "Eywa intends great things for you, daughter of the Eastern Sea."

Karyu shivered, sensing the power within that deceptively frail, old body. "I'll do my best."

Mo'at nodded. "Yes, you will. But will you stay to the path laid before you, Karyu?"

The young huntress lowered her eyes. "I have to."

Moat sucked her teeth in thought. "That is what my daughter thought, once."

"But my mother wants—"

"Mothers can be wrong," Mo'at interrupted sternly, her eyes holding Karyu's again. "Your path is not straight or narrow. Your judgment is all that can guide you, in the end."

Karyu felt frustration welling in her breast. "Mo'at, can I speak to you in private for a little while, before my travel party leaves? I need to know something about dreams and spirit walking."

Mo'at looked intrigued. "Come to my hut with me, then."

* * *

The journey home wasn't without complications. Halfway between the mountains and Omaticaya territory, the convoy was attacked by a rather bold toruk. The young male evidently decided that the Samson carrying Jake, Neytiri, Tom and Tanhi would make a tasty meat snack and he came in out of nowhere. The pilot shouted at the MP's manning the door guns and Jake stopped them on impulse, just as they were about to fire at the snapping maw of the great leonopteryx.

"Hold it," he shouted, recognizing something in the quad-gaze of the beast. He knew those eyes. He knew the stripe pattern visible on the neck, too.

"We're losing altitude," hollered the pilot over the speakers, "Now's not the time to go treehugger on us, Sully! This thing is trying to eat us!"

The passengers were maintaining calm, hanging on as the aircraft shuddered and began to descend. Neytiri was pale but composed and so was Tanhi. Tom looked a little green, but he wasn't panicking yet. Soon the tiltrotor could begin spinning out of control, if the creature clinging to it were allowed to remain and keep doing damage.

"I said weapons HOLD," Jake barked when the door-gun operators looked as though they were ready to shoot.

The only thing keeping them from tumbling out of the craft was the harness keeping them secured to the artillery. Perhaps it was his tone or his reputation, but they obeyed. Jake saw the other aircrafts in the convoy reversing in mid-air to come back and he knew they would open fire on the toruk if he didn't do something fast.

"Pilot, tell the others to hold their fire," shouted Jake. "Give me a chance to fix this my way, first."

There was some hesitation before she answered. "You'd better be right about this, Sully."

He smirked, still eyeing the creature that was trying to gnaw open the side of the Samson. "Yeah, I know."

"Jake, what are you doing?" Neytiri called as Jake unbuckled his safety belt and got out of his seat.

"Something stupid, probably," he shouted back. He braced himself as he walked to the open panel on his side, where the right-hand door-gunner stood cursing and lining up his MBS-9M Hydra. Jake patted the soldier on the arm and he looked out the open door, squinting against the rush of wind.

"You're one of Shadow's brood," he muttered, staring at the shrieking toruk with certainty. "Come on, pal...look at me. Maybe your Dad passed something down to you."

The animal's left two eyes met Jake's and held them. Jake focused his will. "That's right...you know me, don't you? Beat it kid...before these guys gun you down."

The rectangular pupils dilated, then shrank. With a mighty shriek, the great toruk let loose his hold on the Samson and flew away, causing the aircraft to tilt alarmingly while the pilot adjusted to the change in weight.

"How the _fuck_ did you _do_ that?" shouted the soldier on the door-gun, unable to hide his amazed expression behind the exopack mask.

Jake shrugged. His heart was pounding hard and he was relieved that his attempt had actually worked. "I guess I just have a way with toruks."

He returned to his seat and buckled up. Neytiri took his hand and gave him a questioning look. He nodded at her and leaned closer. "It was one of Shadow's."

She smiled.

"I need to have a shit," announced Tom.

Jake resisted the urge to laugh at his pale-faced brother. So much for Tom's legendary stoicism.

* * *

_Later that evening, at Hell's Gate:_

Max came home to a rude welcome, when he stepped out of his Samson. Ramona and Lee were there waiting and they carted him off away from the others the minute he set foot on the hangar floor.

"What's going on?" he demanded as the couple urged him away from the others. His heart leaped in his throat and all sorts of conspiracies immediately frolicked in his mind. "I was only gone for two days!"

"Seems two days is enough," Mona informed him in a hushed voice. "Listen Max, a lot's happened."

"You remember the sting operations they were gearing up for before you left?" Lee asked.

Max felt a sense of dread in his bones. "What about them?"

The couple glanced at each other and Ramona answered first. "Well, they brought in a bunch of guys but there were some casualties. Max—"

He didn't bother listening to whatever she might have said next. He took off, ignoring Mona and Lee's cries as he ran to the doors leading inside and swiped his keycard. He charged through them the moment they were open and he began to shout at people in passing, still wearing his exopack even though he was now in a pressurized sector.

"Where is Lt. Chacón? Someone tell me where Trudy is! Is she in sick bay?"

"Dr. Patel," one of the MP staff said when he started to pass her. "Sir, I saw her—"

"Where?" He practically shouted it in the poor woman's face, grabbing her arms and shaking her.

"She's in the recreation building," stammered the soldier, "in the weight room."

His mouth fell open. "You put her in the _weight room_? What kind of sick...don't you people have any _respect_...oh, Shiva and Allah and God and Jesus and Eywa...what kind of...?"

"Dr. Patel," the woman called when he let go of her and charged away. She looked at Ramona and Lee, who had just come through the doors and were trying to catch up with the frantic biologist. "I don't know what I said!"

"We'll take care of it," Lee grunted as he and his lover sprinted past. "Shit, Mona...did you have to say it the way you did? He thinks she's—"

"Just shut up and _run_," panted the zoologist. "Of all the days you picked not to drive your avatar...we could have caught him by now."

"Sure, blame it on me," he huffed.

* * *

"Forty-six," she counted, breathing out. She lifted the barbell again, ignoring the bruised knuckles and scraped skin on her fingers. "Forty-seven."

She kept seeing Wilson's face in death. Tomorrow, they would bury him. That wax-looking, empty shell that used to be her friend and one of her most trusted soldiers.

"Forty-eight."

She remembered how he always tossed her a beer from his allotted supply when they retrieved stock from Earth. She hated Budweiser but she drank it because he liked it. In return, she always drank a Corona from her storage with him. It was a ritual they did together each time the trade supplies came in.

"Forty-nine."

She thought of when he had blown up the transport rover by accident, trying to smoke a cigarette under his exopack mask like a moron. Now he'd never do anything like that again and while that might be a good thing for the base, Trudy would give just about anything to get another report that Wilson had screwed up. Her vision blurred and she saw double.

"Goddammit." Trudy set the weights back on the rack and sat up, straddling the seat as she rubbed her eyes and tried to put it together. Other people working out in the room were careful not to pay attention as she took several deep breaths.

She didn't get the chance to get up and excuse herself to the showers, because Max Patel burst into the weight room at that moment and started shouting at the top of his lungs.

"Where is she? Where did they put her? How can you all just stand there _exercising_ with her body right here in the same room?"

Trudy's eyebrows went into her hairline and she temporarily forgot about her concerns. She had left Mona and Lee in charge of telling Max what happened while he was away but now she wondered what in the blue hells they said to him. Corpses in the recreation building? What the fuck did Mona say?

"Maxi, what the hell are you babbling about?"

He stopped in his tracks and turned, staring at her owlishly from behind his exopack mask. "T-Trudy?"

She frowned and shrugged. "That's my name, don't wear it—oof!"

He was upon her before she could finish her sentence and the pain and loss she felt was suddenly soothed by the warm, innocent affection offered to her by her hugging betrothed. She smiled and returned his embrace. "Wanna explain what this is about, Max?"

"I'm sorry," he apologized. His voice broke and he blinked several times, sticking his hands into his pockets and looking up at the ceiling. "Uh..one moment."

"Take your time." Trudy regarded him with more than passing concern.

When he gathered his wits, he started to speak.

"I thought you were—"

The doors burst open and Ramona came running in, with Lee at her heels. "Trudy isn't dead! Max, you have to...oh."

The zoologist skidded to a stop and her boyfriend almost ran into her. Ramona gathered her dignity as best she could. "Well, I see you've figured it out. We'll just leave you to it then."

Lee was just as mortified as she was and he left with her, casting an apologetic shrug Max's way as he left with his lover. Other people began to leave as well, sensing that this was a private moment and respecting Max and Trudy enough to grant it to them.

Max turned to Trudy and kissed her before taking her discolored hands in his and rubbing them. He frowned at them and then met her dark, soulful eyes. "Tell me what happened, Trudy."

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_'Evi_** = Daughter

**_Syulang_** = Flower

**_Olo'eyktan_** = Clan leader/chieftain

**_Tawtute_** = Sky Person/Sky People

**_Ayvitrayä Ramunong_** = Tree of Souls

**_Txepvi _**= Spark. I've found no official Na'vi name for the Dandetiger trees on Pandora. Since the root name means "sparkle", I chose the closest Na'vi word to that. The Danditiger is not a "branchy" tree. It gets its name from its appearance, resembling a dandilion from Earth with its long, inflated trunk and the cluster of tubular leaves at the crown.

**_Tautral_** = "Sky tree" or beanstalk palm. A tall, tropical forest tree with a slim trunk and long, strap-like leaves at the crown of it. Somewhat similar to the tall palm trees on Earth.

**_Wew-hufwe ayram _**= Cold wind mountains

**_Muntxatan_ = **Mate/husband; male spouse

**_Tsmukan_** = Brother

**_Tsmuke_** = Sister

**_Muntxatu_** = Mate/wife; female spouse

**_Utral Aymokriyä_** = Tree of voices

**_Kunsip _**= Gunship

**_Nek'tum tsu'yahnee_** = Canoe, or "wood lays on water"

**_Additional Author's Note:_**

_**I thought it would make sense for clans that live in a cooler northern climate to have some variation from the Na'vi of the southern continent, in terms of hunting methods and tribal wear. If you check the Pandorapedia online, you will see confirmation that Pandora consists of more than jungle climates and there are Na'vi clans scattered all over it. Pandora has seasons just like Earth, too. The problem is, there is no official information as of yet on what kind of different plants and animals exist on other continents and logically, flora and fauna would be adapted to survive in whatever climate they exist in. This forces me to take some artistic liberty. **_


	30. Chapter 30

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 30: Power Hunger**

* * *

**_Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. "The Little Mermaid" and all characters and songs belong to Disney. _**

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

Max stared at the battered human lying on the cot in the holding cell. The man's face was so swollen and bruised; it was impossible to match his features to the photo image on his file. "I can't believe Trudy did this." He turned around to look at West accusingly. "How could you let it go that far?"

"I pulled her off as soon as it became apparent that she wasn't going to stop," West excused with a nod at the cell. He clasped his hands behind his back and stood straight and calm. "General Chacón is in charge here, Doctor. She wanted to interrogate the prisoner and I had no authority to stop her. In her defense, she knew she might lose control and she ordered us to be ready to put a stop to it if she went overboard."

"And how long did you wait before pulling her off?" demanded Max with a troubled look at the prisoner. "How far did you let her go before deciding it was enough, General West?"

Nathan frowned at him. "I let her get her licks in. She was swinging fast and hard by the time it was apparent she was taking it too far. It took both me and Harris to pull her out of there."

Max shut his eyes and shook his head. The severity of the man's injuries reflected the damage done to Trudy's emotional state. "He's got a broken jaw and a fractured zygomatic bone. We're going to have to do corrective surgery to repair the damage to the mandible."

West shrugged. "Couldn't prove it by me, Dr. Patel. I just follow my orders and maintain the people under my command. I'll leave the medical jargon to you."

Max sighed. "Did she at _least_ get some information out of him before she broke his face?"

West shook his head, his grey eyes going to the prisoner again. "He's tough. He's either got something personal invested in whatever the RDA is doing or he thinks he'll have more to lose if he cooperates. Maybe he's counting on this facility's reputation for being fair...or maybe he just wants us to execute him and get it over with. You never can tell with radicals and terrorists, Dr. Patel. So far, all of the prisoners have been as tight-lipped and un-cooperative as he is...except for Parker Selfridge. If Commissioner Archer doesn't pull through, we may not have his cooperation for long."

Max cursed under his breath. He'd almost forgotten about Archer, and he'd just checked in on her a half hour ago. "I want you to have guards ready for when the med staff comes to collect Mr. Coralis for surgery. We can't underestimate him just because Trudy beat the hell out of him."

"Of course," agreed West with a nod. "Security's clamped down tight, Dr. Patel.

"Good. Please excuse me...I need to check in on a few other things now."

The General nodded again, unquestioning.

* * *

Dustin caught Max in the hallway as the biologist was on his way to the building's exit, intending to go home to check on Trudy.

"Dad, I'm glad I found you. Mom's not home, if that's where you're heading."

Max fell into step beside the younger man and he liberated his lens cloth from the breast pocket of his lab coat. He tried to calm himself as he took his glasses off to wipe the lenses. "Do you have any idea where she is?"

"Yeah, she's in the military recreation building again. I'm really worried about her and Andrew agreed to keep an eye on her for me while I came looking for you. He'll call if she goes anywhere before we get to the rec building.

Max patted the young man on the shoulder. "Good thinking, son. I really should be at her side, instead of running around like this."

"You have things you need to do," excused Dustin, "Ma gets that and she swears she's coping okay...but we both know her a little better than she thinks we do. If I thought she'd listen to me I wouldn't have dragged you away like this, but..." He trailed off and shrugged helplessly, unable to conceal the worry in his tanned features.

Max grimaced with concern for the boy. "Have you and Andrew eaten at all since disconnecting from your avatars?"

"We're going to his house to have dinner with his folks after this," Dustin assured.

"Good." Something occurred to Max then and he leaned closer. "Have you two...you know...told Joyce and Allen yet?"

"You mean about us?" guessed Dustin.

Max nodded.

"No. He's not ready yet and right now, there's too much going on for me to stress over it. He'll come out when he's ready."

"You're patient beyond your years," Max said with a little smile. "Let's go find your mother and I'll see if I can talk some sense into her."

* * *

Max advised his son and Andrew to wait outside when they looked through the tempered glass door and saw Trudy beating the hell out of a full-length punching bag. He'd seen her angry before but never like this. She was attacking the stuffed punching bag as if she was trying to kill it.

Wondering if he was making a mistake, Max walked through the door and approached his betrothed. "Trudy?"

She glanced at him, hardly pausing between punches and kicks. "Hey Maxi. Come to work out some?"

He forced a smile and shook his head. "You should know better, by now. I came to see how you're holding up."

She shrugged and focused her full attention on the punching bag again. "I'm fine."

"Really?" He watched her wrapped fist strike the bag again and he sighed, scratching his head. "You know, Harris has decided to start going to group therapy with Corporal Howell."

She nodded. "Good for him. That's probably a smart decision."

Max grimaced. "Yes...and it would be smart for you, too."

She finally stopped hitting the punching bag and she wiped the sweat off her brow, taking a moment to catch her breath. Her brown gaze was unreadable as she regarded him. "Why? I'm not the one that got splattered with Wilson's blood in a firefight."

"No, but he was your most loyal and trusted soldier," reminded Max carefully. "He's been at your side since we took over this base, Trudy. He was like a brother to you. I think talking to someone about your feelings could help you get through this."

"You want me to talk about my feelings to someone?" She looked him up and down in challenge and planted her hands on her hips. "Okay, you'll do. I'm _pissed off_, Maxi. That's how I feel."

He nodded patiently, his heart aching for her. He was no professional but he knew a little about psychology. Better that she talk to him than nobody at all. "Tell me why."

Trudy ogled him. "You're kidding, right?"

He shook his head solemnly. "No, I'm not. I want to hear the details. What exactly are you pissed off about?"

She sighed and scuffed the heel of her boot against the tiled floor. "I can't believe I even have to say it. I'm pissed off that the stupid bastard that shot him didn't surrender right away. What the hell did he think he'd accomplish by shooting Wilson? They were outnumbered and outgunned. I'm pissed off that they didn't put a bullet in his brain right away, the minute he shot my boy. He shouldn't be alive right now. He should be worm food, like poor Wilson."

Her breath hitched and she looked away. "Most of all, I'm pissed at myself. I've been putting too much on these guys, not rotating duties enough because I wanted the people I trust the most on the important things. They were overworked...stretched too thin. Wilson's lying there waiting to get cremated because I...because h-he..."

Max saw the breakdown coming and he approached her, daring to put his arms around her. "Go ahead. Grieve, Trudy. Just let it out."

She trembled and curled her fingers against his lab coat, fighting her grief stubbornly. "Wilson shouldn't have been there. Harris too, for that matter. They both worked late the night before and I knew they wouldn't be in top shape for this mission. I shouldn't have sent them. Should have just trusted someone else to front the raid, but I wanted them on it."

"Trudy, you can't blame yourself for this," Max insisted, trying to draw her into his embrace. "We're all overworked and neither of them would have wanted you to leave them out of something so important. That's why you chose them, isn't it? That loyalty and determination wouldn't have allowed them to sit back and let someone else do it. Wilson died doing what he loved best—protecting this colony."

Trudy heaved a shuddering breath and stopped resisting as he pulled her close. Her shoulders shook and she grabbed handfuls of his lab coat, steadily losing her composure. Max held her tight and stroked her hair as she finally began to cry on his shoulder. He rocked her and his vision blurred with tears of sympathetic grief. Trudy wasn't a woman that cried often but when she did, it was heartbreaking to witness.

"It's going to be okay," Max murmured. He whispered other nonsense to her, designed only to comfort.

"I'm g-getting snot on your coat," complained Trudy between sniffles.

"I don't care," he assured her with a pained little smile. "It's been splashed with other body fluids and chemicals before. This is nothing."

With that reassurance, Trudy let herself go. Max just held her and he hoped nobody would come in. Usually the gyms remained empty at night but it would be just his luck for someone to decide to have a late workout and find them like this. Trudy needed to have a good cry and she wouldn't do it in front of anyone else.

* * *

Outside in the hallway, Dustin and Andrew watched the scene and they both breathed easier.

"I knew your old man would get through to her," Andrew sighed, patting his companion on the back. "You can probably stop worrying about your Mom getting herself hurt, now."

Dustin nodded. "Dad does have a way with her. Okay, let's go and eat."

* * *

_In the Omaticaya village:_

After getting settled in and welcomed home with smiles and questions, Jake and the others joined the clan for dinner in the den. As they ate, Emazu asked Jake if he intended to take back his leadership status, now that he was free and home again.

"No," answered Jake with a shake of his head. He selected a cut of roasted Sturmbeest from the big plate being passed around and he set it on his personal plate. "That's your job, now. Norm's told me you're picking it up well and I have faith in you."

Emazu flushed with pleasure. He wasn't so confident that a compliment from the great _Toruk Makto_ didn't flatter. "I still have much to learn."

"Yeah, and you'll _keep_ learning every day," agreed Jake. "Don't let anyone fool you; even though you'll have times of peace, there's always something ahead to challenge you. I'll be here to advise you, though. Remember, the _Toruk Makto_ belongs to his clan just as much as the _Olo'eyktan_."

The idea of commanding the older male to do anything clearly seemed odd to Emazu, but he relaxed a bit. "You have my thanks."

His gaze went to Gracie on the other side of the fire pit, eating beside her young mate and chatting with her friends. She stroked her daughter's little head, resting against her chest. Emazu nodded at her when Jake noticed the direction of his stare. "Being a mother agrees with her. She glows."

Jake chuckled and nodded. Nobody could blame the young clan leader for admiring Grace. Emazu spoke the truth; the girl's brilliant, contented smiles lit up her eyes. Her skin did have a healthy glow to it—likely due to Tsu'tey and her parents making sure she stuck to a balanced, high protein diet. She really was a beauty to behold and there was no shame in observing that fact. At least Emazu seemed content to admire her from afar and be subtle about it. He had come to accept her choice and move on.

Jake shared a glance with Neytiri as he bit into his steak and tore a chunk off to eat. She placed a segment of fruit in her mouth and studied Emazu thoughtfully. She gave Jake a little nod, communicating silently with him the way she sometimes did over the years. They were so attuned to one another by now that they could practically hold a conversation without even speaking—something the old Jake would have found a little creepy, once upon a time. Linking regularly with _tsahaylu_ allowed Na'vi spouses to come to know one another more intimately than most humans could ever match, save twin siblings.

Emazu needed an older male's support. His own father was somewhat of an embarrassment to him now. As he matured and thanks to Gracie's talks with him and his affection for her, Emazu came to realize that the extreme prejudice he had been taught was unjust and uncalled for. It took him a while to see it, but after Tommy's death he began to re-evaluate who he was and who he wanted to become one day. Now Emazu saw people through his own eyes, instead of his father's. That kind of growth deserved praise.

Jake swallowed the food he was chewing and he patted Emazu on the shoulder with the hand he wasn't eating with. "A real leader puts his people's happiness and safety before his and that's exactly what you've done. I know it's got to sting but accepting her choice is the first step to proving you've got what it takes, Emazu. I'm proud of you."

Emazu looked at him and he confirmed what Jake suspected already. "Thank you, _Toruk Makto_. My father does not share your pride in my efforts."

Jake reached for a roasted nut and he cracked it open easily. "Yeah, I'm sure he wants you to rule with an iron fist and force everyone to do things your way. I know he wanted you to have Gracie and it burns him up that you stopped pushing the issue, right?"

Emazu nodded, glancing over the heads of people to the entrance of the den. His parents were there, avoiding him as always. He didn't fully understand Jake's "iron fist" reference but the core meaning behind his words wasn't lost on him. "He resents me for not being more forceful—with Grace _and_ with the council. He says I don't need to listen to the opinions of the elders because I am their _olo'eyktan_."

Jake blinked and he shared an exasperated look with Neytiri. "As my mate would say, your father doesn't _see_ very well, Emazu. If _anybody_ should listen to the ideas of the council, it's the _Olo'eyktan_. They keep it real, you know? If you've got a boneheaded idea, the council will shoot it down and explain why. If you aren't sure how to solve an issue, they help you work it out. They keep your ego from inflating and messing up your judgment and they lift you up when you're down and unsure of yourself. The council and the _Tsahik_ are your best friends, kid."

Neytiri nodded in agreement and gave her mate a fond look. "He speaks true and he led our people well for many years, Emazu. You would do well to listen to him."

Emazu touched his forehead in a gesture of respect. "Yes, _Tsahik_. I will remember the things you have both said to me and I will try to do well by you."

Jake almost felt bad for Emazu's parents. Clearly, the young man was going to seek approval from him and Neytiri first, instead of his mother and father. That was _their_ fault, though. They drove the wedge in the relationship with their unreasonable expectations and arrogance. Jake was just glad that Emazu was growing _out_ of that state of mind, rather than further into it. He didn't fool himself into thinking that the young man would ever stop harboring prejudice against humans and avatars completely, but at least now he was willing to try and see them for who they were; not _what_ they were—or rather weren't.

* * *

_Hell's Gate, the next day:_

"Hey Dr. Sully. Hey Janet...sorry I'm a little late relieving you."

She checked her watch and frowned. "Actually, you're ten minutes _early_, Howell. Here, synch your watch with mine."

He sighed and stepped closer to her, checking the glowing blue numbers on her watch face before adjusting his. "It's this watch. It doesn't keep time right. I guess I need to put in a request for another replacement."

"Well, better early than late," soothed Tom with a smile. "I hope you don't mind spending hours in a lab, Corporal, because that's what we'll be doing during your shift."

Baxter shrugged. "It can't be much worse than spending hours in a rec room, trying to beat new recruits into shape. It's probably a lot quieter, too."

Tom chuckled and nodded in agreement. "Unless we have a chemical spill or some other emergency, you're probably right." He noticed the bruising and swelling on the young man's face and he frowned. "I take it you've seen some rough action lately?"

Baxter looked at Janet uncertainly and when she gave him a nod, he answered. "Yes Sir, but I'm okay. Things got a little hairy when I was apprehending a suspect in a raid the other day, is all."

Tom sighed and frowned unhappily. "Was this the same raid that cost Wilson his life?"

"You heard about that?"

"Unfortunately, yes. I'm close to Trudy and Max and I got word when I arrived this morning."

"Oh." Baxter took his sunglasses out of his pocket and put them on. "Well, that was a different raid but it was going on at the same time. The only good thing about it is he didn't suffer, Doc."

"He'll be buried with honors," Janet assured. "He was a good man and a good soldier."

"Yes, he was," agreed Tom. "It's really a shame. I don't suppose non-residents can attend the service?"

"Are you kidding?" Baxter smiled at the biologist. "Even if it was a closed service, nobody would turn you away from paying your respects, Dr. Sully. It's common knowledge you and your brother knew Wilson for just about as long as anyone else on this base."

"And the work you've done for us gives you special clearance," reminded Janet. "I'm sure Wilson would want you there and it's going to mean a lot to General Chacón, too."

"Yeah, this hit her hard," Baxter said with a frown. "We've all noticed it, even if she's putting on a tough front."

"That's enough, Howell," warned Janet softly.

He compressed his lips and obediently dropped the subject. Tom looked between the two of them uncomfortably. "I understand it's considered improper to discuss your superior's emotional state but please, don't stifle on my account. Trudy is my friend and I know she's in a lot of pain. You're her family…her clan. You have the right to worry about her, just like I do."

Janet relaxed a little. "Of course. You should be the exception, doctor, but we shouldn't get into the habit of gossiping about our superiors' situation. She deserves respect and dignity from us, not whispers behind her back." She turned to Baxter. "Just be sure you don't talk about the General's private business casually, understand? Dr. Sully is one matter but common grunts are another."

He gave her a nod. "Oorah, Sergeant. I'll keep that in mind."

"Well, I'll leave you guys to it," Janet said. "Has Harris picked a replacement for his shift yet?"

"Yeah," answered Howell. "He wanted to take the shift himself but I convinced him to give himself some time to pull it together and rest. Eichelburger is going to take his shift for a few days."

"Good." Janet sighed in relief. "I know he wants to stay busy but we can't afford to put a distracted soldier on the job. You'll like Eichelburger, Dr. Sully. He's quiet...unlike this one you're stuck with now."

"Hey," protested Baxter, "I can be quiet."

"Only if your mouth is taped shut," she said teasingly, "and you'd eventually chew through the tape."

Howell laughed and shrugged, giving Tom a faintly embarrassed look. "I didn't realize I was _that_ much of a motor-mouth."

"It's okay," Tom assured him, enjoying the banter immensely. It reminded him of the conversations his kids got up to at times and it eased the sting of missing his daughter. "I actually find conversation soothing when I'm working."

"Really?" Janet found that odd. "It doesn't distract you?"

"Only in a good way," he answered. "It keeps me from getting frustrated when progress is slow. I'm more likely to make mistakes if I forget myself and try too hard. I've missed things that were right in front of my eyes before, that way. I used to drag the twins into the trailer with me sometimes, just so I could listen to them tease each other or play computer games while I worked."

Janet smiled. "That's so sweet. You know a father loves his children when he finds their chatter more comforting than annoying."

Tom shrugged. "Well, not _all_ the time. I've lost patience with them plenty of times in the past. It's all about the timing, I suppose."

"Well, whatever it's about, I think it's great. Devoted fathers aren't that easy to come by."

"Darren's plenty devoted," reminded Howell.

"Yes, but I wasn't talking about my husband," she explained. "I'm going to go and grab a bite to eat. You boys have fun together."

"It's not a play date," Baxter called as she walked away.

"If you say so," answered the woman over her shoulder.

Tom laughed under his breath. "Why do women always think it's 'playing' when you put two men in a room with expensive lab equipment?"

"Probably for the same reason they think it's playing when a couple of guys go to the target range together," sighed Baxter. "Or maybe they just like to baby us because they know it drives us nuts."

"I like your theory," Tom said. "Maybe we can explore it further when we have the time and find the answers to some of these questions men have been asking about women since the dawn of time."

Baxter shook his head. "Don't go there, Dr. Sully. That path leads to madness."

The quip and Baxter's utterly straight face when he said it made Tom burst out laughing. He patted the marine on the arm and caught his breath. "That's a very good point."

Baxter stuck his hands into his pockets as they began to walk out of the avatar compound. "Speaking of women, where's your mate?"

"She's out hunting," answered Tom. "That should let you know how much she trusts your people to guard me. She wouldn't leave my side, otherwise."

Howell nodded. "She's a powerful woman, your wife...er...mate. I wouldn't want to mess with her."

Tom smirked. "She's a stubborn woman; but I wouldn't trade her."

Baxter's thoughts naturally went to another stubborn woman in Tom's family and he glanced at the microbiologist sidelong, hoping he wasn't making a mistake in bringing her up. "What about the other one? Kato told me she went back to the village."

"Yes, the other stubborn female in my life is now at home, probably counting backwards from ten to resist the temptation to tear off council members' heads as we speak. I feel a little sorry for them, actually. Without her mother there to keep her in line, Karyu isn't likely to sweeten her opinions before she gives them."

Baxter grinned, imagining the scandalized expressions on the elder's faces when their princess gave them the what-for. He thought of the message Kato gave him last night about Karyu. He had been a little worried that the Ikran council might try to select a mate for her...which as he understood it, wasn't completely unheard of in Na'vi culture. The concern died quickly though. Karyu was not the kind of girl that could be forced to do anything she didn't want to do. She would probably laugh in their faces if the council informed her that they had chosen a match for her without consulting her.

"What about your _tsahik_? Can't he keep her in line?"

Tom shook his head. "It's unlikely. Meuia isn't a confrontational person. Karyu's probably going to walk all over him."

Baxter almost felt sorry for the Ikran clan's spiritual leader. "I guess he's probably prepared for it."

"One would hope," sighed Tom. He looked at Baxter thoughtfully. "The identity for my personal messaging program is 'Tomcat', by the way. You've got access to the messaging service on your computer, don't you?"

Baxter frowned in confusion. "Yeah. Uh, why are you telling me this?"

"Because a satellite phone wouldn't get good enough reception in my village to call such a long distance. The transmitter unit is supposed to be fore emergencies."

He was still puzzled. "Okay, but what difference does any of that make? You're here, so I don't need to use any messaging..." he trailed off, beginning to understand that Dr. Sully wasn't relaying this information so Baxter could chat with _him_ over the net.

"Karyu will probably be in my trailer by the time the sun starts to set," Tom said mildly, watching a flower petal float by on the breeze. "She'd probably be glad to hear from you, after spending the day being grilled by the council."

Baxter smirked. He wished he had the kind of class to say things without really saying them. "How do you think your mate would feel about that, Doctor?"

"I imagine she wouldn't be too happy," answered Tom, "and that's why I'm not going to mention it unless she specifically asks me about it. I'll tell her the truth if she comes to me asking if I gave my messaging handle to a marine so he could chat with our daughter long-distance, of course. I would never _lie_ to my mate."

Again, Baxter admired the older man's cleverness. "We're lucky you only use your powers for good, Dr. Sully."

* * *

_Meanwhile, at the Eastern Sea village:_

Karyu rubbed the inner corners of her eyes and sighed. She was sitting in the meeting tent with the council and the _tsahik_, getting her first taste of settling disputes between clan members that they could not settle themselves. The last one had been an argument over tent location. One woman claimed that the family living beside hers was too loud at night and she wanted them to re-locate their family lodge to another spot in the village. The man representing his allegedly loud family said that it was unfair to ask them to pack up all their belongings and go through the tedious process of disassembling their home and re-assembling it elsewhere, just because the neighbors were light sleepers. Karyu settled it by telling the accuser that if she and her family wanted their neighbors to move, they had to help with the process.

That dispute had been solved easily enough. Now Karyu was faced with two males competing over a fishing spot. The first male accused the second of "stealing" his favorite fresh water fishing spot.

"He knows I go there for the gargoyle fish and he is always there when I go."

Karyu shrugged. "So you aren't the only one that prefers gargoyle fish. He has as much right to catch them as you do."

"But he only goes when he knows I intend to fish there," argued the hunter with an accusing gesture at the other man.

His opponent had his arms crossed over his chest and he looked somewhat smug. Karyu couldn't hold that against him; his accuser really sounded childish. She looked at both hunters before leaning toward Meuia. "They can't be serious."

"But they are," replied the _tsahik_ in a whisper. "That is why they come to you. When the people have a disagreement that they cannot work out themselves, it is our duty to resolve it before it becomes drastic."

She sighed and looked up at the accuser. "How do you know he only goes fishing when you're planning to do it?"

"Because I fly over the pond on the days I choose to hunt," he answered with a glare at the other male, "and he is never there on those days. Only the mornings he knows I will fish."

Karyu rolled her eyes. "And you two can't both fish in the same pond at the same time?"

"It is a small pond," both of them said at the same time.

Karyu regarded the accused male suspiciously. "You haven't denied his accusation."

"No, I have not."

"So then you really _do_ go fishing in that pond on the days you know he wants to," she concluded, finding the whole thing weird. "It isn't just a coincidence."

The man smirked. "He stole my woman, so I will steal his fish."

Karyu's eyebrows shot up. "Your woman? Wait, so this isn't really about fish at all!" She looked at the accuser. "What is he talking about, exactly?"

The accuser scowled. "This is about Ni'awtu? I should have known. She chose me over him and now he tries to punish me for it by over-fishing the pond. She chose the better man."

"You stole her," snapped the other male angrily.

"Whoa, hold it." Karyu got up from her seat on the hides and she glared at both men in turn. "First, she's a woman...not a hat. She's not anybody's to 'steal'. Was she free to make her own choice?"

Both men nodded. Karyu sighed. "Then you both need to move on and stop your masculine strutting. This is stupid and pointless. Secondly, the pond doesn't belong to either of you...any more than Ni'awtu does. Anyone can fish from it. Your greed is just as dumb as your macho posturing."

Both men flushed and the accused one looked like he might say something unpleasant to Karyu, but one glare from the petite huntress made him rethink it. He nodded and glanced at his rival. "Are you banning me from fishing in that pond, daughter of the _Olo'eyktan_?"

She grumbled under her breath and looked to Meuia. He was no help. The expression on his face said that he was leaving it up to her to find a solution to this mess. Cursing him inwardly, she made the only decision that seemed logical and reasonable to her.

"I can't 'ban' anyone from using any part of the forest, whether it's for the good of the clan or their own petty greed. What I _can_ do is make you two schedule your fishing trips to that pond." She looked at the accused. "If you really want to fish there, you'll have to do it on the days your rival doesn't go. And _you_ can't change your mind about what days you want to fish, understand?" She said the last sentence to the accuser, who nodded.

The accused male looked frustrated, but he nodded tersely. "I will do as you ask."

"Good. Now go about your business so we can finish up in here," she said, shooing both hunters out the exit. When they were gone, she turned to face the council. "What else do we need to do today?"

The elders looked at one another before the lead council member motioned for Karyu to sit back down. When she did, he took a moment to gather his thoughts and he visibly braced himself as he spoke.

"We have discussed the many things that you will be contributing to this clan as our leader, Karyu. We hope that one of them is new blood. Your family is strong with Eywa and the clan could use more of such gifts."

"You mean babies," she sighed. "Trust me, I know I'm going to have to try and make one of those eventually. First I need a mate."

"That is part of what we wish to speak with you about," said a woman. "There are many fine young men in this clan, but you have not shown interest in any of them."

"I have noticed that Omocan watches her often," announced another woman. "There is potential there."

"Yes, Omocan would be a good match," agreed one of the men, eyeing Karyu's slender form thoughtfully. "He is strong in body and has a kind heart."

"Now wait a minute," objected Karyu with alarm she couldn't quite disguise. "I know the clan wants to see me mated and swelling with child as soon as possible, but I have some say in who I do this with."

"Of course," agreed the head elder patiently, "and we cannot force you to take a mate of our choosing. We just wish to remind you that you are old enough to consider taking a mate now and it is better for childbearing women to begin making their families when they are younger. Your pregnancies will be easier on your body, this way."

While she understood their concerns and even agreed with some of them, she hated the pressure they were putting on her. Not to mention, they made her feel like a brood sow.

"Omocan is nice," she said, "but I haven't thought of him that way. I haven't thought of _any_ man that way, in fact." That was a blatant lie but she found it easier to tell while offended by their gossiping and nerve. She felt violated by the way they discussed her future as if her input didn't really matter, in fact.

"Some day soon, you will," promised one of the women with a smile. "And when you do begin to see males that way, I hope that you will consider our opinions before choosing one as a mate."

Karyu gritted her teeth. "Of course. I know how important it is to consider the council's opinions." Even as she spoke the words, she imagined knocking their heads together.

"That is all we can ask," answered the head elder. "Now this gathering is complete. I hope you enjoy the rest of your day, _'Ite Olo'eyktan_."

"Not likely," she muttered under her breath. She left the council tent and took a deep breath of the ocean-scented air once she stepped outside.

The _tsahik _came out behind her and he asked her to walk to the beach with him. Guessing it would only cause an argument if she said "no", Karyu agreed and together, they walked through the village to the path leading down to the beach.

"You handled yourself well," approved Meuia when they were out of hearing range of other villagers. "I could sense the anger in you when they spoke of your mating duties. I know it was not easy to be pleasant to them after that. There are always solutions if you seek them."

She scowled. "I know of at least _one_ solution that would have shut them up."

"You cannot kill them," replied the _tsahik_ with a faint little smirk, "no matter how tempting it can be."

She sighed. "I can still fantasize about it."

Meuia chuckled softly and placed a supportive hand on her shoulder. "Do what you must to control your anger. I fear you will feel its burn often when you take your mother's place as our leader. People can be—"

"Stupid?" she interrupted. "Pig-headed? Nosey? Childish?"

"I was going to say 'difficult'," answered Meuia gently, "but I suppose those words could be used as well. I saw you and your brother born, Karyu. I knew you were both fighters the moment you came into the world. You will find your way and until then, you must try to manage as best you can. Work through your frustration and do not let it rule you."

"Are you finished?"

He sighed and nodded. "I am."

"Good. I'm going to go for a swim in the sea." She bit her lip and looked at the _tsahik_ thoughtfully. In some ways, he reminded her of her father with his almost infinite reserves of patience. "Meuia, thank you for being supportive. It's nice to have someone at least partially on my side with my family clear on the other side of the continent."

Meuia gave her one of his quiet smiles and nodded. "This is practice for me too, young one. Some day, we will be making decisions for the clan together. We must learn to work together and listen to each other."

"Well, that day is a long way off," she reminded him. "_Sa'nok_ is still in her prime and she hasn't shown any signs of slowing down. Personally, I'm not in a hurry for that to happen."

"Of course not," agreed Meuia, "but it is good to consider the future and try to be prepared, don't you agree?"

She nodded, though she really didn't like to think about the day she would have to take her mother's place. Usually an _olo'eyktan_ wasn't replaced until he or she died, fell prey to a debilitating illness or became too weak from age to keep up with the task. There were exceptions, of course, but those three reasons were the most likely to occur. Karyu hated to think of any of those things befalling her mother, but Tanhi was mortal like anyone else. A hunting injury, a battle, a disease or just plain age would one day render her unfit to lead the clan.

With a heavy sigh, Karyu pushed her grim thoughts to the background. "Well, you know where to find me if something dire comes up that requires the council to pester me some more."

The _tsahik_ nodded. "I will not trouble you unless there is need."

Now that they had _that _settled, Karyu was eager to dive into the sea and have a nice, crisp workout swimming in the waves. Taking dips in the sea was one of the things she had missed so much from home. The man-made swimming pools at Hell's Gate and the still waters of nearby lakes and ponds just didn't compare to an ocean swim.

* * *

_Meanwhile, somewhere in the northern sea:_

Alyara checked the heading before ducking into the small, shed-like structure built into the boat. The storage shelter was for keeping foodstuffs, medicinal supplies and clothing dry and clean. Passengers relied on hooded cloaks treated with oils to repel water to keep the weather at bay. After doing a quick count of the supplies and nodding in satisfaction, she left the storage and she conversed with her people. They were getting a nice wind again so they were able to stop rowing and use the sails to propel them over the water.

"If the wind continues this way, we should reach the shores of the southern continent by nightfall," she informed her traveling companions. "We will make camp there overnight and begin traveling in the morning. As we did the last time we visited these lands, we will capture _pa'li_ to ride if we are fortunate enough to find a herd on our way to the sacred lands."

"What about the _nek'tum tsu'yahnee_?" one young man wanted to know. "Will we leave it on the shore, where anyone could take it?"

"We will do as we did the last time," she assured him. Remembering that he wasn't there for last journey, she explained further. "There is a sea cave near the shore where we will be stopping. We will leave the boat in there, out of sight of unfriendly eyes."

There were nods of agreement all around. Alyara could only hope that the Omaticaya either had some answers for her clan or would be willing to help if it came to a fight.

* * *

_Later that evening, in the Ikran village:_

She'd had enough. Omocan's shy smiles and admiring glances, the whispered gossip and various questions concerning what her family was up to at Hell's Gate were driving Karyu up the proverbial wall. Soon, they wouldn't have to worry about the RDA bombing her village; she was about ready to do it herself. She took her dinner into the family lodge and mid-way through eating, someone came scratching at the entry flap of her lodge, wishing to offer her some cuts of fish they had caught. It was the family that has complained of their noisy neighbors. Karyu was a little surprised but she accepted and thanked them. Usually these small gifts were given to Tanhi as tokens of appreciation from her people. Now that Karyu was acting on her behalf during her absence, she was the recipient.

She sniffed the smoked fish cutlets with appreciation as she returned to her eating pallet. "At least there's _one_ perk to this."

Indeed, she could probably go without cooking for herself at all while she was taking this role. The People always provided the _Olo'eyktan_ and its family with the tastiest meal offerings, in return for the community service and leadership. Tanhi wouldn't approve if she relied wholly on the village for her meals, though. She was always telling Karyu that a chieftess or chief lived _with_ her clan, not above them. It was as much her duty to provide food for the village as it was anyone else's—even if her duties only allowed her time to make small contributions. The busy schedule was part of the reason people always offered food to the leader.

Karyu gobbled the offering up with the rest of her dinner and when she stepped outside and saw heads turn to stare at her, she decided it was time to retreat to her father's trailer for the night. She gave her fellow villagers a tight, forced little smile, ducked back into her tent and packed up a couple of things she wanted to take with her for the night. As she walked through the village toward the path leading up the hill, a group of three girls around her age approached her. Karyu groaned inwardly and she turned to bare her teeth at them in what she hoped was reasonably close to a smile.

"Yes?"

The girls looked at each other uncertainly and they seemed to come to a silent agreement. "We just wanted you to know that if you would like to talk, we are here for you."

The offering surprised her a little, but then her practical mind kicked in and she reasoned it out. While everyone she grew up with in the village knew she was chosen to become their leader some day, most of them didn't go out of their way to befriend either her or Kato. She knew she wasn't the easiest person to get along with and she was happy to have a handful of true friends over a gaggle of "fair weather friends". Now that she was beginning to take on the duties of the _Olo'eyktan_ and people wanted to get in her good graces. This offer of friendship was basically just three girls sucking up so that they could have it good with their future clan leader.

Karyu sighed, relating to them unwillingly. With the pressure that families could put on a young person to choose a mate of their liking, she could see why people previously uninterested in forming a friendship with her might decide it was a good idea to get her on their side.

Normally rather uncharitable when it came to people's idiosyncrasies, she was feeling generous. Not _too_ generous, though. "Thank you for the offer. Right now, I've got some experimenting to do in the lab trailer."

The ruse worked, just like her father promised. Wanting nothing to do with the strange workings of science, the three girls wished Karyu good luck and left her alone. Sighing with relief, the huntress resumed her trek to the trailer. When she got inside, she locked the door and set her bag on the bunk in the back of the room. She eyed her father's computer thoughtfully and shrugged. She could use something cheerful to watch, right now. Her tension was like a bow pulled far too taut. She sat down at the desk and peeked out the window through the blinds before powering the device up. When it finished booting, she went through the video files and picked something out at random.

The Little Mermaid seemed like a good idea, at first. Who didn't enjoy a classic cartoon, after all? Karyu's little smile began to fade when Ariel began to sing "Part of your world".

"_What would I give to see you smiling at me?_"

Much to her horror, Karyu identified far too easily with that line and her vision blurred with tears. Poor Ariel was in the same pickle as she was...wanting an outsider for a mate but unable to have him because her people wouldn't approve. Replace Triton with Tanhi and the story might as well have been about Karyu's current situation.

She quickly turned the movie off and wiped at her eyes, trying to stop the flow of tears. They just came faster and she began to sob wretchedly into her hands. She rocked back and forth in the chair, trying to bring some measure of comfort to herself. She should be stronger than this! She'd barely been back for two days yet and she was already having a meltdown! Deny it though she might, she longed for her father or brother to hold her and murmur kind words of comfort to her. They were both very good at making her feel better when she was feeling down. She imagined what her mother would think if she saw her in this state and Karyu's tears began to dry. She heaved a shuddering breath and put her arms down, straightening in her chair.

"Just stop it," she muttered to herself between sniffles. "This isn't going to help."

It worked...a little bit. The ache in her chest didn't fade but she eventually stopped crying. She sighed and looked across the trailer at the bunk, where her little bag of personal belongings sat. She knew _something_ that would make her feel better, though she thought it was probably a bad idea to keep using Baxter as a crutch. She got out of her chair and crossed the room to rifle through her bag. She found the military cap first and she put it on. She fastened the oversized watch to her wrist next. Even on the tightest setting, it fit loosely around her wrist. She found the two framed photos of Howell last and she carried them over to the desk and propped them up on it.

She sat down and looked between the human image and the avatar one. "Well, here we are. I just can't get rid of you, can I?"

The computer beeped with an incoming message and it startled the girl so much, she almost fell over backwards. Karyu put a hand over her heart and glared at the monitor accusingly as she cursed. She opened up the messenger box to see who could be trying to contact Tom's computer. Maybe it was Kato, trying to check in on her. Her twin knew her well and he probably guessed that she would seek sanctuary in their father's trailer eventually.

She frowned when she saw the screen name that came up. "Howler?"

It dawned on her who was calling and she felt a moment of sheer panic. He had to know she was the only one likely to answer any incoming communications. How did he get the contact information for her father's computer anyhow? Her judgment was impaired by her surprise and she impulsively touched the "answer" button on the screen without even thinking about it.

"Howell?" Baxter's face popped up on the screen just as she spoke the soft inquiry.

"Well hey there, Princess." Maybe she was imagining it, but she thought she detected relief in his voice. His smile was just as dazzling on the computer screen as it was in person. "I wasn't sure I'd catch you but your old man had you figured right. So, how's life in the village treating you?"

"I guess I can't complain." She felt dazed and detached, as if she was caught in a dream. "My _sempul_ put you up to this? And what the hell happened to your face?" He had a dark bruise on his left cheek and around his right eye. There was only mild swelling so she could only assume the bruises were a couple of days old and he'd received medical attention.

Baxter shrugged, peering curiously out from the screen as if trying to spot something over her shoulder. "It's not a big deal. I took some punches in a sting operation…the one I couldn't tell you and Sav about the night before you left Hell's Gate."

"Who hit you?" She was unprepared for the surge of protective rage she felt and she blinked. Baxter was a big boy…a trained soldier. He didn't need a Na'vi woman protecting him or keeping him from doing his duty.

Howell smiled at her. "Don't worry about him. He's in custody and the med ward took good care of me. I think it's sweet that you'd want to punish someone for hitting me, though."

She cleared her throat and tried to rationalize her reactions. "Well, you're still recovering and I don't want anyone ruining the progress my father and I made with healing you."

"Got it." He winked, playing along with her even though he clearly didn't buy her excuse. "I think your Dad's a little worried about you. He figured you could use a friendly voice to shoot the breeze. Hey, don't you have a web cam over there? I'd like to see you if I can."

She had forgotten about the web cam. Still shaken, she activated the little lens at the top of the screen—forgetting to adjust her appearance, first. Baxter's grin broadened as his eyes focused on her and he looked her up and down.

"You look real cute in my hat, Honeybun."

She blushed to the roots of her hair and reached up impulsively, adjusting the cap on her head. "I...it makes me feel better," she confessed thoughtlessly.

His smile faded a little and those brilliant green eyes softened. "Yeah? Karyu, have you been crying?"

She wiped self-consciously at her tear-reddened eyes. "No."

He looked doubtful. "Don't try to put one over on me. I can tell when a girl's been crying."

She straightened up at the accusation. "I'm not lying. What would I have to cry about?"

"How about you tell me?" His tone was encouraging.

Karyu hesitated. She'd already put her foot in her mouth by basically admitting that thinking of him made her feel better. He wasn't likely to judge her for her moments of weakness. The problem was, he was the primary reason for her tears. How was she supposed to tell him what was troubling her without giving everything away? She needed to dissuade his advances, not encourage them.

"I guess it's just too much, sometimes," she said softly, lowering her gaze. "I knew this wasn't going to be a cake walk and I expected it to be stressful, but I'm feeling...I don't know...trapped."

He nodded. "I don't blame you. No wonder you're holing up in that trailer."

Karyu sighed and looked at him again, silently admiring his countenance. "They're pushing me to start considering potential mates in the village."

For a brief moment, she thought she saw his eyes flash with some intense emotion. "Yeah? Any takers yet?"

"No. There's one guy showing interest but he's too nice for me."

Baxter chuckled. "I didn't know there was such a thing as being 'too nice'."

"Well, there is. He'd let me push him around too much and I find that boring."

"So you want someone a little feistier, eh?" He winked at her. "I'm here for you, baby."

"Quit that," she demanded, even as she grinned helplessly. "I told you, it can't happen."

"Says the chick wearing my hat and watch," he quipped without missing a beat. He peered around as if searching for something. "Where'd you put my pictures, Hot Stuff?"

She only barely resisted the impulse to look at said pictures, which sat one either side of the monitor—just out of his visual range. "What pictures?"

He clucked his tongue. "I can see right through you. You can keep pretending you don't know what I'm talking about if you want, though."

Karyu was getting annoyed—but whether it was at him for his constant digging or at herself for blushing with guilt, she couldn't decide. "If all you called me for is to harass me, I'm going to shut this program down and block you."

He sighed. "Aw, don't be that way. Okay, I'll stop picking on you. But just so you know, my plans haven't changed. I'm not giving up."

"Fine," she grumbled, "Suit yourself."

He smiled. "So, what did they have you doing all day? Sounds like you're about ready to kick someone's ass."

She waved a hand in a dismissive gesture. "Just chieftess stuff. Apparently some of the people in my clan are overgrown kids that can't handle their own problems without 'Mommy' stepping in."

"And I guess _'Mommy'_ means you."

"That's right," she said with a nod. "When people can't agree on something, it's up to the _olo'eyktan_ and the _tsahik_ to figure out a solution. Sometimes the council weighs in with their opinions but we're pretty much the 'parents' in this village."

"Wow...sounds like fun."

She snorted. "Then you come and do it, Green-eyes. I can think of lots of other things I'd rather be doing than stopping arguments about fishing spots and snoring."

He tried to stifle his laughter behind his hand, coughing to cover it up. "What…ahem…what kind of solution did you come up with?"

"I told the fishermen to can it and learn how to take turns. I told the family complaining about their noisy neighbors that if they want them gone that bad, they'll have to help them move." She shrugged. "It worked out okay, I guess."

"Sounds like you've got it all together, Karyu."

"I don't _feel_ like I've got it together," she grumbled. She hadn't meant to say it out loud and she winced at the look of sympathy on his handsome, bruised face. How could a man get pummeled and still look good? "It's just a lot to take in so fast."

"You'll get there," he encouraged with a smile. "If there's one thing I know about you, it's that you never give up."

She tried not to smile. "And neither do you."

"Nope. Not when it's worth fighting for," he agreed.

She knew she shouldn't find his statement encouraging or comforting in any way, but she did. Eventually, he was sure to grow tired of being discouraged and turned down. When that day came, he would walk out of her life and Karyu would have to cope knowing that he would find comfort in the arms of some other woman. The thought of him kissing anyone else, mating with them and having children with them made her burn inside. She actually pressed her hand against her stomach, feeling a surge of nausea.

"Hey, are you okay?" Baxter evidently noticed the sour twist of her lips and his teasing expression faded into concern.

She shook her head and looked away from the monitor, feeling the warning sting behind her eyes. It seemed like she was in danger of becoming a crybaby and she blamed him for it above all others.

"Karyu? Talk to me."

She shut her eyes and bit her lip. "I'm fine. I just need to figure out how to deal with all this pressure I'm under, that's all. Don't worry about me."

"Telling me not to worry won't make it happen," he insisted. "Especially when you look like you're trying out for a part in an antacid commercial. Man, I wish I was there with you. I'll bet you could use a hug."

She smiled bitterly. "And a kiss?"

"Yeah. A long, slow kiss. I'd like to give you one of those, too."

She opened her eyes and looked at him again. He wasn't smiling. His eyes held hers through the video feed and her pulse quickened at the complete sincerity in them. "What else would you do, if you had the chance?"

His mouth curved into one of those sexy smiles. "What _wouldn't_ I do with you, if I thought I could get away with it?"

Her sorrow faded into intrigue and her imagination perked up. She crossed her legs and propped her chin in her hand, peering at him with interest. "Why don't you describe the things you'd do…if I let you? I have time to listen."

He gazed at her suggestively and she resisted the temptation to cross her arms over her chest to provide added coverage. "Well for one thing, I'd like to caress those sweet little shoulders, nice and slow. I'd kiss you softly on the mouth, maybe trace those pouty lips of yours with my tongue before I moved on to kiss your throat. I'd run my fingers down your spine, the way you like—"

"Wait…who said I like that?" She was flushed and she found breath harder to come by. She distinctly remembered how great it felt when he stroked his fingers down her back that morning when she woke up in his arms.

Baxter smiled. Evidently, he was thinking of that morning too. "You shivered and mumbled that it felt good, Kitten. The morning after you tied one on. I remember that clearly."

Karyu cursed herself. "Um…I wasn't awake."

He chuckled and continued to describe what he would do if he had the chance. "I'd keep rubbing your back that way until that stubborn streak of yours faded enough for you to admit you like it. I'd nibble your ear and tell you how sexy and pretty you are. I'd rub the nape of your neck with my other hand and when the time was right, I'd undo your necklace and let it drop to the floor."

She swallowed. "Okay, I think that's enough."

He wasn't deterred. Howell was evidently too far into his fantasy to stop now. "I'd gently cup those perfect, perky little breasts of yours and I'd rub them for a little while, nice and slow to let you get used to it. I'd start teasing your nipples as soon as you're relaxed enough and I'd slowly start working my mouth down, kissing your soft skin as I went…"

Karyu's flush was no longer from embarrassment and she lost all interest in stopping his descriptive fantasy. She listened to him tell her all about the things he wanted to do to her and she was enthralled and aroused before he even made it to her belly-button.

* * *

Baxter lay in his bunk after his conversation with Karyu over the computer, suffering the after-effects of the encounter. He still wasn't sure how their chat practically turned into cyber-sex, but the swelling in his crotch was testament of how damned sexy the little wildcat could be. He thought of the things she said to him—some of which stunned him so badly he could do nothing but stare at the screen. Telling him she wanted to put her lips around his cock and suck him dry definitely gave him plenty to think about.

"What got into you?" he whispered, staring up at the ceiling as he replayed every naughty little comment and innuendo in his mind. Just when he thought he had Karyu Sully figured out, she did something that left him reeling in confusion.

Baxter looked down the length of his prone body and sighed. His condition wasn't going to go away without a little help, this time. Since he wasn't in a hurry to hide his condition from anyone, he opted for a more pleasant solution than putting his junk on ice. Shutting his eyes, he thought of Karyu as he reached down and slid his hand into his track pants.

* * *

Far to the East, Karyu was in a similar situation. She tossed restlessly in the trailer bunk, finding it impossible to get comfortable in such a state of unsatisfied arousal. If Howell _were_ there right now, she would be in the process of losing her virginity. There was just no way she could be in the same room with him and not pounce on him. She imagined having him tied up to the bunk she was now squirming restlessly in and she thought of what it would be like. She would touch him at her leisure and taste him all over before taking him inside of her to finally relieve her pesky sexual needs. Maybe then, she'd be able to think clearly again.

"Would I still feel this way about him if I just went for it?" she wondered to herself. Maybe the love she thought she felt for him was just unanswered lust, and maybe it would go away if she gave into her desires and mated with him.

Karyu rolled her eyes. "Or maybe I'm just putting together any dumb excuse I can think of to justify humping him."

She sighed and absently touched the watch on her wrist. When he'd obliged her and described all the ways he wanted to touch, kiss and caress her, she got drawn into it. The next thing she knew, she was giving him pornographic descriptions of what _she'd_ like to do to _him_ and she hardly blushed while doing it. It was somewhat of a revelation to her. She was able to be completely honest with him and look him in the eye as she told him her fantasies. The enthralled expression on his face was proof enough that her words affected him as much as his affected her.

The only bad thing about it was that once it was over and they said goodnight, she was left horny and alone. Her hands began to stroke and caress her body of their own accord as she thought of the way he described kissing her _down there_, where her right hand was slowly progressing towards. She slipped her hand under her loincloth and touched herself, thinking of him and imagining what it would be like to let him do everything he said he wanted to do.

"Howler," Karyu sighed, going with the fantasy. She was still learning how to ease her tension, discovering what felt best and brought the most satisfaction. Her inexperienced fingers weren't a very good substitute for Baxter's scarred, practiced hands. She delved into her fantasies and pretended it was his touch she felt, instead of her own.

* * *

_Two days later, at Hometree_:

Jake was helping Sylwanin string her beginner bow when the drums began to beat. The sounds of excited voices floated over to them on the wind, from the direction of the village.

"_Sempul_, are they going to try to take you away again?" Sylwanin looked up at the sky above the mushroom grove worriedly, biting her lip.

Jake shook his head. "No, Pumpkin. I've been cleared of charges. Those drums mean we have unexpected Na'vi visitors coming."

"Then is another fight going to happen?" she prompted, "When Na'vi come to each other for help without warning, doesn't that mean trouble?"

Jake laid a soothing, protective hand on her shoulder. His ears swiveled as he listened to the rhythm of the drums and determined the urgency of them. "We'll see. Come on, let's go and find out what the fuss is about."

Sylwanin grimly gripped her bow and checked her quiver of arrows. The weapons were scaled down for adolescent use but even Na'vi children could take down small game and defend themselves if need be. "I'm ready."

Jake gave his daughter a subtle little smile of both amusement and pride. She and Ralu were both old enough to begin practicing with bows and so far, she showed great promise. He hated the thought of his little girl being so eager to rush into battle but he admired her determination to do her part to protect the clan.

* * *

"Dad, they're calling a council," Tsu'tey said when he met up with Jake outside the den. "Emazu sent me to find you. We have a party of hunters from the Mune'tsyal clan from across the sea visiting us. They've been traveling almost non-stop for two days and some of the hunters from the Guardian clan are with them."

Jake was more than a little surprised. "That's a hell of a distance to travel."

"They came by ship and captured some wild direhorses to make the journey to the Tree of Souls. I guess they couldn't load their ikrans up with supplies and make the flight over the sea. The Guardians came with them as guides. They say humans are invading the continent to the north."

Jake felt a sickening lump of dread in the pit of his stomach. "Do they have a description of these invaders?"

Tsu'tey shook his head and looked over his shoulder at the den entrance, where people were converging anxiously. "I don't know the details yet, _Sempul_. I only know the gathering is underway. _Sa'nok_ is already there with the Mune'tsyal representatives and Emazu. The Counsel is gathering and people want answers."

"And people think I have them?" Jake could think of only two explanations for humans invading the lands up north. Either UNEC decided that the peace treaty wasn't worth honoring any longer or the RDA underground had moved in up there with their stolen toys.

"Dad, this could be a _good_ thing," Tsu'tey murmured, casting a quick look around as he leaned in closer to Jake. "Unless this is a new force of enemies entirely, this could answer the question of where the RDA has been hiding. That's what Uncle Tom and the others have been trying so hard to figure out, right?"

Jake sighed and smiled at his son. "You've got a good point, kid. Let's hope this is something that could lead to an end in all of this, without another war."

While nobody could claim that Jake had lost his edge, he wasn't eager to look for a battle. Not after everything he and his mate had been through with the loss of their firstborn, the manhunt they went on and the trial he'd gone through. He'd entertained hopes of a time of peace to help raise his grandchild in, but he accepted the possibility that it might not be in the cards.

"Don't worry," he assured Tsu'tey when the young man gave him a concerned look, "If it comes to a fight, I'll be on the front lines. Your old man still has plenty of fight left in him."

Tsu'tey smirked looked away. Jake and Neytiri weren't anywhere near "old" yet. By Na'vi standards, they were still in their prime and while they weren't the ideal age for childrearing, they and their generation could still hunt with the best of them.

"It isn't your 'fight' I worry about," Tsu'tey answered softly as they approached the den together. He ruffled Sylwanin's hair. "It's your will to do it."

"_Sempul_ has plenty of will," objected Sylwanin with an accusing look at her brother. "He's no 'scardy-cat'."

"That isn't what he meant," laughed Jake. "It's okay, Sylwanin. Tsu'tey just knows I'm not eager for another fight. He just wants to be sure I'm ready for one if it comes to it, that's all."

"That's right," agreed Tsu'tey. "Now come on...we shouldn't keep them waiting."

Jake hid his amusement. Fatherhood was making Tsu'tey a little bossy, but not in a bad way. He could see the potential for leadership in his son, if Tsu'tey ever had to take up authority within the clan. That was a good thing—especially with the potential for another war hanging over their heads.

* * *

Sylwanin new her place in matters like this and though she was understandably curious, she immediately joined the other adolescents in helping some of the adults prepare food and drink to be passed around for the gathering. Jake patted his son on the shoulder and he spotted Neytiri standing next to Emazu on the platform in the center of the den.

A group of Na'vi Jake had never met before stood before the Omaticaya leaders. They were paler than the Omaticaya, with a skin tone that had a faintly more violet hue to it than cyan. They wore smooth hide leggings, thicker than the ones sometimes worn by southern clan hunters for flight or during pregnancy. Their feet were bound in protective wraps, as were their hands. The women wore leather tunics instead of the less concealing bead and feather tops commonly worn by southern females. Clearly, they came from a cooler climate.

Jake approached the platform to join Emazu and Neytiri, guessing that the solemn young female facing Emazu must be the foreign group's leader. Emazu saw him coming and he murmured to the foreign leader as Jake approached, letting her know who he was.

"_Toruk Makto_," greeted Alyara respectfully when the crowd parted for him to join his chieftain and mate's sides. The foreign huntress made a gesture of homage, touching her hand to her bowed forehead. "_Eywa hawnu nga_."

"_Eywa hawnu nag, Tsmuke,_" Jake replied politely. "I hope my people are making your party comfortable and welcome."

"They are," she assured with a glance behind her at her travel party.

"The visitors from the Mune'tsyal clan say there are Sky People in their territory," Emazu informed, getting straight to business. He nodded at Alyara. "She recognized markings from Hell's Gate on one of their flying machines, _Toruk Makto_."

Jake swore under his breath and Neytiri stroked his arm soothingly. "I was afraid of that."

"Then it is true," prompted one of the hunters from Alyara's party, "the aliens that your clan have allied with have turned against you?"

"No," Jake immediately corrected. "Not on your _life_. Those people in your territory weren't from Hell's Gate, I'm sure of it."

Norm added his opinion. "Our allies would have contacted you if they were passing that close through your territory. They are very careful about documenting all known territories so that they don't trespass or interfere with native life when they send people out." He looked at Jake. "But it's possible they don't have all the clans documented in the Bavaris Chain. Have Trudy and Max asked you about that at all?"

Jake gave him a blank look. "What's the 'Bavaris Chain'. Sounds a little kinky."

Norm sighed. "It's the cluster of small continents to the north of Australis, between us and the northern polar caps. You've lived here for this long and you didn't—"

"Hey, the Na'vi don't name big spits of land, all right?" Jake defended, interrupting his friend's lecture, "Everything Earth has done since we came here has been on _this continent_ and I haven't paid much attention to human geography. I know the territories by tribe."

"Sorry," apologized Norm grudgingly. "I didn't think of that. So do you know if Hell's Gate has the northern continents charted or not?"

"I know they've been sending scout teams to the north to try and track down the RDA supporters," Jake sighed, "but I haven't had a chance to get into it deep with them, since I got out. Alyara, do you know where these invaders went after you spotted them?"

"My brother sent scouts to follow them," announced Alyara, "but they found nothing."

"Wait a minute," Jake said with a frown, "You saw _exactly_ where these trespassers were heading and they just vanished when you sent people to look in on it?"

"We knew the direction they were going when we saw them," she explained, "but we had no way of knowing if they continued to move the same way after we sent people to look. By the time we returned home and the scouts were sent out, the invaders could have changed course and gone anywhere. My brother will send scouts each day while I am gone, hoping to find these Sky People before they can do great harm to us or other northern clans."

Tsu'tey spoke up gently. "I don't mean any offense, but why did your people come here to us for help with this? What about your neighbor clans?"

She lowered her eyes and sighed. One of the males in the group made a derisive sound and Alyara cast a warning look at him before raising her gaze again to respond to Tsu'tey's question. "The clans to the north are scattered and divided. We are not allied with each other the way your people are allied to the other clans in your lands." Her gaze flitted to Emazu, who was watching her quietly. "The Omaticaya also have dealt with Sky People before. You know what they are capable of and you understand their ways better than we of the northern clans do. We know very little of them, save for the news that comes to us through ancestral memories and gatherings. We...are hoping that your people can help ours...or at least, give us some answers and tell us how to fight these Sky People, if we must."

"The Omaticaya will help you fight," promised Emazu passionately. He calmed a moment later and looked to Jake. "But first, we must know who these invaders are. I have never trusted Sky People, but the _Olo'eyktan_ before me, our _Tsahik_ and most of our council trust these humans from Hell's Gate. I will trust their wisdom and seek their council."

Jake was grateful that Emazu was thinking with his head instead of rushing to conclusions based on prejudice that was slow to die. "What sort of markings did you see on the other flying machines, Alyara? Were they anything like the ones you recognized from Hell's Gate?"

She shook her head. "No. They were white...simple. I know it was some form of Sky People writing but my people don't know how to read it."

Norm stepped forward and politely excused himself as he cleared some space before the visitors. "Here," he offered, squatting down on the earthen floor of the den. He drew a word in the dirt with his fingertips, in big, bold letters. "Did the writing on the other flying machines look anything like this?"

Alyara regarded the word "UNEC" with a frown and she nodded. "Yes. That was painted on the other flying machine I saw, when I was hunting with my brother. Those are not the only ones we have seen, though. There have been others but we believed they were only passing briefly, in the beginning. They have been coming more often and that is why my party was sent to speak on the clan's behalf."

Jake looked at Norm. "Think you can draw a Dragon ship for her?"

Norm raised his eyebrows and looked down at the word he'd scratched in the earth. "Uh...not likely, but I think I can manage the basic shape." He brushed a hand over the dirt to erase the word he'd written and he poked the tip of his tongue out the corner of his mouth as he tried to draw the basic shape of a dragon ship in the soil. People crowded around him with interest and Neytiri commanded them sharply to back off and give him light.

"Sister, did your people see any human machines that resembled this shape?" Neytiri asked when Norm finished drawing the bulky outline of a monstrous C-21 assault ship.

Alyara leaned over to peer at it and one of the females in her group gasped and nodded with excitement. Alyara nodded as well and she looked at Neytiri grimly. "Yes. We have seen two of those. One bore the markings shown to us by Normspellman. The other was seen by Atan'yu and he says it was not marked at all."

That caught everyone's attention and there were frowns all around. Every human vehicle on Pandora was supposed to have one of two distinctive markings on it, branding it as either Hell's Gate or UNEC property.

"_No_ markings at all?" Gracie asked softly. Leyra whimpered, sensing the rising tension in the air. Grace tried to soothe the baby as she waited for an answer.

"None," answered one of the Mune'tsyal hunters—the young male named Atan'yu. "Perhaps they had no time to paint it?"

Jake had a horrible suspicion and by the look on Norm's suddenly paling face, the anthropologist shared it. Jake looked at the young hunter that claimed to have seen the unmarked Dragon and he tried to think of how to word his question. "Did this un-marked machine look...younger than the other one?"

Na'vi faces screwed up all around. "Younger?" repeated the Mune'tsyal hunter in confusion. "Forgive me, but I don't understand."

"Shinier," supplied Norm urgently. "Smoother, maybe."

"I...I suppose," agreed the young man after some thought. "Do these things have life, like our Ikrans? Do they age?"

"Not life like us or our Ikrans," Norm tried to explain, "but they _do_ age because they're built from parts of the earth...like your housing or the racks and looms we build. You eventually have to build new lodges when the old ones decay, right?"

Understanding dawned on the faces of the Mune'tsyal and the listening Omaticaya and Guardians. People nodded and murmured amongst themselves in speculation. Atan'yu's expression lit up with understanding as well and he nodded. "Yes, it did look like it was made from newer materials."

"Jake," Neytiri murmured, "our friends would mark their _kunsip apxa_ before allowing them to fly anywhere."

He agreed. "UNEC would have, too."

The foreigners didn't understand the low-spoken words in English, but they did understand the grim tone behind them. Alyara looked at Emazu. "There is more. We know that the Sky People come to our world on the wings of huge creatures that make terrible noise, like a flock of angry _toruks_. We heard that noise, many nights ago. It woke us from our sleep. We saw something that looked like a shooting star, streaking over the sky."

Alyara lowered her gaze in thought and frowned. "When it happened, we did not think much on it, other than the strange noise. Because of the _tawtute_ machines we have seen passing our territory, we decided we could have been wrong about the star. Our _tsahik_ prayed to Eywa for guidance when my brother made the decision to send me to your people and she had a vision of one of these creatures. In her vision, it fired like an arrow through the sky, high above our territory. It flew on and on, until it landed in the icy lands to the north, beyond our borders where no clans live."

Jake and Norm gave each other alarmed looks, but before either of them could remark on the description, Alyara reached into a pouch tied to her hip. She carefully withdrew and unfolded a piece of cloth, which she handed to Emazu. He peered at it with a frown before showing it to Jake, shrugging. Norm came over to Jake's side and looked over his shoulder at the scrap of cloth. Drawn on it was a shape that both men could easily identify, though it was crude. Neytiri also recognized it and so did Ni'nat, when she joined her mate to look.

"_Shah-tell_," Ni'nat murmured with a distressed look on her lovely features.

Norm put an arm around her. "Yes. A Valkyrie."

Jake raised his eyes from the shape drawn onto the piece of cloth and he looked at Emazu. "The RDA stole from our friends at Hell's Gate," he explained. "They stole from UNEC, too. The same people that tried to destroy _Ayvitrayä Ramunong_ and killed your uncle are responsible for taking these aircrafts and invading the north. It isn't Hell's Gate doing this and it isn't really UNEC, either. It's the RDA."

"They're the _real_ _Tawtute_," Norm added. He looked a little green. "Jake, if they've sent a Valkyrie down and have a brand new Dragon ship, it must mean—"

"They're getting ready to make their move," finished Jake. "They aren't as worried about getting seen as they were before. They've got to have a base of operations somewhere up north and they must have been working on it for a long time, now."

"So you think they're getting ready to declare all-out war?" Norm looked at his daughter, who was cradling her tiny infant and trying to calm her down.

Leyra began to wail and Gracie looked like she was ready to cry, too. Tsu'tey quickly ushered her off with the baby to help, taking them both away from the gathering and the upsetting talk of war. The kids and pre-teens—who were supposed to have begun handing out refreshments by now—stood stupidly and stared at the gathered adults and the council. Emazu straightened up and spoke to the gathering in a strong, fierce voice.

"If a fight is to come, we will be ready for it! The People have defeated the _tawtute_ before and we will do it again! We will not let this RDA harm our world or our people!"

His bold announcement stirred the blood and people began to hoot and pump their fists in the air. Norm looked around with a grimace and he leaned closer to Jake. "Maybe we should tell Emazu to tone it down," he suggested. "We don't need a bunch of riled-up hunters shouting for human blood."

Jake looked around and smirked. "They aren't shouting for 'human blood', Norm. They want RDA blood. Right now, everyone could use a boost to morale. You saw how scared people were at the mention of war, Norm."

Neytiri agreed. "Our people have not seen a battle since the fight to free Hell's Gate from the RDA. They have grown used to having only nature to contend with. Facing another fight against the _tawtute_ is frightening. They nearly succeeded in destroying our link to the Great Mother. Let them shout and dance and pump their fists, Norm. Some of them may soon die defending this world, if the worst comes to pass."

Norm looked at the _tsahik_ with a troubled expression and he nodded. Ni'nat coaxed him away, reminding him that their grandchild was in distress and Jake and Neytiri couldn't leave the meeting to help take care of her.

"Don't worry," Jake assured Norm as the anthropologist reluctantly left the platform with his mate, "I'll talk to Emazu and keep everything under control."

Norm nodded. "I should contact Hell's Gate and let them know what we've found out."

"Yeah," agreed Jake. "Now we've at least got an idea of where to find those bastards. If Tom can get his gadget up and running fast enough, maybe we can ambush them."

Norm seemed a little heartened by that and he left Jake and Neytiri to work with their young _olo'eyktan_ and the council.

* * *

_At Hell's Gate:_

"Is everything all right, Howell?" Tom entered some data into the computer and frowned in concentration as he looked over the results. "You've been really quiet over the last few days. I told you, I don't mind chatter. If you want to talk about Wilson, you don't have to censor yourself around me."

Baxter thought of the various conversations he'd had with Karyu over computer messaging and he glanced uncomfortably at the doctor. "Honestly Dr. Sully, I didn't know Wilson that well. I never got the chance to. I feel bad for everyone else and I hate that we've lost a good soldier, but I've got other things on my mind. I guess that makes me a bad person."

Tom nodded and he turned from his work long enough to give Baxter an encouraging, paternal smile. "No, that makes you a _normal_ person. I'd forgotten you never had the chance to get close to Wilson, like the rest of your friends. You still have so many of your own problems to deal with. I wish I could help you with that."

"I talked to your daughter," blurted Howell. When Tom went still and swiveled in his chair to regard him fully, he wondered if he'd made a mistake. "You said it was okay, right? I contacted her through the net service that night you gave me your handle. We've...kind of talked every night since then."

Tom smiled a little and returned his attention to the screen. "What about?"

Baxter was thankful that there was nobody else nearby and the doctor had his back to him. He wasn't bad at keeping a neutral expression when it counted but he hadn't yet learned how to control the blood flow to his cheeks. "Mostly what we've been up to, favorite music...that kind of thing. I try to keep it light because I know she's got a lot to handle right now."

And that part really _was_ true. After the first cyber encounter, he did his best to keep his conversations with her clean and he tried not to flirt so much. It was as much for his piece of mind as hers; the frustration was bad enough without cranking up the fire to make it burn brighter. Unfortunately, the lack of flirtation meant he had nothing to distract from the sadness he saw lurking in her mysterious, long-lashed eyes. He couldn't ignore the tension he saw in her slender shoulders or pretend the edge of anxiety in her voice did not exist.

"I'm glad," Tom approved. "Karyu really doesn't have many people to turn to...at least, not many her own age that she trusts. She likes you."

Baxter started to smile in spite of himself. "Yeah? I like her too. A lot."

Tom glanced at him. "Yes, I know."

Baxter felt like he needed to be cautious here. "I hope you know I'd never want to disrespect her or your family, Dr. Sully."

Tom chuckled, shooting Baxter a grin before walking over to the counter where his device waited for further testing. "Baxter, if I thought differently, I never would have encouraged you to contact her. Don't make me spell it out, son."

Howell scratched his head. "I'm afraid you might have to spell it out for me, at least a little. I'm about as good with subtle things as I am with languages."

Tom turned away from his work and approached Baxter. He patted the marine's shoulders and looked him in the eye. "In other words, you won't ever have to worry about this particular father trying to get between you and his daughter...provided you keep treating her with respect. You have my approval."

Baxter smiled. "That means a lot to me, Doc. I know Karyu is supposed to pick some full-blooded hunter as her mate someday, though."

Tom sighed and lowered his gaze, patting Baxter's shoulders once more before nodding in agreement. "Yes, that's what she's _expected_ to do. The game isn't over yet, though. Tell me, how did she sound to you when you spoke? I haven't had the chance to speak with her for more than a couple of moments yet and I know she puts on a tough front for me."

Baxter opened his mouth, shut it and then looked away. "Uh..."

Tom frowned. "That bad?"

"She's a strong girl, your daughter," Baxter said hastily. "It's just that she's cut off from everyone she can talk to, you know? You, her brother, Sav...she talks to them on the computer too but I don't think it's the same for her. She's under all this pressure and I just wish...well, I guess it isn't my business."

Tom combed his fingers through his hair, inadvertently drawing Baxter's gaze to the unusual streak of gray at his temple. "I knew this was going to be too much for her. Karyu is a loner by nature, true, but she's used to having at least _one_ of us available in person. My little girl..."

Baxter realized for the first time just how much Tom Sully loved his daughter and how very guilty he felt over the duties piled onto her. He hated seeing the man look so morose. It was like watching his own father suffer. "Hey Doc, I think Karyu can handle this. She just needs some time to adjust and you're not going to be away forever, right? In the meantime, we can give her as much support as we can from the distance."

Tom seemed to shake himself out of his thoughts and he nodded. "You're a good man, Corporal Howell. I wish there was more I could—"

The device under the fluorescent lights began to beep and whir, distracting Tom from whatever it was he was about to say. His eyes widened and he turned around, lunging toward the counter with excitement. Baxter instinctively started to reach for his weapon, finding too reminiscent of explosives counting down.

"Everything okay, Doc?"

Tom was hunched over the counter, staring at the device that was hooked up to wires and feeding into several reading monitors. The beeps and blips on the screens grew stronger and rather than answer Baxter, Tom reached out to the clear box holding the unobtanium sample near the device. He turned the box this way and that, his shoulders and back tense beneath the white lab coat.

Baxter waited with bated breath, feeling just a little creeped out by Tom's behavior. He kept an eye on the door, feeling the hair stand up at the nape of his neck. Something was about to happen and he really hoped it wouldn't be another life or death situation.

"Dr. Sully, if there's something dangerous we should be expecting to happen, I'd appreciate you telling me now."

Tom laughed.

Baxter's lips rounded as he watched the microbiologist and he was strongly reminded of one of those old movies about some mad scientist that set loose a monster on the world. "Uh...Dr. Sully?"

Tom curbed his excitement and cleared his throat, motioning Baxter to come closer. When the marine warily did as instructed, Tom showed him the device. The energy core was spinning rapidly and Tom pointed at the readings on the screen.

"Do you see that? It works! The heat signatures in this room are showing up clearly, despite the proximity of the unobtanium!"

Baxter shrugged. "Okay."

"The device is canceling out flux interference," explained Tom patiently, spreading his hands. "Completely."

Baxter's gaze went to the invention. "Wow...so this means you really _can_ shield our equipment from flux interference?"

Tom nodded. "Absolutely. It was shaky before but now it seems stable and ready to use. I just need to have some field tests done in a flux-heavy zone first. If it works this way there, then we can scan all of the territories that are flux heavy and _hopefully_ find the RDA smugglers and the stolen equipment."

Baxter nodded and smiled, still confused about the whole thing but excited by Tom's enthusiasm.

* * *

Tom had just sent the first of his prototypes out on a test run to the Hallelujah mountains in one of the Samsons. He was feeling pretty good about everything until Max contacted him for a private talk. He joined Max in his office and he was surprised to find that Trudy wasn't in there with him. He almost asked how she was holding up, when Max informed him that Norm had the approximate location of the RDA operations base.

Tom had a rare moment in which he channeled his twin's personality. "You're shitting me."

Max shook his head and paced the room. "No, I'm not. It seems the Mune'tsyal clan from one of the continents in the Bavaris Chain has been seeing a lot of 'air force' activity in their territory. At first, they thought it was us and since there weren't any hostile actions taken or deforestation, they let it go. Now it seems there's a large force amassing up there somewhere and the Mune'tsyal sent some people to the Omaticaya to ask for aid."

Tom remembered meeting some of the people from the Mune'tsyal clan and he mentally reviewed their approximate location on the world map. "So the suspicions that the RDA have been carrying this...project of theirs up north aren't wrong."

"That's the verdict," sighed Max. He rubbed his whiskered chin.

Tom wanted to bang his head against the wall. "I hate to sound petulant, but this information couldn't have come at a worse time, Max. I've _just _perfected the flux repulsion device so that we could track these people without the flux getting in the way. It seems like a waste."

Max looked up at him with raised eyebrows. "A waste? Tom, you must be more tired than you've let on. There is _nothing_ wasteful about your research. All we know is where the last stolen aircrafts were spotted up north...that's it. The Mune'tsyal haven't found the enemy base yet and even if they had, being able to target, track and navigate _through flux interference_ is going to be a _huge_ asset to our cause. You know we're going to have to converge on these people and put an end to this, right?"

Tom felt a little foolish and a lot immature. "Well yes, of course. Maybe I've been spending too much time with younger people. I was just frustrated that I've done all this work to find out where they're hiding, just so a group of strangers can show up and tell us: 'Oh, they're just north of where we live'."

Max laughed aloud at that and he shook his head. "Sometimes, you're not so different from your brother."

* * *

He stood over her amnio tank and watched her floating there, naked and vulnerable with a healing bullet-wound in her side. He couldn't admire her female form...not when she was like a babe in the womb this way. He concentrated on her face...on her noble features and the floating, silken mass of dark hair around her. Parker pressed his palm against the glass and spread his fingers. He rubbed his eyes with his free hand, wondering how he ended up this way.

"They're moving in, Pam. They're moving in just like they did on Earth...tightening the noose before going for the kill. I don't know what's going to happen. They treat me better than the ones I've ratted out, at least. They let me see you for a little while every day. It's still not a guarantee. Even if you pull through and the people here keep their word to me, there's still all the other shit."

"What 'other shit', exactly?"

Parker froze for a second and he turned to find Trudy staring at him from beneath dark locks of hair. She normally kept her hair pulled back into a ponytail but lately, she'd left it hanging loose. That wasn't a bad thing but she seemed to have forgotten what a brush was for, too.

"Shit that I'm not ready to discuss with any of you," answered Selfridge coolly, though the chill look in her eyes made him swallow nervously. Funny how a cute little thing like Trudy could be almost as intimidating as Quaritch.

Trudy was suddenly upon him and Parker found himself shoved back against Archer's amnio tank, with Chacón's forearm pressed against his windpipe and her free hand squeezing his crotch.

"Fuck you, Selfridge," Trudy snarled. "I'm done with this shit. You're gonna tell me what you were saying in code to this nice lady here or I'll rip your nuts off right now."

His wide brown eyes went to the lab techs nearby, but they were hastily vacating the room. They obviously weren't going to come to his aid and he doubted they were going to get security. It was like his "confrontation" with Quaritch all over again, only this time the person bullying Parker was trying to _prevent_ a slaughter. Still, her motivations didn't make Trudy's actions more justified than Quaritch's, in Parker's eyes.

"You're as bad as _he_ was," choked Selfridge against the pressure on his windpipe. He grimaced and forced the words past his lips, glaring at her. "Your old...boss did this to me...when I told him to stop."

Trudy caught on and her eyes searched his for a few more heartbeats before she faltered and let go of him. She shoved him away from her and brushed her hands on her pants, pacing. "You say you tried to do the right thing? Prove it. I know you haven't given us all the names, Selfridge. If you really want to make up for what you did, you'll give us the rest of the identities you know about. While you're at it, tell me what you mean about someone 'tightening the noose like they did on Earth'. Were you talking about us?"

He got to his feet and he took a moment to catch his breath. Seeing the tension in the Trudy's frame, he knew he only had moments to answer before she lost patience and went Rambo on him again.

"I'll give the rest of those names," he said, "but there aren't many left. Most of the rest of your moles went with the equipment they stole. As for the other stuff..." He trailed off and grimaced, glancing at Pamela's still face in the amnio tank again.

Trudy stood with her back to him and her feet parted. She had her arms crossed over her chest and every part of her stance warned him that she was only a hair's breadth away from acting on her earlier threat. "You've got five seconds to spill it."

There was no point in keeping what he'd learned to himself anymore. Not now. "Earth is at war."

Trudy turned around to regard him with a frown. "The UN is declaring war on Pandora?"

"No," he answered with forced patience. "Earth is at war with itself."

"You mean like another World War?" She didn't seem very surprised. That was how Jake lost his legs, after all.

"No, I mean like a civil war," answered Selfridge. "It's the RDA against the United Nations. Guess which side's winning so far? I'll give you a hint: UNEC isn't going to be in UN hands for much longer."

There was only one good thing about this: Trudy Chacón stood there completely speechless and she made no further threats of neutering against him.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

_**'Ite Olo'eyktan**_ = Daughter of the chief/chieftess

_**Nek'tum tsu'yahnee**_ = boat or canoe

_**Eywa hawnu nga**_= Eywa shelter you

_**Kunsip apxa**_ = Dragon; large gunship

_**Ayvitrayä Ramunong**_=Tree of Souls


	31. Chapter 31

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 31: Drawing straws**

* * *

_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. WARNING: Beware the fluffy, sweet, corny romance in this chapter. I am not responsible for any injuries or bruises that may result from face-palming while reading this chapter. Enjoy!**_

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. "Watership Down" belongs to Richard Adams. "Faithfully" belongs to Journey. **

* * *

Max was understandably startled when his fiancé burst into his office with Parker Selfridge in tow. She practically threw the administrator at Max's feet before crossing her arms over her chest and scowling at him.

"Tell him the bullshit you just told me, Selfridge."

"Trudy," Max said carefully, getting up from his chair, "I think your anger is getting—"

"_Tell him_!" The pilot kicked at Parker, who squirmed away just in time to avoid a boot in the ribs.

"Trudy!" Max bellowed her name, unable to maintain gentle persuasion in the face of her violence, "Stop this, or I'll have you confined until you've calmed down!"

She stared at him through unkempt locks of dark hair, her expression revealing shock. He felt awful for yelling at her that way and threatening her, but she was getting out of control and sometimes, tough love was necessary. She blinked and she seemed to catch a glimpse of herself through his eyes. She combed her hair back from her face with her fingers and she cleared her throat self-consciously, swallowing hard before speaking again.

"Corporate-boy here says Earth is in the middle of a civil war."

Max stared at her, then at Selfridge. The administrator was getting to his feet and brushing his clothes off in an attempt to look dignified. "A _civil war_? Between who?"

"Between the RDA and the United Nations." Parker cast a wary look at Trudy and he took a subtle step away from her.

Max shook his head and circled around to the front of his desk. "That isn't possible. The RDA would have to somehow amass enough power to overthrow individual governments and keep them under control while moving in on the UN. Even given the time they've had to recover and re-build a powerbase on Earth, they can't wage a full-on war against the United Nations. There must be a mistake."

Trudy made a disgusted gesture at Selfridge. "Yeah, bullshit, right?"

"Believe what you want," Selfridge warned, "But I've got connections you don't have and I know what they've told me."

"_Who_ told you, Parker?" Max prompted. "Who told you that the RDA has succeeded in waging a full-on war against what amounts to the entire world?"

"Look, I know it sounds crazy—" began Selfridge.

"Ya think?" interrupted Trudy with a scowl. "Answer the fucking question."

Parker frowned at her. "Think you can dial it down a little, Chacón? I've cooperated with your people and—"

She raised her fist threateningly. "When you're asked something, you answer."

Something snapped in Parker, then. He drew from hidden reserves of courage and braced himself visibly. "Hit me again and I'll swing back, lady—and I'm using that term loosely."

Trudy punched him in the jaw before Max could say anything. Parker rubbed his jaw and glared at her. He made good on his promise and Trudy staggered as he punched her right back. Max reacted on instinct, driven by the sight of his lover being struck. He shoved Parker against the wall and shouted at him to be still. He sensed Trudy moving in behind him and he acted quickly to bring the situation under control.

"Trudy, stay back!"

"She threatened to tear my balls off," Selfridge snapped. "You gonna do the same, Doc?"

"If you hit her again, I might just help her do it," promised Max. He looked over his shoulder at his fuming girlfriend, all too aware that her control was hanging by a thread. "Trudy, _calm down_. This isn't the way to get our answers."

"How do you figure?" she demanded. "We've tried it your way and he's been taking his sweet time with giving up the information. I'm tired of coddling this bastard, Max."

Max sighed and he looked at Selfridge with tired eyes. "Who told you about this war on Earth, Selfridge?"

"Stone, for one," answered Selfridge. "There's also a guy in the UN department named Edwards that keeps on top of news from home, but he's been keeping a tight lid on it."

"So your source isn't just an RDA operative," reasoned Max with a frown. "What did Edwards say about it, exactly?"

Selfridge shrugged. "He was pretty tight-lipped about it but he said there were some security issues and a shift of support back home."

"A few security problems and some shifting support doesn't make a war," Trudy scoffed.

"It does if they don't want people to _know_ about it," Selfridge corrected tensely. "The UN reps were careful to keep the information they gave me restricted to what I _needed_ to know to do my job on that base. The other details I got came straight from Earth, from people on the inside. It isn't just Stone."

"Then tell us who else," Max coaxed. "What other RDA operatives have given you this alleged confirmation, Parker?"

Selfridge combed his fingers through unkempt hair. "I can give you their names but I don't know what you can do with it. Stone was the only one not using an alias. The others I talked to were people I've already exposed here or coverts on Earth."

"And if Pamela Archer recovers enough to answer some questions, will she be able to confirm any of this?" Max asked.

"Yes," he said without hesitation. "Pam was in contact with some of the same people. She'll tell you I'm not lying—but you've got to make her better, first."

"We're doing everything we can to keep her stable and on the road to recovery," promised Max. "We'll need those names and while we're on the subject, you still haven't told us where the RDA operative base is. You've claimed they never told you its location but I want you to think really hard about that. Do you know where their base is, Administrator?"

Trudy gave him a puzzled look. "Why are you asking him this now, Max? You know the slimy weasel isn't going to tell us—"

"Because I _don't know_!" yelled Parker passionately, his face reddening as he lost his tenuous hold on self-control. "I _told_ you already, that information was 'need to know' and I wasn't on the list of folks that needed to know, yet! Maybe I never would have been, either. Maybe they were planning to get rid of me after I did my part, ever think of _that_? It's not like they gave me a choice when I came back to this hell-hole and I'd be out of commission _permanently_ by now if I hadn't gone along with them!"

"Boo-fucking-hoo," Trudy sneered, "I'd better grab a tissue."

Max stood torn. He completely empathized with Trudy and it really was hard to feel sorry for Selfridge, but as he had said before, Parker thought of himself as the victim. If he could convince him to answer his question, he might be able to discern how sincere he really was.

"Selfridge, I'm asking you once more. Do you know the location of the RDA base?"

"No," Parker answered without hesitation. "How many times do I have to _tell_ you people that? Threatening to cut my balls off and smacking me around won't make it any less true. I can't tell you what I don't know, goddammit!"

Max searched Parker's eyes and tense face for a few moments before deciding he'd gotten everything of use he could get from the man. He reached for his phone and activated the security quick-call.

"Hello Sergeant Major; this is Dr. Patel. I need you to send someone to my office to pick up Mr. Selfridge and escort him safely back to his cell. The General is occupied. Thank you."

Max hung up and he regarded Parker and Trudy respectively. "We'll discuss this further after we've had a conference and everyone has had time to calm down. Trudy, do you have any objection to that?"

She hesitated for a moment before nodding. "It's cool, Max. I could use some rack and I'm sick of looking at this guy's face anyhow."

Max's tension eased and he looked at Parker. "Selfridge, I suggest you give the rest of those names. I can't guarantee your safety if you keep withholding information…not the way tensions are running now. Just think about it."

Selfridge swallowed and looked at Trudy again, who was leaning against the wall with her bruised hands in her pockets and her ankles crossed. For the moment, she seemed calm. "I'll get you those names."

* * *

The next day, Max and Trudy organized a conference with the top faculty. They invited Tom and Tanhi to come, due to Tom's involvement with the flux shield project and Tanhi's status as leader of one of the allied clans. Also invited to the meeting was Lyle Jackson, who was down on rotation from the Star Chaser. The ISV was still Hell's Gate's best-kept secret, hidden behind Polyphemus. Cloaking technology developed by the hard-working tech teams prevented radar detection of the craft and its two Valkyrie shuttles.

The crew of the Star Chaser was careful to monitor all traffic near their part of the solar system and keep the giant gaseous planet between them and all arriving transports from Earth. There were usually intermittent staff rotations to allow some vacation time for crew or to transfer carefully selected replacements for those who resigned or retired. The official story was that the Star Chaser was disassembled and used for building scrap after the broadcast exposing the RDA was sent to Earth.

Due to the recent conspiracies, rotations between the Star Chaser and Hell's Gate were restricted. Jackson came down for the meeting and to help his associates organize emergency protocols between the base and the ISV. His people piloted their shuttle into a valley several hundred clicks away from Hell's Gate, where a rendezvous point was organized for a Sampson to come on a "gathering mission" to pick him up with a couple of his crew. They took no chances, but there was a possibility that the truth about the Star Chaser had already been leaked during the infiltration of Hell's Gate.

"Dr. Sully," greeted Lyle as he joined the others in the conference room and recognized him. He shook Tom's hand and he gave Tanhi a respectful nod. "Ma'am. Good to see you again."

Tanhi nodded politely, remembering him well enough despite having only met him a couple of times in the past. "I hope you are well."

"It's been a long time," Tom said with a smile. The tall, dark-skinned foreman had more wrinkles and less hair than the last time they saw each other, but he seemed to be in good health. Unlike his crew, Jackson only rotated down a couple of times per year on average and it had been at least six years since he and Tom were both on the base at the same time. "You look good, Foreman."

Jackson chuckled and patted his belly. "Zero gravity is great for arthritis, but lousy on the physique. We've got sectors with gravity generators but it's not like having your feet planted on solid ground. You look good too." He studied the avatar scientist thoughtfully. "In fact, you hardly look any older than you did when I last saw you, except for that fancy silver wing you're sporting now. I think this is the first time I've ever seen a Na'vi or avatar with gray in their hair."

Tom self-consciously touched the silver streak and shrugged. "Blame my twins. They have a way of scaring the color right out of a father's hair."

Lyle laughed and shook his head. "Isn't that just the way with kids?"

"Yes, it's been a trip," agreed Tom with a grin, "but the gray is worth it and they're turning into fine adults. So, what do you think the odds are that the RDA and UNEC still think your ISV was used for scrap metal?"

Jackson sighed deeply. "I wish I knew, Tom. We haven't seen any activity in our sector of space yet, but I'm worried."

Max gently interrupted the reunion. "I know you two haven't seen one another for a long while, but can this wait until after the meeting? It's very important that we all discuss recent developments."

"Of course," Tom agreed.

He put an arm around his mate and urged her toward one of the seats at the table. Tanhi regarded the chair suspiciously, never a fan of human furniture. It was one of the scaled-up chairs meant for avatars and Na'vi. Tom gave her a silently pleading look and she grumbled and sat down in it. Jackson took the seat next to hers and Max went to the head of the table, where Trudy was waiting. The meeting began.

* * *

"So, Parker is claiming that the Earth is in the middle of a huge civil war, between the UN and the RDA," Trudy finished. "Laugh it up if you want to, folks, but we haven't been able to confirm or disprove his claims, so far."

"Everyone we know of who has family still on Earth has been contacted and questioned," Max added. "None of them have mentioned hearing anything about a war, but communications between Pandora and Earth have been bothersome at best for months, now. Considering how long it can take for non-superluminal means of communication to transfer back and forth, we can't rely on resident sources for confirmation."

Trudy nodded. "Plus, we can't ask too many questions and scare people. Odds are people would have already started spreading the word by now, if they'd heard about a war happening on Earth. Max and I figure that if it's really going down like Selfridge says, the government factions are keeping it tight and trying to cover it up."

Ramona shook her head. "How the hell do you cover up something _that_ big? I know the RDA could win a medal for sneakiness but that's a big stretch, even for _them_."

"I agree with her," Sebastian said with a nod at the zoologist. He spread his hands. "We all know what the RDA is capable of—especially when desperate—but let's not give them more credit than they deserve. They aren't gods. Even _they_ couldn't keep the citizens of Earth completely oblivious to something as massive as another world war."

"I thought they said _civil_ war," corrected Allen. "It's between two factions, not several."

"That depends on how you look at it," Katherine surmised. "It may officially be the UN vs. the RDA but it's taking place on a global scale—if Selfridge isn't lying through his teeth."

"Whatever you want to call it, war is war and people would start noticing the gunfire and dead bodies eventually," Lee remarked dryly. "Not to mention the attention tactical nukes would draw if it came to that."

"Not all wars are won with guns and explosives," General West pointed out. "And don't forget, Selfridge cracked a while back and had to be institutionalized. He didn't stay out of commission for long, but I wouldn't trust his interpretation of what's happening in the terran population."

"The man makes a good point," Ellis said with a nod in West's direction. "And even if he's not delusional, Selfridge will say just about anything to keep up the appearance that he's got something of value to give us."

"Yes, I agree," Max sighed. He placed his hands flat on the table and looked around at the gathering. "Parker Selfridge is convinced that his life is measured by how much information he can give to us. He thinks we'll execute him, once we've gotten all we need from him."

Trudy shrugged. "Sounds like a plan to me."

"Not funny, Trudy," admonished Max seriously. "I'm not a member of the Selfridge fan club myself, but he's a human being. Joking about killing him is in extremely poor taste."

"Agreed," murmured Sebastian.

"Lighten up," Trudy defended, "if we can't joke at _his_ expense, what can we joke about?"

Max gave her a brief little smile and he patted her on the arm. "I understand. Still, I'd like to keep this subject on topic and away from executions. As ridiculous as Selfridge's claim is, one thing really bothers me about it."

Tom found it troubling as well. "What would he have to gain by lying about such a thing? We can't do anything about what happens on Earth...at least, not immediately. There's no logical reason for him to make something like that up."

Max pointed at Tom. "Exactly! What could he possibly hope to gain for himself by making up a story like that? He might be one step away from insanity but the man is smart. He _knew_ how crazy it sounded...I could see it in his eyes. He knew it was insane but he _insisted_ that his information was right. If a man like Selfridge wanted to give us misleading information to keep himself alive a little longer, he would have gone with something else—something that directly affects us and this colony. He would have lied about undercover operatives or a planned terrorist attack."

"So you think there's a method to his madness," Guessed Ellis.

"Who _knows_ with that lunatic?" Joyce said with a derisive snort, "he's running on fumes in the sanity department and we all know desperation makes men do stupid things."

"I probably didn't help by threatening to tear his balls off," Trudy admitted with a smirk. She glanced sidelong at her fiancé. "So you think he at least believes what he says, Max?"

"I do," answered doctor Patel with a nod. "As difficult as it is to swallow, Parker's story doesn't seem like something he just made up to get you off his back. He _honestly_ looked scared and I don't believe it was just because he was afraid of you, Trudy."

Jackson sighed and pulled out a pair of reading glasses. He retrieved a holopad from his other pocket and activated it. "Well, there's one way we may be able to find out the truth," he shot a look at Sebastian, "but it'll take some hacking. Think you're up for it, Mr. Thomas?"

Sebastian was still humble enough to be surprised. He splayed a hand over his chest as everyone looked at him expectantly. "Me? Well, naturally I'll do whatever I can to protect this colony. What did you have in mind, Foreman?"

Lyle opened up a program on his holopad and he studied a document thoughtfully. "Odds are that if there's really a war going on back home, they're going to try to keep it hush-hush. Something of that magnitude would cause a civil panic and declaring martial law over mass territories would be tough, to say the least."

"Right," agreed Ellis. "They'd have their hands full trying to defend against the RDA loyalists. If they've really managed to pull together a force strong enough to threaten the United Nations, the armed forces fighting under the UN won't be able to spare extra troops."

"And any incoming feeds from Earth would be censored," reasoned Tom. "They aren't going to want the people here to know they're losing control of the situation on Earth. UNEC might have more power than Hell's Gate but Eywa only knows how many hidden RDA operatives they have on that base."

"If news got out that homeworld is being overtaken by the RDA, there could be massive civil unrest," predicted Katherine. "People would panic and there could be rioting in the streets. Just imagine the numbers of civilians that would insist on rotating back to Earth to be with family or friends."

Max nodded empathetically. "Exactly. That's why I can't dismiss Selfridge's description as desperate ranting. Both the RDA and the UN would want to keep a tight lid on this. Public panic would just make it harder—no matter _who's_ winning."

"So you want me to find a way to tap into Earth broadcasts," reasoned Sebastian to Jackson. "I think I could do that, but if they _are_ attempting to keep a lid on this as you say, I doubt we'll find any public news to confirm it."

Lyle set his holopad down. "That's why I'm not asking you to tap into public news networks, Mr. Thomas. I have a much _bigger_ fish for you to fry."

Bastian looked both intrigued and worried. "And what sort of fish is this, exactly?"

Jackson chuckled and took his reading glasses off. He wiped the lenses off and took the container out of his pocket. "The kind that would make the UN shit themselves, if they caught you doing it. You're good at hacking into networks and we aren't going to get any real information from doing it here. I can give you access to our superluminal com system, so you can ride the signal back to Earth...kind of like what you did when we broadcasted the truth about what was going on here, back in the day. Someone's got to have information on Earth that hasn't been transmitted here and odds are, the United Nations is our best bet to find out the truth."

Sebastian's eyes went round. "You...want me to hack into the United Nations' computer network?"

Lyle nodded calmly and pressed his fingertips together. "It's our best chance for confirmation if there's really a war going on. How about it, Mr. Thomas? Are you up for it?"

"It isn't as though they can _do_ anything to you if you're caught," encouraged Katherine. "They _are_ light years away."

"But...it's the UN," he reminded her, "It's the pinnacle of all the world's nations! Every government on Earth! Tapping into that would be like…like…well, I can't think of an example but it's certainly not simple!"

"That's why we need _you_, Mr. Thomas. We have plenty of good technicians but when it comes to getting to secured information, you're the man for the job. All I can ask is that you try. Do you think you can do that?"

Katherine squeezed Sebastian's knee beneath the table and murmured encouragement to him. He sighed and shrugged, giving in. "I can't guarantee anything, Mr. Jackson."

"We have faith in you, Bastian," Mona assured him. "Your hacking skills have never let us down."

"No pressure, mind you," muttered Sebastian under his breath.

"It's settled then," said Lyle in satisfaction. "Now, what's the plan with this flux shielding device Dr. Sully invented?"

"We've started manufacturing them with Tom's supervision," answered Max. "We'll begin installing them soon. We have evidence that the RDA insurgents have established their base somewhere to the north, around the Bavaris Chain. We don't have an exact location but with the help of Dr. Sully's device, we can survey the land up there without the flux interfering with our instruments."

"I can tell you right now that you won't find their base in a flux-heavy area," West said. "They need to be able to use their own surveillance equipment to watch for the authorities. If we locate this enemy target and bring the fight to them, _nobody's_ going to be without missile tracking or radar."

"Yeah, I wondered about that too," agreed Trudy, looking around the room at everyone. "It's going to come down to numbers, strategy and execution of orders if we move in on the goon base. They used the flux to get away with our equipment but they would have picked a flux-free area to set up their base."

"I'm confused," Allen said. "Why is Dr. Sully making those gadgets to block flux interference if it isn't going to help with the fight?"

"I'm beginning to wonder that myself," muttered Tom.

"Because it will prevent them from using flux-heavy zones to their advantage again, for one thing," Ellis surmised. "These people have been using smoke and mirror tactics to swipe gear from both this base and UNEC. They aren't likely to fight fair when the shit hits the fan and there's no telling what sort of protocols they've set up in the event of discovery."

Trudy nodded. "They've got sciencoids on their side too. If our people can find ways to manipulate the environment then odds are, theirs can too. Any tactical advantage we bring to the plate is good for us. General West, I don't suppose there are UNEC people we can count on to lend us a hand when this goes down?"

"Just the crew I brought with me," he answered. "UNEC isn't the enemy in itself but the corruption caused by these RDA sympathizers runs too deep. If we want to get this done without alerting the insurgents, we should operate without involving UNEC at all. If we succeed in our objective, the RDA power structure on Pandora will be weakened again and UNEC may stand a better chance of cleaning things up on their end."

"I was afraid of that," Max said. "I really hope we have all of the spies on this base in custody. Restricting transfers from UNEC will help prevent more from coming in but we can't do it indefinitely without raising suspicion."

"So we have to locate these terrorists and take care of them alone?" Ramona didn't sound very thrilled with the prospect. "Our folks have skills but we're not exactly a military superpower, you know?"

"Jake indicated that his clan would be willing to fight, when I spoke with him," Max soothed. "I'm assuming the Mune'tsyal will be willing to help in some way, since their territory could be under threat by these RDA operatives."

"And the Ikran clan," Tanhi insisted, speaking up for the first time since the meeting began. "I will ask our hunters to join in this fight. They tried to kill my mate. We will repay them in blood."

The room went silent and everyone stared at the chieftess, until Max cleared his throat and smiled at Tanhi diplomatically. "We'd be grateful for any help your clan is willing to give us, Tanhi."

She nodded. "Many will volunteer to fight. My people love Tom even though he still wears strange clothes and does things that make no sense to us."

Tom blushed as people chuckled. "Subtle, isn't she?"

"Honest," corrected Trudy. "And right about now, we could use all the honesty we can get."

The rest of the gathering voiced their agreement.

* * *

A couple of mornings later, Savanna Sully stood over the stove in the small apartment she shared with her new husband. Her hair was damp from showering and she wore a fluffy pink bathrobe. She hummed happily as she watched over the eggs she was frying in a pan. For now, she and Kato were living off the credits in her trust fund. Graduation was in a few months and the current grade school art teacher would be retiring afterwards. Savanna had already put in an application to replace her, but she didn't allow herself to get her hopes up too high. She had experienced too much prejudice in her young life to believe she would find work easily.

_"Everything you do in life is going to be a struggle, Savanna,"_ Katherine often warned her. _"You'll have to work twice as hard as everyone else, you'll be treated unfairly and real friends are going to be hard to come by. Just remember always that there are people who love you for who you are. You deserve the rewards you earn in life every bit as much as the next person, whether they are human, avatar or Na'vi."_

Savanna sighed and she flipped the eggs with her spatula. If she didn't get the teaching job, she could apply for something else. In the meantime, she could earn some credits by selling her artwork through consignment. Kato would begin searching for work next week, after their "honeymoon" period ended.

She jumped a little when masculine, four-fingered hands settled on her waist without warning. "Kato," she gasped as he nuzzled her neck from behind. "I've got to break you of your sneaking habits!"

He grinned against her neck before kissing the spot beneath her jaw. He straightened up a bit and rested his chin on the crown of her head. His hands spanned her waist before pulling her firmly against him. "Smells good," he complimented, sniffing the aroma of frying eggs.

She smiled, loving the feel of his lean, strong body against hers. "Do you want to get some toast started while I finish up with these?"

"I'd rather see how many times I can make those cute little toes of yours curl."

She blushed deeply, recalling how relentless he had been once he discovered which buttons to push. _Tsahaylu_ was quickly allowing them both to become experts at pleasing one another and she was more thankful than ever that they could link when mating. She was also grateful to be on birth control. True, her chances of ever conceiving were slim but she didn't want to take the risk. After she graduated and she and Kato established financial independence, maybe she would stop taking the pill and leave it up to nature.

"Well, the toe-curling is going to have to wait," she insisted.

Kato sighed and nodded. He nuzzled her hair and pressed more firmly against her. It dawned on her that the only thing separating her body from his was her robe.

"Kato…are you _naked_?"

He shrugged. "Yeah. So what? It's our home and our honeymoon. Don't worry, the blinds are all shut."

"Well, you can't _stay_ naked," she chastised. "Remember, my parents are coming over for lunch. Now go get dressed. I don't want to be…occupied…when they come over."

"Okay," agreed Kato with a low chuckle, "I'll put something on and help you finish with breakfast."

She smirked and watched him covertly as he released her and left the small kitchen. His hair fell almost to his mid-back and his queue hung below the rest of it—the only thing obscuring the view of his strong shoulders, back and bottom. She sighed when his tiger-striped form disappeared around the corner and she returned her attention to the eggs. It was a shame to make him cover himself.

* * *

Katherine and Sebastian arrived around eleven and they had groceries with them. Kato took the bags from them while Savanna chastised them.

"We're capable of getting our own food from the market, Mama. Kato and I aren't going to starve."

Katherine opened the refrigerator and raised her eyebrows, gesturing meaningfully at the nearly bare shelves. "Unless you two plan to live on bread and butter, I think it's safe to say you could use a little help."

Kato grinned sheepishly. "I plan to hunt with Talon tomorrow. He's going to forget who I am if I don't fly with him more often."

Savanna kissed him on the cheek and liberated a wedge of cheese from one of the bags. "Your banshee won't forget who you are, Kato."

"You're a newlywed," Sebastian excused kindly. "Nobody thinks of stocking the larder while they're enjoying their honeymoon—hence why we brought some things from our refrigerator for you."

"This is all from your refrigerator?" Savanna frowned, pausing in the act of putting some carrots in the fresh keeper. "Why? Is this stuff going to go off soon?"

"No, honey," answered Katherine. "Although you need to use the milk by the end of the week. We've emptied out the fridge because we don't want to waste food. Your father has an important job to do on the Star Chaser and this time, I'm going with him. The last time I set foot in an ISV was when we came here and I only ever got to see the inside of the cryo bank and the Valkyrie docking station."

"I thought all travel between the base and the ISV was restricted right now?" Kato said.

"It is," explained Sebastian, "But this is no ordinary rotation. Foreman Jackson came down on one of the Star Chaser's shuttles for an unscheduled visit. Katherine and I will be leaving with him this afternoon. Remember, if you're asked our whereabouts, we've gone to assist on one of the remote environmental data facilities to the south."

"Aren't people going to get a little suspicious if they see two Valkyries on the premises?" Kato asked warily. "Hell's Gate only has one in operation and everyone knows that air traffic is restricted right now. It's going to raise questions."

"You don't have to worry about that," Katherine assured. "The Star Chaser's shuttle dropped Foreman off at a meeting point away from the base, in a dead zone. As far as anyone outside the 'circle' knows, he came in on a Samson. The official word being given is that we're taking the HG Valkyrie to bring supplies to the southern facility."

Sebastian nodded and checked the expiration date on a package of cheese before putting it in the fridge. "As long as the select few people who know the truth don't betray us, There's a reasonable chance that UNEC and the RDA are still unaware that we have our own ISV still in operation."

"In theory," added Katherine with a sigh.

"Well, if they _did_ know about it, wouldn't they have tried to something by now?" reasoned Savanna. "Like sending a shuttle full of operatives to take over or try to sneak someone up there to sabotage it?"

Kato agreed with her. "Yeah, from what we've been told about the RDA, they'd jump at the chance for revenge. Getting rid of the ISV would keep Hell's Gate from taking advantage of its superluminal range again to transmit to or tap into Earth networks. They've already tried to kill my father to stop his work on his project. I wouldn't put it past them to try and kill you too, Mr. Thomas. I'm not sure it's safe for you to go up there."

"He's right," Savanna said, alarmed by the thought of an attack on the ISV occurring while her parents were on it. "Maybe they just haven't done anything yet because they haven't had the opportunity. What if they're planning something right now? What if you go up there and—"

"Darling, calm down," advised Sebastian soothingly. He rubbed her arms and gazed into her eyes. "Mr. Jackson is meticulous about security on his ship. There is a risk, true, but I promise you they've taken every precaution against hostile takeover and they _do_ have emergency contingencies in place, should the worst happen. He discussed emergency evacuation procedures with your mother and I at length, last evening. If something goes wrong, we'll be the first on board the escape pods."

"Escape pods?" Kato asked with interest. "What about the Valkyrie shuttles?"

"If the ISV got invaded, the first thing they'd do would be to cut off access to the shuttles," Katherine answered. "Over the years, Jackson and his crew have made some alterations and additions to the ship, so that passengers will have an alternative escape route in the event of hostile takeover. So far, there's been no evidence that anyone knows about the ISV outside the chosen staff, but Jackson is a cautious man and he doesn't gamble with safety."

"You see?" Sebastian said with a smile at his daughter, "everything is going to be all right…and this is coming from a man that _loathes_ going into space."

Savanna swallowed and forced a smile for her father's sake. "How long will you be up there?"

Sebastian looked at Katherine uncertainly and they both shrugged in unison. "As long as it takes to get the job done, I suppose. I may not succeed at all but I've got to try. We could be there for two days or two weeks."

"What exactly is this 'job' they have you doing?" Savanna crossed her arms over her chest and stared between the two of them suspiciously.

Again, her parents exchanged a covert look and Sebastian spoke carefully. "There have been some rumors about the goings-on back on Earth, but the broadcasts coming in from there have been restricted. They want me to use the superluminal terminal on the ISV to try and tap into some networks, if I can."

Savanna arched a brow. "Really? It seems like a lot of trouble to go through over some rumors. Papa, is there more to this story than you're telling me?"

Sebastian hesitated and Katherine sighed and spoke up in his place. "Parker Selfridge claims there's a civil war happening on Earth. Sebastian has been asked to hack into the UN computer network to find out the truth."

Savanna and Kato both ogled them. "Why would you need to hack the UN?" asked Kato. "Wouldn't we have heard _something_ about it by now through news broadcasts? Or maybe someone here with relatives on Earth have heard something."

"We've already been over that," answered Katherine. "Nobody's been able to confirm it, but Selfridge wouldn't have anything to gain by lying about something like that. Therefore, it's assumed that he's at least half right. Maybe it hasn't reached a magnitude yet that warrants a lot of attention and maybe the government powers are trying to cover it up, to avoid public panic."

"And if it's remotely true, it could eventually influence life here on Pandora," added Sebastian. "Selfridge claims the RDA is going up against the UN…and winning. I find it difficult to believe but we need to be prepared if there's a chance that the RDA could overtake operations on Pandora again."

Savanna stepped closer to Kato and he instinctively put an arm around her. "Do you really think there's a chance they could do that?"

"Well, the RDA isn't just composed of a bunch of suits," reminded Katherine. "A lot of people all over the world had money tied up in the company and what it really comes down to is which side has the most support of the citizens of Earth. The RDA was arguably the most powerful organization on Earth, back in the day. It's not completely impossible that they've pulled their shit back together over the years and garnished enough support to make a comeback. Look at what they've already accomplished right under our noses."

"All right, Katherine," Sebastian said warily, giving Savanna a look of fatherly concern, "I think we've scared the kids enough."

Katherine eyed Savanna and Kato seriously. "Good." She sighed and reached up to stroke Savanna's hair. "Honey, I don't take any joy in scaring you, but you need to be prepared. You too, Kato. Now, chances are this is just crazed exaggeration on Selfridge's part, but we aren't taking chances. I don't want you taking any chances, either."

Katherine looked up at Kato. "If you ever hear the slightest peep from the warning sirens, I want you to get that banshee of yours and take Savanna far away from here—pronto. Don't stop to talk to anyone, don't go looking for anyone, just get her out of here. Keeping her safe is your _first_ priority, understand?"

Kato looked a bit taken aback by the vehemence in her tone and he nodded mechanically. "Absolutely, Ma'am."

"Now _you're_ being paranoid, Mama," Savanna sighed. "Even if the RDA is planning something, they aren't going to invade this base just to get me. I'm not as important as you think I am."

"You're the first natural-born human-Na'vi hybrid ever to exist," Kato reminded, siding with Katherine, "your mother is right. They might not raid Hell's Gate just to get you but if hostiles ever _do_ manage to take over this place, you know they'll want to study you. I'm not saying it's going to happen but if I ever _do_ hear the invasion sirens go off, I'm doing just what your _Sa'nok_ says and getting you out of here."

"So you'd just abandon our friends and my parents?" Savanna challenged.

"I'd try to come back for them," he defended, "after getting you to safety."

"Let's not get worked up over this," advised Sebastian, "They've captured all of the agents identified by Selfridge and this is all just speculation. We have no proof yet that the RDA is making a full comeback and so far, they've been using cowardly tactics. I doubt they have the powerbase on this moon to wage a full-on attack against anyone and we've slowly brought things back under control on our end."

"I just want them to be—"

"Prepared, I know," finished Sebastian gently. "Kath darling, we both know Kato loves our daughter and he's already proven he'll defend her from harm with everything he has."

Savanna cleared her throat. "Excuse me, but I'm capable of defending myself, too. You're all treating me like a helpless damsel in distress that needs her knight to rush to her aid. I can shoot straighter than some of the soldiers on this base and I won't hesitate to do it if I really have to."

"I didn't mean to treat you like you're helpless," Kato murmured in a pacifying tone. "I just meant…well, you know I'm going to protect you whether you have a gun or not, Babe. You're my wife and my mate. It's part of the package."

She smirked dryly at him. "And _as_ your wife and mate, it's my job to protect _you_ also. I'm just as capable of violence as the next person, even if I don't like to resort to it. Everyone keeps forgetting that."

"I haven't forgotten," objected Sebastian. "I clearly remember you being sent home from school after shoving that girl's face into the hot plate. Nevertheless, I know you have to be pushed hard to reach that stage and…forgive me for being blunt, but Kato doesn't. I don't usually encourage violence, but if it comes to an invasion, I feel better knowing you're with a man that won't hesitate for a second to shed blood in your defense."

"Are you calling me a savage, Sir?" Kato joked, smiling at Sebastian.

Sebastian smirked a little, but his tone was serious. "If violence is ever required to protect Savanna, please be as savage as you need."

Kato nodded. "It's a promise." He bumped his fist against Sebastian's the way pilots and soldiers were always doing it.

"Okay, the air is getting a little thick in here," Katherine observed. "Savanna, let's discuss what we're going to do for lunch before these guys start flexing. I want to have a nice meal with you two before we get ready to leave."

* * *

Kato and Savanna accompanied Katherine and Sebastian to the hangar area when it was time for them to board the Valkyrie. Tom was there too, along with Corporal Howell, Max and Ramona. Savanna exchanged hugs with her parents as the boarding ramp opened and Kato bid them a safe journey.

"We'll contact you when we've settled in," assured Katherine.

Sebastian released Savanna and smiled encouragingly at her. "Everything will be fine. Just enjoy the rest of your honeymoon, before you have to return to school."

"Okay, Papa," agreed Savanna. She bit her lip and leaned into Kato's one-armed embrace as her parents said goodbye to the others and boarded the shuttle.

Tom came up beside the couple and he squeezed Savanna's shoulder gently in support before seeing Foreman Jackson off.

"Well, here I go again," grumbled Jackson with a sigh after shaking Tom's hand.

"I take it you're getting tired of life at the southern research station?" observed Tom covertly, mindful of the staff and crew passing back and forth nearby.

"Let's just say I like my ground a little more solid," answered Jackson with a smirk. "I've been living there for the past twenty years. I think when the latest research gets sorted out, I'm going to retire and get a nice little unit in the Hell's Gate bio-dome."

"You aren't going to be easy to replace," Tom said sincerely. "But nobody can expect you to stay in such an isolating line of work forever."

"Well, I can't complain about the company," assured Lyle. "We're all just a big family up…I mean _down_ there. The real hardship is the restricted space. There's only so much…facility…a body can see before it starts getting real old and real boring."

Tom grimaced. "I understand. Let's hope you can have a happy and safe retirement, soon."

* * *

Days passed and everyone was hard at work doing their part…even those who by all rights should have been resting, grieving or enjoying a honeymoon. While Sebastian and Katherine were up on the ISV trying to crack into UN security on Earth, Tom oversaw the FSG device production with the help of Trudy, her pilots, the research development team and the top two aircraft and AMP technicians. It required the cooperation of everyone to manufacture the new devices, install them and test them safely. Kato and Savanna helped out as well—the former with the construction of the shielding devices and the latter with the computer data testing and energy spike monitoring. While Savanna wasn't a super hacker like her father, she had learned more than a few things from him over the years and she was quite savvy when it came to computers.

They ran into some difficulty while trying to install one of the FSG's on the third day of production and Tom rubbed tired eyes and sighed. He gently pulled Trudy away from the Scorpion's control panel.

"We aren't going to get this open ourselves without damaging the panel," he urged when she swatted at him irritably. "Let me get someone with a little more muscle to help me."

"Hey, I've got _plenty_ of muscle, Tomcat," objected the pilot sourly. She tugged at her exopack, trying to adjust it into a more comfortable position.

"Human muscle," he reminded her apologetically, "and don't look so offended: I've got avatar strength and I'm not doing much better. We need help."

"Come on," she insisted, "we can do it."

"Listen to me," he said in a low voice, helping her make small adjustments to the breathing filter, "I know you're doing everything you can to stay busy and I know you feel useless if you aren't on top of everything—"

"Not another lecture—"

"—But we don't need you getting burned out," finished Tom without missing a beat. He smiled gently at her and he tweaked a lock of her hair. There were some silver strands mixing in with it—the first gray she'd ever earned. "Take a break, kiddo. We're almost through and you've done enough."

"But we've still got to—"

"I'll sic Max on you," Tom threatened, raising his brows to show her he wasn't kidding. "Just like I sicced you on him years ago, when he was overworking himself trying to treat all the injured Nova survivors."

She gave him another sour look. "All right, fine. Who do you think you're going to get to help, anyway?" She gestured at the expanse of tempered windshield before her. "Everyone else working in here is busy doing installation on other gunships or AMP suites."

Tom looked around and conceded the point. "We don't need another tech person, we just need some muscle to help me get this panel un-jammed. Once we do that, you can oversee while I install the FSG."

Trudy looked past Tom's hunched shoulder through the open co-pilot hatch and she pointed. "What about your bodyguard, Sully? He's a strong young dude."

Tom twisted as much as he could in the cramped quarters of the Scorpion's cockpit and he looked at Howell thoughtfully. The marine was standing diligent guard, looking freakishly disciplined as he kept a close eye out for danger. Baxter really _was_ a big guy—not bulky like a weight lifter but strong in physique like Jake and taller than average. His easy-going, slightly silly nature made his height a little less obvious but when he put on his soldier face, he really did seem to tower over others. One of the regular avatars that Tom had always considered tall passed by Baxter and he was almost a head shorter than the marine.

"He really _is_ a titan, isn't he?" muttered Tom. The top of his daughter's head barely cleared Baxter's shoulder but they fit so well together, he'd never really noticed it before.

"Yup…the kid's even a little taller than Norm." Trudy chuckled. "Hey Corporal, get over here and help us out!"

Tom winced. Baxter was certainly a strong and capable specimen of avatar but he also had a clumsy streak. "Trudy, I'm not sure he has the finesse for this sort of thing. He might damage—"

"Yes Ma'am," Howell's voice said from behind Tom, prompting him to shut up. "What can I do to help?"

"This here panel's jammed and we can't get it open. I'll get out and let you and the doc take a shot at it."

Baxter looked a little uncomfortable. "You want me to help with breakable stuff?"

His comment made Tom chuckle. Baxter was obviously aware of his own limitations when it came to handling delicate objects. He gestured at the pilot side as Trudy opened the hatch and got out. "It's all right, son. All we need you to do is help me pop this panel open so I can work. It's a simple job."

"Okay." Baxter climbed in, wincing as the top of his head struck the overhead controls. He hunkered down and smushed himself into the craft so that he could reach the jammed panel that Tom indicated.

Tom pried the corner open with the flat-head screwdriver he held, giving Baxter a chance to get his fingers in for a grip. "Do you have a good hold on it?"

"Yeah, I've got it. Start pulling now?"

"Use _gradual_ pressure," advised Tom, guessing that if the young man put his full strength behind it he'd buckle or even bend the panel and damage it. "Just go easy on it and I'll see if I can probe around to loosen it up."

Baxter started to chuckle under his breath and he cleared his throat when Tom gave him a questioning look. "Sorry, Doc. I've still got a juvenile sense of humor now and then."

Tom tried to figure out what he said that was so amusing and he had to pretend he was Jake for a moment. "Probe," he guessed with a sigh and a smirk. Baxter tried to hide his grin and Tom shook his head. "You've got a smutty mind, just like my brother and son."

Baxter spared one more sheepish grin before disciplining himself and sobering. "I'll keep my mind on the job, sir. Sorry about that."

"Okay guys," Trudy reminded from outside the aircraft, "enough jawing. Let's get it done, so we can all eat and get some rest."

* * *

Baxter managed to help without causing a catastrophe and everyone went to the cafeteria for dinner after finishing up. Tom could have gone to the avatar lodge to cook something from the refrigerator in there, but his mate was still out hunting and he didn't feel like eating alone. He sat next to Howell, across from Kato and Savanna. They all chatted about casual things as they ate, carefully avoiding the subject of the project they were working on.

Tom couldn't help but notice the way the avatar women on base always managed to sit or stand near Baxter and he puzzled over it. The kid was strong and good-looking, yes, but he didn't impress Tom as a Casanova. He was playfully flirtatious at times, but he certainly didn't go out of his way to attract female attention and he didn't show any real interest in anyone besides Karyu.

Tom silently observed the behavior of the avatar females near Baxter as he ate his rather bland dinner. Even Janet Ellis leaned close to him more often than necessary as they talked, but fortunately, her husband either didn't care or didn't notice. Baxter wolfed down his dinner fast and when he got up to bus his tray, he walked past Savanna and Tom raised an eyebrow when the hybrid girl sniffed in his direction and sighed.

"Interesting," Tom murmured.

"What's interesting, Dad?" Kato inquired, pausing with a potato wedge halfway to his lips.

Tom shook his head, wisely choosing not to draw attention to Savanna's interest in Howell's scent. "I was just thinking out loud about research. Don't mind me."

Baxter came back to the table and looked down at Tom's tray. "You finished, Dr. Sully? I can bus your tray for you."

Tom shook his head. "Corporal, you're my bodyguard...not my maid. I appreciate it but I can do it myself." He smiled at his son and daughter-in-law. "You two should take tomorrow off. You've only got a couple more days of your honeymoon before Savanna has to go back to school and you need to look for work, Kato."

The young couple smiled at each other and Savanna blushed delicately. "We'll consider the offer. Kato and I just want to do our part to help."

"I think we can manage for a few days without you," Tom encouraged. "Go and be newlyweds, while things are relatively calm and peaceful around here."

Kato grinned and put an arm around his wife. "You got it, _Sempul_. Just remember to call if you need any extra help, okay?"

"Of course." He glanced over at Trudy, who was deep in a hushed conversation with Max and Dustin at the next table. So far, she seemed to be coping better but he couldn't help but worry about her. First love, dearest friend...it hurt his heart to look at her when he could sense the guilt and grief blanketing her like a sickening cloak.

"Dr. Sully, do you think we could stop by my quarters when you're finished here?" Baxter requested softly. "I've got something I want to get your opinion on. I figure since my shift is almost up, we can meet up with Eichelburger in the military barracks."

Tom nodded, glancing at his watch. "I don't see why not. I've eaten my fill anyway. Let's get going so you can get in a little social time with your friends before you get some rest." Tom winked covertly at the younger man, hinting that he already knew which "friend" Baxter was sure to contact when he had time to himself.

Kato cleared his throat. "Tell Karyu I said she's a brat-face, Bax."

The marine cast a hasty look around, as if expecting Tanhi to leap out of the buffet and tell him to stay away from her daughter. "You're more likely to talk to her again than I am, bro."

"Ohhh, so _she's_ the one," Janet said with a sage nod and a smirk at her husband. Beside her, Ellis paid careful attention to picking the last morsels of meat from his chicken, but he was smiling faintly too.

Kato took pity on his friend and he shrugged. "Well, if for _some_ reason you happen to hear from her before I do—"

"Will do," Baxter said hastily, cutting him off. "Uh, ready to go, Doc?"

Tom was trying not to laugh at the soldier's expense. "Excuse us," he said to the others as he stood up and gathered his tray and drinking cup. He nodded at Trudy and Max when they noticed him going and waved. "I'll see most of you tomorrow, bright and early."

* * *

"Sorry about the mess," Baxter excused as he and Tom walked through the door. "I haven't had the chance to give the place a good clean this week."

Tom looked around the small living space and he shrugged. The place wasn't "dirty", per se. The bunk was made, the kitchenette was clean and so were the tile floors. Most of the mess was just clutter. A half-folded load of laundry sat beside a basket on the bunk. The dishes drying on the rack hadn't been put away. The clock on the bedside stand was askew and there were non-perishable grocery products sitting un-packed on the chair by the computer desk.

"You don't need to apologize for having a busy life," Tom assured him kindly, examining everything in the room with quiet interest. Howell didn't have pictures of naked or half-dressed women on his walls—something Tom found a bit unusual for a man in his age bracket and line of work. Instead, there was a poster of a howling wolf on one wall and a few pictures of both human and avatar military operatives having a good time together. There were a couple of digital pictures of motorcycles on the wall near the door. Tom recognized Baxter's human form in some of the "party pictures", even though he had never seen him before as a human. The eyes were the same—impossible to miss with their vivid green color. The friendly, easy-going smile was the same too.

"So you were a brunet, eh?" Tom commented as Howell went to a small closet set into the wall by the bunk. The marine looked up from the door handle as Tom pointed at one of the old photos.

"Yeah, that's me. You picked me out pretty fast, Doc."

"The similarities are remarkable," Tom replied, glancing between the photo and the avatar standing before him. "You must have some good, strong genetics. Avatars naturally resemble their 'drivers', but you generally have to look twice to guess who an avatar is...or was. It's fascinating, how you passed your eye color onto your avatar."

"So, what does that mean?" Baxter started to look a little worried. "Are you saying something's wrong with me? Is _that_ why I've been having panic attacks and getting scatterbrained?"

"No," Tom assured. "I looked over your files when you were under my care and I ran blood tests. You're perfectly healthy. The panic attacks and disorientation are just normal symptoms of post-traumatic stress. Time and therapy are the only cures for that, Baxter. They should have told you this already."

"They did," sighed Howell, "but when you started talking about this stuff, I thought maybe there was a chance it's not my head—like maybe they messed up when they cloned my avatar."

Tom rested a hand on the young man's shoulder in sympathy. "Whatever you're going through, you aren't crazy and you aren't defective. It would be abnormal if you _didn't_ suffer psychological stress after the things you've lived through, understand? You're strong and you'll get through it."

Baxter lowered his gaze and nodded. "Thanks, Dr. Sully. I didn't mean to wuss out on you like that."

The microbiologist sighed. "Save the soldier pride. You're allowed to have moments of self-doubt in the company of friends, Baxter. None of us mind that you're mortal like the rest of us."

Baxter smiled. "We're friends?"

"If I didn't count you as a friend, I wouldn't encourage you to court my daughter," answered Tom dryly. He thought of the way Karyu sniffed after the marine like a cat getting a whiff of warm milk and he again wondered what Baxter put on his person to get results like that.

Howell chuckled. "Oh, that reminds me of what I wanted to ask you about." He turned to the open closet again and he rifled around on the top shelf. He pulled something down and held it out for Tom's inspection, looking youthfully proud and nervous at once.

Tom's eyebrows shot up when he saw the object in the marine's hand. He gave a low whistle, holding his hand out for the book. "May I?"

Howell nodded and handed it over to him. "The dealer said it was authentic."

Tom reverently opened the book and browsed through it. "'Watership Down'. This was Karyu's favorite story growing up."

"I read some of it," admitted Baxter. "It's kind of violent for a children's book."

"Well, it was a different era back then and this story was meant for older children and young adults," Tom explained, "A lot of the reading material for young people has been dumbed down over the generations. The garbage that passes for reading and educational material these days is...I'm sorry, I'm going off on a tangent."

"It's okay." Howell looked amused. "I kind of like listening to scholarly people rant. Your daughter does it sometimes and then she gets all flustered when I point it out."

Tom chuckled. "Karyu doesn't like people to know there's an inner geek hidden behind the huntress." He looked at the book in his hands, flipping it over to study it. "You got this for her, didn't you?"

"Guilty as charged," agreed the marine. "So, what do you think? Was the dealer pulling my leg when he said this was authentic?"

"It's authentic," assured Tom. "A hardback edition of a such a classic in such good condition would be damned hard to get on Earth...nearly impossible to get here. Who did you have to kill to get this book?"

"Nobody," assured Baxter with a grin, "I just had to fork out some savings and do a few favors here and there."

"How much of your savings?" Tom asked with a curious smile.

Howell looked away and sucked his teeth. "Uh, let's just say it's a good thing my cafeteria pass is good for another six months, Doc. Cafeteria food isn't the best, but it beats Ramen noodles for breakfast, lunch and dinner."

Tom nodded in understanding and he decided to invite Baxter to have his meals at the lodge with he and Tanhi, whenever they cooked fresh food. "Can I ask what kind of 'favors' you're doing?"

"Well, I'm not doing porn, if that's what you're thinking," quipped the marine with a grin. "It's not a big deal, Dr. Sully. I've just been helping with stocking in my spare time...lifting some of the heavy stuff that could give humans a hernia."

"As long as you don't neglect your own health," Tom said. He looked down at the book in his hands and he gave it back to Baxter. "This is an amazing gift. Karyu never had the chance to read this story from a real book. My kids grew up reading virtual copies on holopads and computer screens."

"So you think she'll really like it?" Baxter sounded boyishly hopeful and Tom was again reminded that he was only a couple of years older than his children.

"Squealing for joy is beneath Karyu," Tom said honestly. He nodded at the book in Howell's gloved hand. "But I think you might get a squeak or two out of her, when you give her that. She's going to _love_ it, Baxter."

Howell visibly relaxed. "Good. If it makes her happy, it's worth it."

Tom smiled, though he worried that he might be encouraging Baxter too much. He was already attached to the young man and he harbored fatherly feelings for him. He just hoped Karyu would listen to her heart and he hoped that her mother and the clan wouldn't punish her for it, if she did. He caught another whiff of the woodsy scent from Baxter and he decided to ask about it.

"At the risk of asking a strange question, what cologne is that you're using?"

"It's not cologne," answered the marine readily. "It's aftershave. Maybe it's silly since I don't need to shave anymore but I like the way it tingles and...uh..."

"What?" Tom prompted.

Baxter cleared his throat. "Girls seem to like it—at least, avatar and Na'vi girls do." He shrugged. "I'm not interested in any of them the way I'm interested in your daughter, though. It's just nice to get attention from the ladies. I hope you don't think I'm a pig for that."

Tom controlled a smirk. "That just makes you a typical heterosexual male. It has a pleasant smell, whatever it is."

"I could get you a bottle if you want," offered the marine. "It's made from native ingredients, so it isn't one of those expensive imports."

"Thanks for the offer, but I don't really need it," Tom said after a moment. "Do you mind if I use your bathroom before we meet up with your relief?"

"Go for it. It's...well, it's the only other door besides the closet and the exit in this room."

"Thanks."

Tom walked the short distance to the door by the kitchenette. He went inside and locked it, looking around with more than a passing curiosity. The bathroom was small like the rest of the unit, but not cramped. He spotted a bottle sitting on the metal shelf to the left of the sink, just under the medicine cabinet. He walked over to it curiously and he picked it up.

"'Sky cup musk'," he read, turning the red bottle around in his hand. "Hmm." He read the ingredients and an expression of understanding crossed his features. Tom started to chuckle under his breath and he replaced the bottle before making use of the toilet. When he was finished, he washed his hands and he glanced thoughtfully at the aftershave again.

"What the hell," muttered the biologist. He unscrewed the cap, poured a little of the fragrant liquid into his palm and he splashed it on his face and throat. After rubbing it in, he put the cap back on, rinsed his hands off again and walked out of the bathroom.

"Corporal Howell," Tom said when he shut the door behind him, "I had a look at your aftershave while I was in there. Do you know what the active ingredient in it is?"

"Something I can't pronounce," answered the marine with a shrug. "Why? Don't tell me it's poisonous."

"No, nothing like that," Tom assured him. "Panopyra is listed as the active ingredient. It's what gives that subtle undercurrent to the scent, to balance out the woodsy smell. The _tawtsngal _has medicinal uses, but there's one other use that makes it very popular amongst young Na'vi."

"And that is?" Baxter asked, looking only half-interested.

Tom smirked. "The stem tips produce a pheromone that works as an attractant. Na'vi men wear the stems or rub them on their bodies when they're looking for a mate. That pheromone is in your aftershave. That's why the avatar women love it so much."

Baxter stared at him. "Are you telling me I've been splashing some kind of Na'vi aphrodisiac on my face all this time, Doc?"

Tom considered the question. "You could put it that way. It won't make the ladies go into heat around you but it definitely pleases their senses and gives them incentive to stay near you. It's an advantage that logically gives a man more opportunities to court a woman he's interested in."

Baxter blinked, looking bemused and a little horrified. "Damn...all this time, I thought they just liked the smell."

"Well, they _do_," answered Tom with a smirk. "It just stimulates more than their olfactory senses. Don't panic. As I said, it doesn't work the way you're thinking. You don't have to worry about a crowd of sex-crazed avatar women chasing you through the streets."

Baxter snapped his fingers and pretended to be disappointed. "And I was looking _forward_ to that, too."

"Sorry to disappoint you," Tom chuckled. "By the way, I borrowed a splash for myself. Tonight is 'date night' for Tanhi and I."

Baxter grinned. "Date night, eh? Do you two do that a lot?"

"This is our first official date," answered Tom. "It was Karyu's idea and Tanhi came to me asking about it."

"Cool. So do you think you might want a bottle of the love juice after all, Dr. Sully?"

"I'm going to play it by ear," Tom answered. "If the night goes well, I just might take you up on that offer."

* * *

After Tanhi returned with her two hunting companions and got cleaned up, Tom took her to the embassy building across from the military barracks. Tanhi had never been inside the structure before and it was relatively new, compared to the other buildings on the base side of the colony. She had to put on an exopack before going through the doors and Tom spoke to a human woman sitting at a desk in the lounge. The woman looked something up on her computer, spoke to Tom and then gave him a keycard.

Tom coaxed Tanhi to go with him and Eichelburger down the corridor behind the reception desk and she reluctantly complied. Truthfully, the only thing that kept her from abandoning this idea and leaving the building was how handsome her mate looked in his dark burgundy dress shirt and black pants. Tanhi still wasn't a fan of human clothing but she had to admit that Tom wore it well.

They stopped outside a pair of solid, opaque sliding doors at the end of the hallway and Tom put his keycard into the blinking device on the wall. The doors slid open and Eichelburger politely wished them both a good evening as they went through the open doorway without him.

Tahni stiffened as the doors shut behind them, them alone in a darkened, oddly shaped room with a domed ceiling. Her bare feet padded over something on the surface of the floor that felt almost like moss, but it was softer. "Tom, I am not comfortable with this."

He coughed and she impulsively reached out to him. He shook his head and held a finger up.

"It's okay," Tom assured when the coughing fit ended. He smiled at her as he reached for the light panel on the wall. "You can take off your breathing mask, now. I had them reverse the air filters so you could breathe in here without the mask. Go ahead."

She warily removed the exopack and she took a slow, cautious breath before placing the object on the floor. She peered around the room, making out shadowed shapes that she couldn't recognize. The back wall was curved outwards in a half-circle and it was lined with windows. The windows were all dressed with curtains that muted the planetary light of Polyphemus outside.

Tanhi looked around with wide eyes, investigating the strange room. "What is this place you have taken me too?"

The fancy, copper-colored sconces on the walls slowly lit up, bathing the spacious room in a warm glow. Tanhi could now make out a large circle of hardwood floor in the center, beneath a strange, globular-shaped device hanging down from the ceiling. The rest of the floor was covered in neutral grey carpet. There was an enormous entertainment screen on the right wall. Human manufactured furniture was arranged in a crescent to face the screen—some of which appeared to be designed for avatars and Na'vi guests to sit on. There was a glass-top table between the sitting places and the screen. Sitting on top of that table was a silver bucket with a bottle sitting inside of it. Two oddly-shaped, clear cups sat beside the bucket and there was a small, potted native flowering plant in the center of the table.

There was a curved table against the back wall, where the windows were. The table was covered in a white cloth and there were silver metal trays on it, covered with odd, oval domes of the same metal. On the left side of the room was another kind of table; this one slim and crafted of dark wood. Hanging over this wooden table was a strange rack, where several more of the oddly shaped clear cups dangled upside down. A mirrored surface appeared to be attached to the wall behind the table, just over a storage area made of the same kind of wood. On the surface of the storage tables were several bottles of various shapes and sizes. All manner of liquids were inside of these bottles, with colors ranging from bright red to tea-colored amber.

The only things that were familiar in the large room were the potted plants arranged in various places. The plants appeared to be well cared for, however odd it seemed to keep them in a pot instead of in the ground. She recognized most of them but some were unfamiliar to her—likely taken from some territory far away.

"Tom?" She turned to look at her mate, ignorant of human courtship methods.

He approached her and took her hands in his, smiling at her in that charming way he shared with his twin. "When you said you wanted to try out a date night, I went to Max and talked him into letting me reserve this suite for the night." He looked around before his warm gaze settled on her again. "This room is normally reserved for executive staff parties when they have visiting diplomats from UNEC staying here, but since that isn't going to be happening for a while, Max was good enough to give me the key and have the suite set up for us."

"But what is the _purpose_?" She inhaled slowly and stepped a little closer to her mate, finding his scent exhilarating and appealing. There was the usual _Tom_ scent she loved so much, as well as a woodsy smell and a cloying hint of something she couldn't quite place.

Tom smiled and he reached into his pant pocket to produce a thin, flat electronic device. "Dinner, dancing and a movie are classic dating activities on Earth," he explained. "I know you would probably rather watch the stars together or go on an ikran flight, but I wanted to share an Earth experience with you, at least once."

She couldn't bring herself to turn him down; not when he was looking at her that way and after all the trouble he'd gone through for this. Tanhi grudgingly admitted that she owed it to her mate to open he mind and experience something new from his birth culture. Perhaps he didn't fully immerse himself in the ways of the People like his twin, but Tom had given up far more for her over the years than she had ever given up for him.

"Very well, my Tom." She gave him a soft smile that she reserved only for him. "I will play along with your Earth courtship customs. What do we do first?"

Tom smiled. "Thank Eywa...I was afraid I wouldn't even get you through the doors before this backfired on me. Okay, first, we need some music." He pressed on the little device in his hand, pointing it toward the table with the strange hanging rack over it.

Noise filled the room from out of nowhere, startling Tanhi enough to make her hiss and crouch in a defensive posture. Her eyes flicked this way and that as she tried to determine the origin of the ruckus. Somewhere in the room—perhaps overhead—men were yelling incoherently at the top of their lungs. The shrieking in the background sounded like a tortured animal and the angry drumbeat made Tanhi's hair stand on end.

"Damn," Tom cursed, nearly tossing his remote control in the air. He got a firm hold on it and he quickly an adjustment. The noise stopped and he held out a hand for her, wincing apologetically. "I'm sorry about that, Star. Someone put it on the thrash metal station and left the volume on high. If I didn't know any better, I'd think Jake snuck in here and did it just to mess with me."

Tanhi took his offered hand slowly, casting a suspicious look around the room as he guided her to the circle of wooden flooring in the center. "It's okay," he assured her softly, pausing to stroke her loose hair in an affectionate manner. She hadn't had time to let it dry completely or style it so it hung down her back, free of braids or beads except for the queue.

"If you are going to make the room scream at us again, I want to go," Tanhi said, trying to gather her dignity.

Tom huffed a soft laugh and shook his head. "I promise, the room isn't going to scream at us again. I'm turning the volume down on low before I put on the song I'm after." He peered at the little screen on the device and it beeped as he fiddled with it.

"Where did that noise come from?" inquired Tanhi, still searching the ceilings and walls for an answer.

"The speakers," answered Tom. He pointed up overhead, at the domed ceiling. "You see those black, rectangular things lining the dome?"

She looked up and nodded.

"That's where the music is coming from—most of it, anyhow. They have it set up that way for surround sound."

She could certainly agree that she felt like she was surrounded when those male voices started shouting. "You tell the musicians what to play with that thing?" She touched the device in his hand curiously.

"There aren't any live musicians," he explained. "What you hear from those speakers is just a recording. It's like the movies you've seen us watching on my computer. There aren't real people behind the screen or the speaker. It's kind of like the Tree of Voices. Stored memories, voices and images."

"I see," she said. Though he often used terms she and her people did not comprehend, Tom was very good at explaining complicated human engineering in words she could understand.

Faint sounds came out of the speakers again and Tanhi braced herself. Tom smiled at her and he eased the volume up slowly, until it reached a level where the music could be clearly heard without being jarring. Tanhi listened curiously, her ears swiveling independently as she tried to identify what kind of musical instrument she was hearing.

"It's a piano," Tom said, watching her with an expression of fondness.

She nodded, remembering him showing her pictures of pianos before. A male voice began to sing and she found it pleasant to the ears. He sang of roads, suns at midnight and spinning wheels. It took her a moment to understand that he was singing a love song to someone. Tom clicked the remote again and the spherical object overhead began to produce dancing lights. He put away his remote and he settled his hands on her bare waist.

"Now for the dancing," he said with a smile. "Not like the kind you're used to, though. It's really simple. Put hands on my shoulders."

She did as he instructed, more curious than she cared to admit. "Now what?"

"Now we just hold each other and sway." He pulled her a little closer and he began to rock back and forth on his feet, prompting her to join him.

"There is not much to this dance," Tanhi observed softly.

"No, anyone can slow dance," agreed Tom. "No matter how clumsy they are on their feet. That's the beauty of it. The entire purpose of it is for contact and closeness."

"Mmm, I cannot fault this," she sighed, breathing in more of his scent. She rested her head against his shoulder and she found the intimate dance quite pleasant. "This is a favorite human song of yours?"

He nodded, nuzzling her hair and embracing her fully. "It's an old, old classic that never goes out of style. The chorus is how I feel about you, Tanhi."

She listened and when he hummed along with the singer and smiled at her, she knew which part of the song he meant.

_~"__Oh girl you stand by me, I'm forever yours...faithfully."~_

Tanhi grinned and bit her lip, ridiculously charmed by the gesture he was making. "You are very good at the...what is the word? _Rrromance_?"

Tom laughed and flushed with pleasure. "My brother would say I'm a sap."

She took her head off his shoulder and looked at him, taking a moment to trace his features with her fingertips. "_Toruk Makto_ is a 'sap' too, when it comes to his mate. I have seen it."

"Make sure you tell him that, the next time he teases me for things like this."

"Oh, I will." She brushed her lips against his before laying her head on his shoulder again. The song ended, but another one started up afterwards. The new song wasn't as nice as the first and different musicians played it, but it wasn't unpleasant on the ears, either. "What do we do after the dancing, my Tom?"

"We eat. There's a buffet table by the window with hot food waiting for us. After that, we can relax on the couch with a couple of glasses of nectar and watch a movie."

She sighed in appreciation, relaxing against him further. "How did you do all of this before I returned from hunting? You were so busy."

He kissed her on the cheek. "I wish I could say I cooked all the food and arranged the room myself, but I paid for someone else to do it with the credit salary they've given me."

"I think that dating is not a bad thing," she confessed, snuggling up to him and enjoying his scent.

* * *

The next day when Baxter took his shift to guard Tom, he noticed the way the doctor was whistling without seeming to realize it. Figuring he could get away with it, the marine asked the question on his mind. "So how did date night go, Doc?"

Tom paused in the act of constructing another FSG and he grinned crookedly at Baxter, looking very much like his more mischievous twin for a moment. "Let's just say it ended very happily. That reminds me..." He shot a glance around to be sure none of the other busy scientists were nearby and he leaned closer to the marine, "Put me in for a bottle of that aftershave."

Baxter chuckled and gave him a play salute. "Yes Sir."

* * *

_Meanwhile, back at the Omaticaya village:_

"So it is decided," Emazu said, looking around at the council. "We will choose who will go and who will stay behind."

There were murmurs of agreement. Jake had explained everything that was going on at Hell's Gate and Neytiri informed them that the Ikran clan would be participating in the battle as well. Nobody believed that it wouldn't come down to a fight, now that they knew what else was happening in the background.

"We should do this without the help of the humans," Emazu's father said. "The People should not rely on _tawtute_ to defeat other _tawtute_!"

Emazu faltered, still vulnerable to his father's influence. Jake compressed his lips and prepared to say a few choice words to Vaykrr, but his mate beat him to it.

"This involves the humans at Hell's Gate as much as it involves the People. We don't know what to expect when we search for these greedy Sky People in the north. The people of Hell's Gate are as loyal as any Na'vi clan. We have helped each other since the Time of Great Sorrow ended and we will continue to help each other now. The council has spoken."

Vaykrr lapsed into angry silence, looking at his son with impotent frustration. His mate stood beside him, looking torn between loyalty to her man and loyalty to the clan and her son. Emazu straightened up and swept the assembly with his eyes.

"We must begin preparing," Emazu said. "First, we must choose who will lead the clan while we are away." His eyes immediately settled on Norm. "Normspellman, you advised me when I when I was earning my place and when I first became _Olo'eyktan_. You and your mate Ni'nat have guarded the Omaticaya before when others went to fight. I would like for you both to stay behind and help protect the People, as you have done in the past."

Norm exchanged a glance with Ni'nat and they both nodded. "It would be an honor."

Emazu was satisfied with the reply and he looked at Jake and Neytiri for a moment before turning his attention to Grace, who stood next to Tsu'tey. "You will be the next _Tsahik_, Grace. You are also a new mother and you still have your _Iknimaya_ and _Uniltaron_ to complete. Your gifts are important to our clan's future and I know the people will look to you for guidance, like they look to your parents. You must stay behind."

She nodded and her eyes went sidelong to her mate, betraying a flash of anxiety. Emazu looked at Tsu'tey almost reluctantly and he spoke in a grudging tone. "You are the son of the _Toruk Makto_ and the brother of a great warrior. I choose you to act as _Olo'eyktan_ while I am away."

Tsu'tey's eyes bugged out. "Me? Clan leader?"

"Didn't see _that_ coming," Jake muttered to Neytiri, just as surprised.

Emazu nodded, his chiseled features stern and dignified. "Our _Tsahik_ and the _Toruk Makto_ always tell me that good leadership requires more than physical skill. A good leader is loyal to his people and will do all he can to protect the clan. You are the one for that, while I am gone."

Tsu'tey looked at his mother for guidance and she smiled proudly and nodded at him. He took a slow breath and touched his forehead in a gesture of respect. "I'll do as you ask, _Olo'eyktan_."

Satisfied with the response, Emazu turned to Jake. "If you have a suggestion, please give it."

Jake shook his head. "No, I have nothing to add. I think you've made good choices. Now we need to get a head count of everyone that's coming with us. We can adjust the home defense tactic and start preparing for the journey after that."

Emazu nodded. "Yes, I thought the same."

His eyes went to group of Mune'tsyal visitors off to the left. They were allowed to participate in the council because they were honored guests and directly involved in the task to come. His gaze stayed on Alyara the most and Jake traced it to her. The former clan leader grinned and leaned closer to Emazu, guessing what was on his mind.

"Maybe you should have a private talk with the Mune'tsyal representative after we finish here," suggested Jake in a murmur. "You know...to get a better handle on things and be more prepared for the trip. The better you get to know her people's ways, the more you can help them."

Emazu glanced sidelong at Jake before regarding Alyara thoughtfully. It didn't dawn on him that Jake was suggesting private time with the foreign female for reasons other than discussion of clan matters.

* * *

When the sun was going down, Emazu requested for Alyara to walk a short distance away from the village with him and speak in private. They walked toward the mushroom grove together in companionable silence. Her skin sparkled with perspiration in the dappled light of the setting sun. Clearly, she and her companions found the jungle heat and humidity uncomfortable. He watched her covertly, drawn to her for reasons he couldn't quite understand. She wasn't delicate in the face like Karyu Sully, nor did she possess striking beauty to make a man's knees weak, like Grace. Her lips were somewhat thin, her nose was a bit broad and her jaw was more squared than angular.

She was not a beautiful woman, but her features were attractive in their own unique way. Somehow, Emazu couldn't imagine her with any other face. Her looks matched her spirit. She was a person he could admire—someone who feared little and acted decisively, with precision. She would actually be an ideal mate for a clan leader.

Emazu stopped and frowned. He had always preferred beautiful, gentle-natured females like Grace. The ones with the pretty, sculpted features always drew his attention the most—even the mean ones like Karyu. He didn't know if his admiration for Alyara's personality and spirit was making him see her with different eyes, or if his tastes were simply adapting after the disappointment of losing Grace.

"What did you wish to speak with me about?"

It took a moment for the young chieftain to put his thoughts back on track. "How will your clan react to our arrival? How do you think they will react to the Sky...ahem...the _humans_ that will come from Hell's Gate?"

She lowered her gaze in thought and she absently wiped her glistening forehead with one hand. "My brother sent me to get help. He will be happily surprised to see so many southern Na'vi coming to our aid. As for the _tawtute..._erm...humans...I may have to speak with him in private and prepare him for their part in this."

Emazu nodded, listening intently to her words. "I would meet with him and speak one _olo'eyktan_ to another. _Toruk Makto_ tells me that _Olo'eyktan_ Tanhi of the Ikran people will come too. She will want to speak with your brother as well."

Alyara nodded, absently lifting he hair off the back of her neck in an attempt to cool off. "Of course."

A breeze came in from the direction of Hometree and she sighed, tilting her head back. Her braids stirred in the wind and her breasts strained against the tunic she wore as she arched her spine to stretch with pleasure.

Emazu stared at the spectacle of feminine grace, suddenly revising his opinion that she was not beautiful. "Those garments you wear are too heavy for this season in these lands," he said mechanically, unable to look away from the swell of her breasts and the toned stomach that was partially exposed with her motions. "My people will gladly offer something more comfortable for you and your hunters to wear while you are here."

She straightened her posture and regarded him thoughtfully. "That is kind of you. I must seem very weak in your eyes, to be so bothered by this heat."

He shook his head. Nothing about this woman was 'weak'. "You come from a place that is colder and dryer than here, and you have made no complaints."

She acknowledged his statement with a polite nod. "I thank you. I hope that my people will make you feel as welcome as you have made us feel, _Olo'eyktan._"

Emazu almost smiled and the ache of frustration and jealousy faded a little more.

* * *

_That evening, at the Ikran village by the Eastern Sea:_

"Everybody _shut up_!"

Karyu's forceful, exasperated yell produced almost immediate results. The gathered villagers quieted and looked up at the chieftess expectantly. She stood on the platform in the center of the village, where the clan's _U'imi_ stood on display. The colorful scarlet and orange streamers fluttered in the salty breeze. The flickering light from the bonfire cast the clan princess' slender form in orange and yellow light. Her bead-decorated bangs stirred with the breeze, along with her queue and the thick mane of beaded braids that fell to her mid-back. Unbeknownst to her, she cut an impressive figure to her people.

"Now," Karyu said in a softer voice, relieved that the excited, anxious chatter had died down, "there are decisions to be made and everyone in this clan should think carefully about it before making a choice. If this comes to a fight, it will be completely voluntary. Nobody will think less of those who choose not to participate. Weigh your options carefully; we have days before my parents return to organize our war parties. I don't want anyone rushing into this without thinking and I know my _Sa'nok_ would say the same."

The elders voiced their agreement and encouraged the hot-blooded young warriors in the clan to consider their families first. Many of them were new parents and going to war could mean leaving their children without a father, mother or both. The clan began to discuss the matter amongst themselves in a calmer manner than before, taking Karyu's words to heart.

Up on the natural rock platform, Karyu breathed a little easier and the tense set of her slender shoulders relaxed. A large, male hand settled on her right shoulder and she jumped a little. Seeing that it was only Meuia, she sighed and gave him an annoyed look.

"You shouldn't grab me like that without warning. I have a tendency to knee men in unpleasant places when they do that."

The _tsahik_ smiled benignly at her and took his hand off of her shoulder. "You are very tense, Karyu. You did well, and your _sa'nok_ would be proud of you. You spoke as a leader and a wise woman."

She shrugged, blushing a little. "I'm just using common sense and _Sa'nok's_ example."

"You do very well," he assured her. He reached out and stroked her hair. The breeze stirred the feathers and little shells woven into his hair and the firelight danced on his dignified features. "You have become a fine woman, Karyu."

Karyu would have ordinarily taken the gesture and words as complimentary, but his touch, voice and gaze weren't paternally encouraging, right now. "Thanks," she said mechanically, eyeing the _tsahik_ with increasing wariness. "And you're a...fine spiritual leader."

She hastily looked down at her wrist, where she always wore the out-of-place, oversized piece of human technology. "Well, it's late. I have some experimenting to do before bed."

Meuia cocked his head in a gesture of curiosity. "May I ask what it is you are going to make with your science?"

She shrugged, thinking quickly. "You may, but I doubt you'd understand the answer. See you tomorrow."

She jumped down from the platform and fought against the instinct to run away as fast as possible. She walked with as much dignity and calm as she could muster, forcing herself to smile politely at people who addressed her in passing. She didn't relax at all until she made it to the path leading up the hill away from the beach. Once she was out of direct sight of the village, she sprinted the rest of the way. The keys hanging from the ball chain around her neck bounced against her chest with her beaded necklace as she ran to her father's trailer.

When she made it to the building, she glanced behind her impulsively, half expecting to find the _tsahik_ coming up the path behind her to talk to her some more. Seeing that there was nobody there, she breathed a little easier and she took the chain off to unlock the trailer door. She locked herself into her new sanctuary and the first thing she did was grab a cold beer from the little refrigerator and power up the computer.

* * *

Baxter came out of the bathroom with one towel around his waist and another on his head. He began to briskly dry his queue with the second towel and he turned his computer on as he moved past his desk toward the kitchenette. The computer finished booting while he was drying the top part of his hair and he stopped and turned at the sound of his messenger program beeping. He draped the towel over his shoulders and approached the desk, ignoring the persistent hunger pangs in his gut as he sat down. When he saw the familiar user name blink on the screen, he grinned and opened the program up.

"Hey, Doe-eyes. How's it going?"

Karyu's face appeared on the screen and Baxter frowned when he saw the visible tension in her elfin features. "Kind of shitty, to tell you the truth."

"What's up?" he forgot all about food, clothing or any of his own basic needs. "Council getting you down again?"

She took a swig of a bottled beer and grimaced. "Ugh...why does Daddy like this stuff? It tastes like pee."

Baxter barely controlled his laughter. "What is that, beer?"

Karyu nodded. "Yeah. It's one of _Sempul's _leftovers. He drinks one now and then to wind down after research but _yuck_...I don't get why, now that I've tasted one." Despite her passionately expressed dislike of the beverage, she had another deep swallow. "Anyway, back to my problem; I think the village _tsahik_ just made a pass at me."

Baxter grimaced. "The _tsahik_? You sure about that?"

She looked slightly uncertain. "I'm pretty sure. He was looking at me the way you do."

Baxter growled beneath his breath.

"Settle down, Cujo," Karyu warned, "He's a spirit man. Even if he uses a 'male gaze' on me, he isn't likely to act on it unless I give him a reason to."

"Well if it's nothing to worry about, why are you so stressed out and why are you drinking something that 'tastes like pee'?"

Karyu shuddered helplessly and rubbed her arms. "I didn't say it was nothing to worry about. I just said _you_ don't need to worry about it. It's my problem."

"But he's old enough to be your father," objected Baxter lamely, "and doesn't he have a mate?"

She looked at the camera and tilted her head to the right a little. Her shapely lips curved into a half-smirk. "Meuia has never taken a mate. He was always content to serve Eywa and the clan. By the way, _you're_ technically old enough to be my father, too. Maybe _you_ should back off, too."

He shook his head. "Not a chance, Princess. Besides, that's different. I was frozen in time and I'm only twenty-one. It's okay for me to hit on a hot little eighteen year old with an ass that won't quit—"

"Cut it out," interrupted Karyu, "You're disgusting!"

"Hey, I'm not the dirty old spirit man making a pass at the village princess," reminded Baxter. "I think you're a little confused about who's disgusting, here."

Karyu shuddered again. "Ugh. The man helped bring me _into_ the world, Green-eyes. It's almost like being hit on by an uncle." She grimaced at the half-finished beer in her hand and she set it somewhere out of sight of the camera. "I think I might throw up."

Baxter felt pity for her. "So you're really _sure_ this guy was coming onto you? Maybe with everything that's going on, he was just trying harder to reassure you. I mean, he's the only person there you can turn to, right? You said so yourself."

She seemed to consider his reasoning for a moment. "Yes. He may have only been trying to reassure me but believe it or not, I've learned how to tell when a man is checking me out. I'm telling you; I got that vibe from him."

"Well, what the hell would he have to gain by that?" questioned Howell. It was bad enough that the young men were eyeing off his girl, but now the older ones were joining in too. "He oughtta know he's too old for you, right?"

Karyu visibly faltered and she chewed her plush lower lip in thought. "Well, it's not unusual for younger people to mate with older people. It's not common, but it happens. Males have longer 'shelf life' than females as far as fertility goes. Traditionally, the _Olo'eyktan_ is meant to pair with the _Tsahik_. That's a fairly universal thing among the Na'vi."

Baxter's protective rage boiled to the surface. "So he thinks he can just snatch himself a pretty young bride and use tradition as an excuse to make you go along with it, eh? I'll come and kick his 'spiritual' ass three ways from Sunday."

Karyu stared at him from the other side of the screen and it looked as though she was on the verge of laughter, for a moment. "First and most importantly: you don't _need_ to come kick anyone's ass. If he steps out of line, I can do that myself. Secondly, I'm not your girl to protect."

Baxter dismissed the line about her not being his girl. "Yeah, I know you can kick his ass if he pushes it—or his balls. I'd still come do it for you if you wanted me to. No matter what happens, you can always count on me, baby."

Karyu's eyes softened and she cleared her throat, looking away. "That would go over well...some marine flying into the village to beat the hell out of our _tsahik_ for looking at me the wrong way."

Howell chuckled. "I know it would put a strain on relations between Hell's Gate and the Ikran clan but I'd do it in a heartbeat, if I had to."

Karyu looked at him through the camera again. "You think with your heart too much."

He shrugged. "When it comes to you? Yeah, I guess so."

She smiled a little, her mouth curving in that way that made him want to kiss her until she was breathless. "Are you going to be part of the strike team, Howell?"

"Hell yeah," answered the marine immediately. "We're going to bring the pain down on those bastards that tried to kill your father, Karyu. That's a promise."

She lowered her gaze, her smile growing a bit. "Then we'll be fighting together."

Howell wasn't too sure of that, given what Dr. Sully had told him. "Maybe. I'm going to give it all I got, though."

"But you'll still be stopping by my village with your regiment."

He found the question a bit odd, but he nodded. "Well, yeah. They'll need to refuel the ships at the facility to the west and everyone needs to stay together for the trip."

"Good," Karyu said. "I...have something to give to you."

His ears perked up. "Yeah? What?"

She gave him an annoyed look. "That's for me to know and you to find out."

Baxter laughed softly. "A surprise, eh? Will I like it?"

Karyu shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe."

He smiled at her. "I have something to give you too."

Karyu brightened a little. "Like what?"

Unable to help himself, Baxter snorted. "Hypocrite. You'll find out when we see each other in a few days, okay?"

"Fine, be that way." She pretended annoyance, though by now, he knew it was just a playful act. "I'll talk to you tomorrow, Avatar."

Baxter smiled again, detecting the wistful tone in her voice. "Sweet dreams, Princess."

* * *

Karyu shut down the computer and she looked at the half-finished beer with distaste. People could accuse her of being boy-like as much as they wanted to but there was no way anyone could convince her that beer tasted good.

"Sorry, _Sempu_," she apologized to her absent father as she picked up the beer bottle and carried it to the lavatory. She emptied the rest of it down the little sink in there, ran some water and then disposed of the bottle in the recycle bin near the door.

She shut off the lights and gave her eyes a few seconds to adjust before walking to the back of the room and climbing into the bunk. She removed her necklace and hung it on the end of the bunk before slipping beneath the thin, soft sheet. She embraced the extra pillow and she thought of Baxter, recalling when he lay in her very spot, recovering from injuries sustained while saving her father's life.

Her connection to him only seemed to grow stronger after that day and Karyu shut her eyes, casting her mind back to the conversation she'd had with Mo'at before leaving the Tree of Souls.

* * *

_"You smell his scent after dreaming of him?" Mo'at questioned with interest, her wise gaze holding Karyu's. "Does he also bring back something of yours?"_

_ "I don't know," she answered awkwardly. "But he knows things that I haven't told anyone else. I accused him of forcing these dreams on me, but now I'm not so sure. Is it possible for two people to dream of each other and act on their dreams physically, without even waking up?"_

_ "You mean spirit walking," said Mo'at. She nodded. "Yes, that is possible. Two people that are strongly connected to each other can communicate outside the voice, Karyu. Voices are physical. Spirits are different. It is a rare thing for two people to connect in such a way without the bond of tsahaylu."_

_ Karyu looked away, struggling inwardly. "But what if physical reality doesn't agree with spiritual? What if two people connect that way, but can never be together in the flesh?"_

_ Mo'at chuckled and she motioned Karyu closer to her reclined position on the hides. "There is more to life than flesh, young one. However, such a connection would not be made without reason. What you must decide is whether that reason is enough for you."_

_ Karyu understood without completely understanding. Her brows furrowed and she fought a lump of bitter tears in her throat. "He comes to me, even when I try to push him away."_

_ "Because his spirit yearns for yours," answered Mo'at calmly. "Tell me, when you say you 'acted on your dreams', do you mean your body moved while you slept?"_

_ The young woman flushed and nodded. "His too. We only found out because of human technology."_

_ "And how often has this happened?"_

_ Karyu shrugged helplessly. "Only once, that I know of. I've had these dreams since I first met him, though." _

_ She considered something that he told her and she rolled her eyes. "He tried to tell me a ghost guided him to me one night, when he was still being treated for burns in my sempul's__ trailer. He said he saw glowing footsteps on the ground and they led him to my tent in a dream. The strange thing is, I could swear I felt him in my tent that night."_

_ Mo'at considered the information before reaching into a pouch at her hip and withdrawing a pinch of something from it. She sprinkled some herbs over the bowl of water sitting before her and she gazed into the liquid for several heartbeats. When she spoke again, her voice was smoother...somehow younger and softer in tone._

_ "He was led to you by your own desires, that night. You brought him to your side."_

_ Karyu stared at the old tsahik with wide eyes. "W-what?"_

_ Mo'at's eyes remained fixed on the floating herbs in the bowl of water, entranced. "You have chosen him and he has chosen you."_

_ "But...that can't work," protested Karyu, feeling her heart pounding fiercely. "I never even knew who he was until I had my dream hunt vision!"_

_ "Eywa granted you the vision," answered Mo'at tonelessly, "she does this for all of her children, when they open their spirit to her. She showed you the way. It is for you to decide whether to take it."_

_ Karyu was torn between excitement and fear. "How can it be the way if my whole clan would be opposed to it? How can it be my path, if it makes me choose between him and my people?"_

_ Mo'at's blank look faded and she gazed straight at Karyu. Her lined, wise face expressed sympathy and exhaustion as she reached out to the young huntress. She traced Karyu's eyes with dry fingertips before brushing beneath them with her thumbs._

_ "The way is not always easy, Karyu. Sometimes, it is full of pain and struggle. It is when you must fight the hardest for what you want—when you must risk the most—that you truly know what you need. Do you understand?"_

_ Karyu stared into the weary eyes of the older woman and she understood that no matter what she chose, she could lose something important to her. "Yes, Tsahik. I understand. You should rest now. I will boil you some tea before I go."_

_ Mo'at smiled and stroked Karyu's hair gently. "You are like your mother; always hiding a kind heart behind a warrior's bow. Thank you, Karyu. I will rest now."_

* * *

"I lured him to me," Karyu mumbled into the pillow, squirming for comfort on the narrow bunk.

How humiliating. Baxter had insisted that he knew about the picture she stole of him. He said that he saw it in his dream, the night the "phantom footsteps" led him to her tent. He couldn't have actually sleep-walked into there, because someone would have surely noticed a tall, injured avatar in gray tracksuit pants stumbling through the village. Karyu had brushed it off as bullshit at first, but Howell didn't strike her as the sort to lie about such a thing. She _had_ been thinking hard of him that night, too.

Somehow, some way, her stupid subconscious mind had picked up on her thoughts and decided to lure Baxter into her tent while they were both dreaming.

"I hate you," muttered the huntress to her brain.

She sighed and hugged the pillow tighter. Mo'at said that she and Baxter were drawn to each other because they "chose" one another...like it was pre-destined. Karyu objected to having her fate picked out for her but she couldn't fully object to the thought of mating with Baxter Howell.

It was maddening.

Deciding that there were much more important things to worry about than her complicated relationship with the green-eyed avatar, Karyu tried to imagine what kind of strategy would be best in a fight against the RDA. Unfortunately, the young woman had absolutely no experience with war beyond books, stories and films. Her thoughts kept going back to Howell and she groaned and put the pillow over her head.

Sleep was a long time coming.

* * *

She struggled out of the black void, little by little. She had heard Parker Selfridge speak to her several times, until she nearly faded away entirely. Now she felt like she was in her mother's womb again, protected and nurtured while the world was muted around her. She dreamed of the escape from the UNEC compound and she felt the bullet tear into her again. She thrashed in the liquid stillness, coming back to herself little by little. When she opened her eyes, she found herself trying to peer through clear saline liquid. She was in a tube of some kind, with a small, clear oxygen mask secured over her mouth and nose. She took a steadying breath, trying not to panic as she attempted to recall where she was and how she got there.

As she tried to maneuver her body into a better position to see around her, she felt a warning pulling sensation in her side that made her wince. She felt along her nude flesh gingerly until her fingertips encountered the healing injury from the bullet. Whomever had tended her did a good job; they had laser sutured the wound and the scarring would be mild. Now that she at least knew she was in an amnio tank, she had to assume she must have gone critical. She was doubly impressed with the patch-job, considering they probably had to open her up to stop internal bleeding.

She saw someone passing by but she couldn't identify who it was. Through the fluid, all she could determine of the blurred figure was that it had female curves and wore a white lab coat. Pamela tapped the glass of her amnio tank weakly, trying to get the figure's attention. She didn't hear her and she started to walk away. Alarmed at the thought of being stuck floating in the eerie device, Archer put more force behind it, moving as much as she dared with her injury. Just when she feared she might have to risk opening her wound back up in her struggles, her visitor paused and turned. She saw that the patient was awake and she hurried over to the tank.

Archer stopped hitting the glass and she sighed in relief. She could see the lips moving on the woman's blurred face but naturally, she couldn't hear what she was saying. The scientist pressed a hand against the glass in a soothing gesture and Pamela guessed she was telling her that she would have her out as soon as possible. The woman left—presumably to notify someone else—and Archer tried to remain calm while she waited to be freed. She could only hope she was at Hell's Gate and not back at UNEC or on Earth. She had no memory of what happened after she boarded the Dragon ship and for all she knew, they got captured and brought back in. She could be waking up just to be interrogated and put on trial.

* * *

-To be continued

**_FSG_** = The acronym for Flux Shield Generator; the device Tom Sully invented to prevent Pandora's natural magnetic fields from scrambling navigational, targeting and communication instruments.

**Translations:**

**_Tawtsngal_** = Sky Cup, or Panopyra aerii: so named by Pandoran scientists for its jelly-fish like appearance. Also nicknamed "love flower".

**_U'imi_ **Streamer; decorated animal skins or plant-fiber banners representing the clan. Used for both ceremonial and practical purposes. Can be used as a rallying point in battle. 


	32. Chapter 32

"Tiger's hunt"

Chapter 32: Preparations

* * *

_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. I'm sorry for the length of time between updates. There was a lot to pull together in this chapter and personal life slowed the progress down as well. I had to cut this chapter short because the word count was getting too high and there was still too much to write without ending it at an awkward place. I want to again offer sincere gratitude to everyone for the feedback and encouragement.**_

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

Archer was moved to a private hospital room and Max came to examine her as soon as he got word that she was awake. He had a wonderful bedside manner and Pam understood why he was head of the science and medical departments. He gently studied her healing bullet wound and he asked for her feedback as he pressed lightly around it.

"Have they brought you something to eat yet?" asked the biologist.

"Not yet," she answered, "but I haven't regained my appetite yet anyway."

Max nodded and covered her side back up, evidently satisfied with the healing progress. "Well, I'll make sure someone sends a lunch tray for you when I go. I can't promise it tastes like food but you need some nutrition, even if you just have a nibble."

"Of course," she agreed. "Maybe some food will chase away this light-headedness."

"You're feeling dizzy?" prompted Max. "Are you suffering any nausea or unusual pain?"

"No, just the faint dizziness."

He frowned. "If it doesn't improve after lunch, I want you to tell someone. A little dizziness isn't unusual after waking up from amnio but we'd best not brush it off."

"Agreed," she said. "Thank you, Dr. Patel." She studied him and she read the inquiring expression on his face. "Is there something you'd like to ask me?"

"Well, I didn't want to bombard you with questions when you've just woken up, but I've heard some pretty disturbing things from Parker Selfridge. I'm hoping you can either confirm them or disprove them."

She reached out for the bed controls and raised the head so that she was in a sitting position. It was a relief to hear that Selfridge was safe. "What sort of things?"

Max's dark eyes met hers and held them. "He claims there's a civil war happening on Earth. He says it's the RDA against the United Nations the RDA is allegedly winning."

Pamela absorbed this information and she sighed. "I can tell you that the RDA has been moving in on the UN, but as far as I know, there hasn't been open bloodshed. Public support has shifted in favor of the RDA and they've been re-building their power base. There's a very good chance that eventually, the company will regain control of all operations between Earth and Pandora. The citizens of Earth have started to forgive the RDA for past transgressions, thanks to the promises being made."

Max sighed heavily and removed his glasses to wipe the lenses. "And here I was hoping our species had finally learned something from past mistakes. Maybe it's idealistic of me, but I actually allowed myself to believe Earth wasn't going to repeat history."

"Don't be too upset with them, doctor," advised Archer. "It's not easy to be chivalrous when your world is dying all around you. People are scared and the manufacture of alternative energy sources isn't enough. Unobtanium is still the most efficient energy source and of course, the medicine and research materials provided by Pandora are important to human well-being. If the RDA regains control of the commerce, people think they'll bring in more resources."

"But the peace treaty restricts the amount of resources they can gather per week," reasoned Max, "so whatever promises the RDA is making to the people are empty—unless they intend to break the treaty."

Pamela frowned unhappily. "Weren't you just lamenting the fact that humans haven't learned from past mistakes after all? It may not happen for years—it may not even happen in our lifetime, but if the RDA takes over again they will eventually dissolve that peace treaty. Maintaining peaceful relations with the natives isn't as important to them as meeting a bigger quota."

"No, of course not," agreed Max with another sigh. "I can't argue with the facts. I wish there were some invention we could use to hide this whole solar system from Earth travellers. I wish humans had never discovered Pandora."

"I can't blame you," she said, "but wishes don't change anything."

"You're right," he agreed. "Actions make the difference. We may not be able to stop Earth from sending more people to this moon but we can put an end to the RDA base that's here now."

"You've located it?"

"Not exactly," he admitted, "but there have been sightings of the stolen aircrafts, far to the north. It's just a matter of time before we get the exact coordinates."

She sensed his reservation and she didn't press him for details, understanding that he had every right to be wary. She _did_ once work with the "enemy", however unwittingly. "May I ask what I can expect from your people, once I recover enough to leave the hospital?"

"If you're worried about being put in a cell, I can assure you that won't happen," Max answered. "We have no reason to believe you're a threat, but you must understand that your clearance is going to be very limited for a while. We have openings in the human resources department, if you're interested in taking up a job here. I assume returning to UNEC isn't on your plate right now."

She smirked. "I have no doubt the RDA agents there would love to give me a special reception, after the part I played in foiling their plans for Jake Sully. I accept your generous offer, Dr. Patel. Human resources is exactly the department for me."

He smiled. "I thought that would catch your interest. For now, however, you need to concentrate on recovery. I'll have one of the bunkers set up for you to stay in when you get out of here. It isn't much, but it's somewhere to live until you've had the opportunity to look at housing options in the bio-dome."

"You're very generous," she said. "If I may ask, where is Administrator Selfridge? I presume you have him in custody."

"For now," confirmed the biologist evasively. "He's too unstable to live unsupervised on this base and let's face it, the man isn't known for his moral integrity."

She had to smile at his polite words. "Again with the generosity. I have no illusions about Parker's frame of mind, Dr. Patel. I worked with the man and I know he didn't return to Pandora by choice. Perhaps he drew his own conclusions after hearing news of the RDA gaining support on Earth. In a manner of speaking, there _is_ a war happening, but it isn't being fought with guns or explosives—yet."

Max put his glasses back on and ran his fingers through his curls. "General West said something similar when we discussed this in a meeting. I think the RDA is a bigger danger to us here on Pandora than they are on Earth. They don't have the press to worry about, if they gain a foothold here and choose to dishonor the treaty. They can get away with more on this world than they could get away with at home."

"Which is why you're taking Selfridge's words seriously," she guessed, "even though they sound insane."

"He's a very disturbed man," sighed Max. "He does a very good job at appearing to be in control but his issues are just beneath the surface. My colleagues don't see it but I do."

"And you want to help him," reasoned Pamela, "despite the things he's done in the past."

Max smirked. "It seems you and I have that much in common, Miss Archer. I stopped hating him for his past actions long ago, to tell you the truth. He regrets what he's done, even if he doesn't want to admit it. I feel more pity for the man than anger and I believe everyone deserves a chance at redemption."

Pamela nodded, unsurprised by the altruistic scientist's generosity. Max Patel's reputation for being a fair-minded, kind man was clearly not exaggerated. She could only hope that eventually, she could earn these people's trust and feel at home in Hell's Gate.

* * *

Parker looked up from the book he was reading when his cell door opened. He blinked in surprise to see Pamela Archer being pushed in on a wheelchair. She was in a hospital jumper and she smiled wanly at him, looking slightly pale but composed and alert.

"Visitor, Selfridge," announced the guard un-necessarily. He wheeled the commissioner to Parker's desk. "I'll come back for you in thirty minutes, Miss Archer."

She nodded and waited for him to exit the cell before addressing Parker. "You look good. Are they treating you well?"

He put his book down and shrugged. "I can't really complain. I get thee square meals a day, my own computer and they bring me any reading material I ask for, if they've got it. The rest I can get in data text format from Dr. Patel."

She glanced at the slim laptop computer on the desk. "I'm surprised they've given you access to a computer, actually. They trust you with it?"

"It's restricted access," he answered dryly. "I can't go online with it. I use it mostly for reading and solitaire. They bring me a data stick with the daily news on it every morning, too."

"That's good," she approved. "At least they're allowing you to stay in touch with the goings-on outside."

He studied her quietly for a moment. "You look pretty good yourself, for a woman that nearly died."

"They told you about that, did they?"

"Yeah. I've been a real asshole about getting updated on your condition. I told them my cooperation is only as good as your life expectancy under their care."

Pamela sighed at him and she reached out to lay her hand over his forearm. "Parker, blackmailing these people is not the way to go. I'm sure they would have put forth the same effort to treat me if you hadn't done that."

He shrugged again, glancing down at the feminine hand that rested on his arm. "Maybe I'm jaded, but it made me feel like I was giving them incentive to try harder."

Archer smiled and Parker cleared his throat, averting his gaze. "You and West are the only two people on this rock that I can trust."

"There's also Dr. Patel," she reminded gently. "He's more sympathetic to your situation than you believe."

Parker found it hard to disbelieve her. "Patel's always been too nice for his own good and it takes a _lot_ to get a violent reaction from him. His girlfriend's another story, though. Chacón hates my guts and she'd stick a knife in me if she ever got the chance."

"But Dr. Patel won't allow that to happen," insisted Archer. "If you trust nobody else on this base, I think you can at least trust him to be fair. If you continue to cooperate with them, you may earn their trust enough to get out of here, eventually."

"And be stuck here at Hell's Gate," he grumbled.

She shrugged. "I know you would prefer to return to Earth some day, but isn't it better to be a free citizen of Hell's Gate than a prisoner?"

"It's not freedom if you can't leave," he argued, looking out the reinforced, barred glass of his little window. "No matter how big it is, we're all still stuck behind the walls of this base. Only military and avatar drivers get to step out. Not that I'd want to go traipsing through the jungle anyhow, but back on Earth I could go three steps outside a city without something biting my head off."

"At least you'll be able to set foot outside this cell without a guard at your side," she reminded him. "Parker, all of the injustices I've witnessed in my life make it hard for me to be optimistic. Even so, I believe you and I could do some good here. There's nowhere else to go and given how corrupted UNEC is, we would never make it onto a Valkyrie up to the next ISV without getting caught by the RDA. I think we both need to make the most of this."

He sighed and nodded in agreement, taking a moment to pat her hand. He wasn't going back to Earth any time soon. He knew when he boarded the ISV that he might never see his home planet again. Pandora might be beautiful but to Parker Selfridge, it was hell.

* * *

After the production and installation of the FSG's was complete, Hell's Gate began making travel and combat preparations. Dustin ended up arguing with his parents over his participation in the upcoming conflict.

"But Ma, I'm _ready_ for it," he insisted. "I've been flying avatars back and forth on gathering and research missions for months, now. I can handle myself in a fight!"

"You've been flying Samsons," Trudy reminded him. "You've never flown a Scorpion and those are going to be our primary attack birds. I don't want you going up against Dragons and Scorpions in a Samson, kid. In fact, I don't want you going up against anything. You can stay here with your father and work safely in the background."

"What good will _that_ do?" demanded the young man. He looked pleadingly at his father. "I know it's going to be important to monitor the situation here once we have the coordinates and relay them to the Star Chaser, but we need fighter pilots more than extra eyes on the satellite imagery. I can do this, if you'll just give me a chance! Andrew's going to be in on it in his avatar body. I could do that too."

"Son, for one thing, Andrew isn't going to be on the front lines. He's a research agent, not a soldier. He and his parents are going to be at the forward base, helping with the medical and maintenance teams. For another thing, you're too young for—"

"Some of the MP's that are going to be in on this fight aren't much older than I am," he insisted. "I'll be eighteen soon. You've told me yourself that I'm a lot more mature than most people my age, Dad. I _want_ to be in on this. All of my friends are going to be fighting and I want to join them."

"Savanna's not going to be doing any fighting," Trudy reminded. "She's going to be working with her old man in the control room—where _you_ need to be."

"But the twins are going to be fighting," he argued.

"The twins are born and raised warriors," Max said.

"But they've never actually _been_ in a fight before," protested Dustin. "Hunting prey isn't the same thing as going up against gun ships and AMP suits!"

"Maybe not, but they've still got more experience with physical conflict than you do," Trudy pointed out, "and according to Tom, Karyu isn't even going to be involved in this fight."

Dustin's eyebrows went up. "Seriously? And she's okay with that? Those people tried to kill her father and I know she would miss the chance to mete out some punishment."

"I don't know all the details but her Mom doesn't want her at risk," answered Trudy. "She's going to be the next chieftess and Tanhi wants her to stay with the clan and be ready to take them to safety if things go sour."

"You see?" asked Max. "Everyone has a role to play in this and not all of them involve combat."

Dustin grimaced. "They're going to have fun trying to convince _her_ of that."

"Well, that's _their_ problem," Trudy grumbled. She put her hands on Dustin's shoulders and looked into his eyes. "Listen to me, kid. Your best asset is your brain and we're going to need it applied where it will do the most good."

"Brains are good for fighting strategy, too," Dustin said. "_Please_, Ma. I'll fly right beside you and I'll do everything you say. I'll go in my avatar body, if it will make you feel better. The Samson cockpits are big enough for me to pilot one in my avatar. I've done it before."

Trudy shared a look with Max and she sucked her teeth in thought. "Well Pops…what do you think of his idea?"

Max sighed and looked at his son. "We'll think about it. That's the best I can give you, son. We still have plenty of organizing to do and we still need to _find_ that base, before we can even begin to mobilize."

Knowing he'd at least won a small victory in convincing them to think about it, Dustin didn't press the issue further. Instead, he looked at his mother and he frowned at the sight of the grey strands in her hair that seemed to have popped up overnight. Trudy had always seemed…invincible. Now the stress of her losses and responsibilities were finally visibly catching up with her.

* * *

_Mid-morning the next day, somewhere in the floating mountains:_

"Jake, slow _down_," Norm called in exasperation.

The toruk rider paused in his climbing and he looked down at his companions. Despite Norm's complaints, Gracie was keeping game pace and Tsu'tey was right next to her. Norm was the one lagging behind. Jake grinned down at his friend, unable to resist poking some fun at him.

"Come on, slow-poke. Your daughter's ikran isn't going to catch itself."

Norm glowered up at the more athletic male and he tried not to pant too loudly or obviously. "I'm moving as fast as I can, Jake. Not all of us are natural athletes!"

Grace and Tsu'tey paused. The young woman looked down at her father with concern. "_Ma Sempul_?"

Norm got a firmer hold on his vine and he took a steadying breath, forcing a smile for his daughter's benefit. "I'm all right, Gracie. Just keep climbing. I'll get there eventually."

Jake moved around so that he wouldn't be in the younger hunters' path and he began to descend. He stopped when he reached his son's side and he reassured the couple. "You two keep climbing. Norm and I will bring up the rear."

Tsu'tey nodded and Grace cast one last worried glance down at her father before joining him in the climb again. An ikran flew past and Jake grinned when he heard his mate's familiar call. She passed by their position and he waved at her briefly before descending further to meet up with Norm. The poor scientist was blushing, embarrassed to be seen lagging behind by Neytiri as well. Thankfully, she was too polite and disciplined to show any visible signs of amusement as she swooped past him.

"I'm fine," Norm grunted stubbornly when Jake made it to his side, "So if you're thinking about helping me climb, forget about it."

Jake snorted. "Screw you, I'm hanging back to talk. You can climb your lazy ass up there yourself."

Norm's mouth twitched and he almost laughed. It was almost like old times, back when he was first training to become a hunter and Jake stayed at his side and pushed him to give it all he had. There was something comforting in knowing Jake was right there to help if he _did_ wind up needing help—even if they both pretended he was just hanging back to socialize.

"So what did you want to talk about, Jake?"

"Uh..." The former chieftain had to think for a minute to come up with a topic. "How do you and Ni'nat feel about what's going on? I mean the fight that's coming."

Norm grunted and pulled himself up further. "We're ready to do whatever we've got to do to keep the clan safe. She isn't happy about more conflict but as far as I'm concerned, if you can kick their sorry asses before they can cause major damage again, I'm all for it."

Jake grinned and he paused for a moment to secure his hand and foothold on his vine. "Right on, brother. Maybe _this_ time, they won't come back."

Norm looked at him in a faintly pitying way. "Jake, you _know_ they're never going to stop coming here, even if we drive them back every time."

The ever-optimistic warrior shrugged as best he could in his position and he shook his head. "No, I _don't_ know that and neither do you. You can't tell me there isn't the _slightest_ chance that some day, the RDA is going to run out of money to waste sending people here. They're going to run out of chances with whoever's dumb enough to back them on Earth and sooner or later, they won't have the power to come here anymore."

Norm opened his mouth, then shut it and sighed. There was no convincing Jake that his dreams for a Pandora free of RDA violence wouldn't eventually come true. That unbending, stubborn faith of his was part of his charm and Norm smiled a little at his friend. "Just try keep it realistic, Jake. Maybe you're right and they _will_ eventually stop coming, but it isn't likely to happen in our lifetime."

"Yeah, I'll give you that," admitted Jake, "but as long as it _happens_ some day for our kids and grandkids, I'll die a happy man."

Norm nodded in agreement. "Me too."

He almost slipped and he cursed loudly as he caught himself. Up above, Grace and Tsu'tey stopped to look down with concern. The young woman called out to Norm just as Jake reached out to help steady him.

"I'm okay, honey," Norm assured his daughter. "I just slipped a little. Keep going, you're almost to the top!"

"Don't worry, gorgeous," Jake called out, "I won't let your _sempul_ fall."

Grace seemed more reassured by her "uncle's" promise than by Norm's words. She exchanged a glance with her mate and together, they resumed their climb. Jake looked sidelong at Norm with a thoughtful expression, prompting the latter to heave an exasperated sigh.

"What is it now?"

"When this is all over," answered Jake, "you and I are going to get out every day for some exercise. I don't care if we're fishing, picking flowers—"

"Herbs," corrected Norm.

"Whatever. We're going to go on a hike every day and train your body back into shape."

Norm grumbled with annoyance. "Jake, I'm out of shape because I've never really been athletic to begin with and I'm getting old."

Jake snorted. "Please. We're barely middle-aged and we're avatars. You've got another twenty years or more before you can get away with the 'old man' excuse, pal."

"What if I don't want to get back in shape?" Norm persisted stubbornly, scowling at the other male.

"Tough titties," replied Jake with a grin. "As head of the war council and your friend, I'm not letting you let yourself go. You can bitch about it all you want but when I come back from the north, we're doing this."

"What are you going to do?" challenged Norm between pants, "hold me at arrow-point and make me run?"

Jake laughed. "I won't need to. I'll just talk to your mate about it if you don't cooperate. I double-dog-dare you to say 'no' to Ni'nat, you whipped beanpole."

Norm grimaced; not so much at the taunting nickname of 'beanpole' but at the observation that he was indeed 'whipped', when it came to his lovely mate. He had never been able to refuse Ni'nat anything and he had no doubt she would side with Jake if he approached her about this. She loved him for who he was but she would never allow him to deliberately neglect his own health.

"You're still an asshole, Jake."

Jake smirked. "That's okay. I'll be an asshole if it'll help you stay fit."

Norm muttered impolite things under his breath and concentrated on his climbing.

* * *

"Grace honey...you're wasting time," Norm called out to his daughter anxiously.

"Talking to it isn't the way to go," agreed Jake with a shout, "it's not going to reason with you. You've got to move in and show it who's boss!"

Neytiri stood quietly beside her mate, with one hand on her hunting knife just in case. Of them all, she and Tsu'tey were the least vocal. Grace caught a glimpse of her mate's concerned expression and she knew he was just as worried as the older men. Thankfully, he wasn't adding to her distraction with his own shouts of advice. The female ikran that had chosen Grace was a mottled mixture of pink and blue colors. Grace spoke softly to her, trying to earn some measure of trust from the beast before moving in. She didn't want to be rough unless she had no choice and so far, the animal wasn't cooperating.

"Easy, girl," Grace coaxed, seeking an opening as she loosed her catcher. She yelped and jumped aside just in time to avoid a nasty bite.

"Gracie!" Tsu'tey immediately started forward, only to have his father restrain him with a shake of his head.

"She's handling it, son. Don't interfere unless there's no other option."

"But Dad, she's—"

"Let her be," Neytiri said firmly, keeping one eye on Grace. "She will ask if she requires our help, '_Itan_. Trust in your mate."

"I'm okay, Tsu'tey," Grace called, warily circling the banshee for another attempt.

Eywa bless him, he looked so frightened for her. Her fear for herself diminished as Tsu'tey's faithful, loving concern for her lent her fortitude. She saw an ikran rider soar by on the left from her peripheral vision and a quick glimpse revealed that it was Emazu. So, the _olo'eyktan_ decided to fly up there to check on her progress, after all. Somehow, she found that encouraging. Emazu really _did_ care about her. She had feared their friendship was lost through her rejection of him, but he had grown mature enough to cast away whatever grudge he might have harbored.

Gracie's banshee hissed at her and snapped with lightning speed. The huntress jumped aside hastily, narrowly avoiding another bite attempt. Neytiri began to call out to her, urging her to be faster.

"You must be quick, as you were shown!"

It was the first time the _tsahik_ pressured her to move faster and Grace knew it meant her time was running out. She compressed her lips and stared at her opponent, growing desperate for an opening. Concerned that the animal would soon lose interest or decide she was unworthy to be anything more than a meal, Grace rushed her progress. She succeeded in roping the ikran with her bola but when she attempted to climb onto her back, the animal butted her with its head and sent her tumbling to the rocky ground.

Gracie barely rolled aside in time to avoid a nasty bite. She lost her hold on her banshee catcher and she put a rock outcropping between herself and her opponent as she got back to her feet. She dodged as the ikran tried to scramble around the obstacle to snap at her and she looked around frantically for a way to retrieve her bola without being intercepted. Tsu'tey called her name and ran forward, diving for her banshee catcher while the distracted animal tried to get at its would-be mistress.

"Grace, here!" Tsu'tey wound up the bola and prepared to toss it across the distance to her. Behind him, both of his parents and Norm were readying weapons and eyeing Gracie's ikran warily. Norm looked like he was barely restraining himself as he anxiously waited to see what his daughter would do.

Grace tried to make a grab for the banshee catcher when her mate's toss put it a couple of feet away from her, but the ikran lunged for her outstretched hand and she was forced to yank it back to avoid getting bitten. Grace backed away from the animal, seeing her death in its yellow eyes. She wasn't ready for this—she knew that now. She felt obligated to do it because she was the proper age now and she would soon have people looking to her for leadership. While physically she was fully recovered from the birth of her daughter, mentally she just wasn't ready to do this.

"Leyra," Grace murmured, dodging another attack from the ikran.

There was no choice. She was beyond the point of recovery now and she could tell by the maddened look in her ikran's eyes that it would not accept her as a rider. She had taken too long to assert herself and now, she was little more than prey to the ikran.

"_Sempul_," Gracie called out in defeat, letting her father know with her tone that she was ready for intervention.

Before Norm or anyone else could move to try and chase the ikran away, the animal swiped at Grace with a foreleg and she wasn't fast enough to avoid it. She cried out as the hit knocked the breath from her and sent her sprawling onto her back. As her companions hastened to come to her aid, Gracie reached for her hunting knife to lash out at the ikran as it tried to go for her throat. She cut the animal's left nostril open, which only enraged it more. It made a swipe at her again with a foretalon and she yelled when her rolling wasn't fast enough to avoid getting a puncture in her right outer thigh.

Gracie squirmed backwards, trying to put some distance between herself and the banshee. The animal closed in fast, determined to get at her. An arrow thudded into the ikran's left flank and Grace had time to recognize it as one of her father's before the shriek of a different banshee came from overhead. She looked up to see the shadow of an ikran rider blocking out the sun and she rolled again, this time to the left.

It was Emazu. He commanded his mount to dive at Grace's attacker and as the young woman got to her feet again, the chieftain's banshee struck a powerful blow. Emazu disconnected his queue and jumped off of his mount's back, slapping it in the flank to urge it away. The ikran obediently left as he attracted Grace's opponent's attention. The decision was a sound one, allowing intervention without the possibility of Emazu's ikran suffering injury that might compromise his ability to carry his rider in battle.

Neytiri came up beside Emazu and she shouted at Gracie's would-be mount, challenging it with a hiss. "Do not kill unless there is no choice!" she cried to the others.

That was all well and good, but neither Norm nor Tsu'tey were about to allow Grace to suffer further risks of injury for the sake of natural balance. Emazu shouted an ululating cry and dove in front of Grace protectively as the others approached. By the look on his face, he wasn't likely to exchange mercy for risk when it came to Grace.

Deeply shamed at her failure, Grace joined in the effort to scare off the ikran that had initially chosen her. The animal soon understood that she wouldn't get the opportunity to finish off the Na'vi woman that had dared try to tame her. The ikran was outnumbered, wounded and tired from the struggle. She eventually gave up and with one last baleful glare at Grace and her companions, she took to the air and flew away to nurse her injuries.

Tsu'tey came to a precarious halt by Grace's side, practically skidding into her in his anxious desire to see how she faired. "You're bleeding."

She looked down at the injury, hardly noticing the pain of it in her humiliation. "It's minor." She wouldn't look him in the eye.

Norm came to her next, while Neytiri scouted around for medicinal plants and Jake kept guard. The anthropologist looked at his daughter's shamed face after assessing the damage and he cupped her chin, urging her to look at him.

"Grace, _Iknimaya_ is hard, okay? Sometimes, people just aren't ready for it."

"I've failed," she whispered, lower lip trembling. She kept her eyes down and the sting of tears blurred her vision.

"You only fail if you never try again," insisted Emazu. "And I know you will try again."

Tsu'tey gently coaxed her to sit down, supporting her around the waist. "We were trained to expect this, Gracie. Not everyone makes it the first time and you have more to lose than most."

Jake overheard and he glanced at the sky before taking a few steps closer. "Gracie, shit happens. The best you can do right now is let us take care of you and come back again when you're ready."

She looked up at the man who was her father-in-law and she forced herself to sit up straighter. What sort of example could she possibly be for her clan or her daughter, if she gave up now?

"I'll do better, Uncle Jake."

He smiled at her and a brief flash of concern shone in his eyes as he looked her over. "Like I said; don't sweat it. It'll happen for you one day."

Norm began to clean her injury with water and Neytiri returned a few moments later with medicinal herbs and leaves she had gathered. Together, she and Norm treated the wound and bound it. Norm waited with her while the others fetched their ikrans and Grace rode home with her mate, morose over her failure but happy to be alive, nonetheless.

* * *

She felt the eyes of her clan-mates on her as she walked toward the enormous _keltural_ with her companions. She saw the speculation on her people's faces and she heard the whispers. Of course, someone would have seen that she had not flown in with a banshee of her own and word got around fast at Hometree. Gracie's face burned with humiliation and the only thing that kept her from seeking privacy from village eyes was the silent support of her family, her mate and Emazu. The young clan leader walked between Grace and Jake, with his head held high and an expression on his face that dared anyone to speak ill of the budding _Tsahik_.

To Grace's surprise, when she risked a look back at the people staring at her, she saw no judgment, blame or contempt in their faces. Expressions ranged from quiet admiration to quiet sympathy. True, not every young hunter succeeded the first time he or she went for an ikran but as far as she knew, Grace was the first in her age group to fail. She couldn't understand why some of the huntresses looked so impressed.

Tsu'tey leaned closer to her and he entwined his fingers with hers. "See? Nobody thinks any less of you. In fact, I think some of them admire you for trying, so soon after having your first baby."

That _did_ explain the impressed looks she was getting from some of them, but she still felt awful. "But how can anyone respect me as the future _Tsahik_ of this clan if I have no ikran of my own?" she whispered back, still dismayed by her failure.

"Mo'at does not ride an ikran," Emazu pointed out in a mutter. "People respect her, still."

"But she once had one," argued Grace. "She earned one when she was our age. Aunt Neytiri told me so. She simply chose not to tame another one after her first ikran passed on."

Neytiri overheard and she moved in to step beside her son. "True, _Sa'nok_ once hunted the skies with _ma Sempul_, like other young hunters. She has bonded with only one ikran in her life, and hunting the skies was not how she earned our people's respect. You _will_ earn your ikran, Grace—when you are ready. Listen to your heart and open your spirit to Eywa's guidance."

"She's right," agreed Norm softly. "I know you've felt pressure to finish your trials, Gracie, but you can't complete them until after Leyra is weaned anyhow."

"Take it at your own pace, kiddo," Jake added. "And don't worry about impressing anyone. You've got a baby to think about and you've been through hell."

She managed a little smile. Just as they neared the trunk of the _keltural_, Grace spotted her mother approaching from one of the den entrances with Ralu and Sylwanin. She held her infant grandchild in her arms and she smiled at Grace as she approached. The feeling of shame returned as the young woman saw the question in her mother's eyes.

"I didn't succeed, _Sa'nok_," explained Grace when her mother and the two girls stopped before her group. Her eyes went to Leyra, who was making grasping motions in the air with her chubby little hands. "I couldn't stop thinking about my daughter, and what it would be like if I died and she had to grow up without a mother."

Ni'nat gave her a sympathetic little smile of understanding and she handed the baby over to her. "There is no mother in this world that would not worry over such a thing. Take heart, daughter. You will have your ikran when you are ready. You are injured?" Her gaze went to the bindings on Gracie's outer thigh and she looked to Norm for an explanation.

"Neytiri and I took care of it," Norm said. "It's not bad, but I'll want to clean it again and change the dressing tonight before bed time."

Grace smiled down at her daughter, cradling her to her chest. She hardly felt her injury as she gazed upon the child she and Tsu'tey were raising together. "I missed you," she confessed softly to the infant. She knew that one of the other nursing mothers in the village had fed Leyra for her while she was gone and she felt an unreasonable flash of jealousy. She didn't like the thought of her child bonding with another woman, as petty as it was.

"I have council matters to discuss," Emazu said, his gaze unreadable as Tsu'tey put an arm around Gracie and smiled down at Leyra as well. "Rest well, Grace. When you are ready to try again, I would like to come."

Tsu'tey looked up from Leyra at the other male and for a moment, Grace feared he would say something challenging to him. Emazu gave Tsu'tey a superior look, retaining some of his old arrogance that made him so difficult to like at times.

"I would be happy to have you along, when I'm ready to go again," Grace said hastily, begging Tsu'tey with her eyes to maintain his legendary patience and avoid starting anything. "I only hope that next time, you won't need to intervene."

Emazu nodded, his eyes going briefly to the bandages around her thigh. "_Tsahik, Toruk Makto_, will you come to council with me? There is much to discuss and plan for. I would have you both at my side to give your advice."

Neytiri and Jake readily agreed. Jake patted Gracie on the shoulder and he ruffled Tsu'tey's hair before leaving. Grace noticed the spokeswoman from the _Mune'tsyal_ clan standing by one of the den entrances. The foreign huntress spoke to Emazu as he approached with Jake and Neytiri and Emazu said something in return. Grace could see the mutual respect they shared between them and she smiled a little, glad to see that Emazu had found a kindred spirit. She made a mental note to try and get to know Alyara a little better before the chosen war party departed.

* * *

_Meanwhile, aboard the Star Chaser ISV:_

"Oh, I don't like this at all."

Katherine stopped her satellite scanning and she floated over to her husband's data cubicle. She placed her hands on his shoulders and looked at the thin, flat monitor panel secured to his assigned computer station. "What did you find, Bastian?"

His gaze flicked over the screen from behind the non-prescription lenses of his glasses. "I've saved this one, but several of the others before it vanished on me."

She frowned, glancing around at the other tech people busy at work in the data sector. Most of them were busy at their own workspaces in the tube-shaped sector but some were floating eerily through the air, coming or going according to their individual work schedules. "What do you mean, 'vanished'?"

Sebastian gestured at the screen and lowered his voice. "I mean deleted...wiped out. I've managed to pull several classified documents and records—including proof that the RDA has been working from within to strengthen their position in the UN, as well as in the public eye. I found records of several top UN representatives gone missing, Kath. Mr. Selfridge might not have been exaggerating as much as we suspected."

She suppressed a shiver. "Can you recover the missing files?"

He shook his head and removed his glasses, putting them into the breast pocket of his shirt before buttoning it closed to keep them from floating out. "No. They didn't simply cut off my access—they deleted the files completely. Either they transferred the data to a backup source or they simply destroyed it, rather than see it fall into the wrong hands. Given some of the things I've skimmed over during my time pulling this data, I don't think it's unreasonable to assume they would go to extreme lengths to keep the information from getting out."

He resumed tapping at the touch-screen keyboard built into the desk, his fingertips rapidly flying over the letters with practiced skill. "They haven't been able to stop me from breaching the encryption area, so they're clearing out everything. I have to work fast, if I'm going to collect any further data."

Another document came up on the screen, but just as quickly, it dropped away with an error message. Katherine got a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Sebastian, can they track the source back to us?"

"Maybe." His attention remained focused on the screen as he worked to salvage some of the remaining classified data before it was gone for good. "I'm not sure what the technology on Earth is capable of these days. If they _can_ discern the origin of the breach then they will probably alert someone at UNEC or the hidden RDA base, here on Pandora. Have you found anything on the radar scans yet?"

She glanced over her shoulder at her own workstation and she sighed. "I wish I could say I have. I'm used to scanning for botany field research opportunities, but this is different. Max's records listed all known terran structures on Pandora but so far, none of us have found any signs of activity in those areas. All of the unfinished or damaged structures not currently in use by UNEC or Hell's Gate have fallen into ruin and reclaimed by the wilderness. We haven't found any signs of activity near them."

Sebastian nodded. "All you can do is keep searching, love. Will you do me a favor and get Foreman Jackson to come in here? He needs to know what's going on and I really can't afford to take my attention away from this computer even for a moment, if I'm to rescue any more data before it's gone."

She squeezed his shoulders and nodded. "Of course. Just keep working, Bastian."

She went to her workstation and used the on-board comm device to contact Lyle. She briefly explained to him what was going on in a hushed voice, not wanting others to overhear and start spreading rumors.

* * *

A little more than ten minutes later, Foreman Jackson was in the data room looking at Sebastian's screen with a frown. The avatar hacker was working like a beast but the documents and files continued to vanish almost as soon as he opened them. As Jackson watched, Sebastian managed to save two more of the files—out of ten. "When did this start, Mr. Thomas?"

"I'm really not sure," confessed Sebastian absently. "My sense of time is always skewed when I'm working on this vessel. My best estimate is that this began no more than three hours after I succeeded in breaching their security. It's been an uphill battle for me ever since. The moment I realized that the data was being deliberately wiped, I asked Katherine to get you in here."

Jackson rubbed his eyes and looked at the screen. No more files were coming up. Everything Sebastian tried now resulted in a missing data error and the hacker sighed and shook his head, taking his hands off the keyboard.

"I'm afraid that's it, Foreman. We'll just have to work with what I've managed to pull and hope it's enough to help us with what's going on here."

Jackson nodded. "Yes. The events on Earth aren't our top priority. Did you find anything that could confirm Parker Selfridge's claims?"

Sebastian exchanged an uncertain look with his wife. "Well, there's definitely been a takeover of some sort in the power structure of the UN. What I've seen doesn't lead me to believe it's all about the RDA, however. Things have apparently been unstable on Earth for some time and while Selfridge's claims of the RDA literally waging war on the UN were dramatized, there _has_ been a shift in power. It seems the company has risen from the ashes and is now directly involved in trafficking to and from Pandora. I haven't found anything to indicate just how long this has been going on. From what I gather, they've kept it hush-hush and UNEC itself hasn't even been officially informed of the power shift on Earth."

"But that's not necessarily a bad thing, is it?" reasoned Lyle. "If UNEC doesn't even know the RDA is back in business with the UN, then they aren't necessarily our enemy."

"I think that depends on who you ask," Katherine said. "Just because they haven't officially told UNEC what's going on doesn't mean certain people in the background haven't been told about it. I'm willing to bet they've been replacing staff over there with RDA loyalists for some time, now."

"Agreed," said Bastian in a low voice. "That compound is corrupted now, as we feared. These changes have been occurring behind the scenes for longer than we know and while UNEC might be on our side on paper, I fear one word from Earth could put them in a state of martial law and hostilities against Hell's Gate could occur."

"Can we be sure the people West brought with him from there can be trusted?" Jackson asked with a grimace.

"We have every reason to believe they can," assured Katherine. "Trudy and Max have had an eye on them since they arrived and so far, they've all checked out. I think General West was very selective when he chose his crew and with good reason. He made it clear that the list of people he thought he could trust at UNEC grew shorter every year."

"Well, that's a hell of a thing," sighed Jackson. "So now someone at the UN on Earth knows somebody's been poking around their database and they're nuking it all. Must be some pretty important stuff."

Katherine shrugged and carefully put her feet on the floor, trying to at least make it feel like she was standing instead of floating like a ghost. "At least they can't trace us. Bastian got everything he could and now he can—"

"I wouldn't be so sure of that," interrupted Sebastian tensely. His eyes were wide and his face had paled a bit. "Dear God...they're attempting to track back to us."

"_What_?" Katherine and Jackson both crowded closer. By now, some people had overheard bits and pieces of their quiet conversation and the abrupt change in speaking tone attracted their attention. People began to leave their workstations to see what the fuss was about.

"Block it, block it!" urged Jackson, putting one dark hand on Sebastian's shoulder.

"Believe me, I'm trying," answered the avatar, "Just give me a moment, please." Even stressed out, he was the epitome of good manners.

"What's going on?" one of the tech people asked as she floated over to her gathered co-workers.

"Something that requires a lot of concentration on my part," muttered Sebastian as his fingers flew over the keypad rapidly, "so please, be quiet!"

The light of the screen reflected in Katherine's hazel eyes as she watched anxiously. The warning beeps were accompanied by flashing text, informing the viewer that an unknown signal was attempting to gain access to the superluminal data line.

"How much time do we have?" Jackson asked softly.

Sebastian shook his head and didn't answer. The beeps increased in frequency and the warning text flashed faster. Beads of sweat formed on Bastian's forehead as he struggled to break contact and block the tracking attempt. While there was a chance that the UN and the RDA knew the Star Chaser was still in operation, if the UN discovered that it was hacking into their network, there would be hell to pay.

As everyone hovered over him and whispered tensely, Sebastian pushed himself to the limits and used every hacker skill he possessed. He had warned them of the danger in doing this assignment. The RDA was bad enough but to make an enemy of the UN as well would surely spell disaster, sooner or later.

"Bastian?"

He wanted to comfort his wife, guessing that her mind was on their daughter and what would happen to Savanna if UNEC were ordered to converge on and capture Hell's Gate. Peace between the two colonies wouldn't last if those working in the background learned that Hell's Gate knew details they were trying to keep hidden. He prayed under his breath to every Earth god and goddess he'd ever heard of and he threw in a couple of prayers to Eywa as well.

The beeps and the flashing text finally stopped. Everyone froze uncertainly while Sebastian typed out a few more commands and clicked through one of the interactive menus to check the status.

"They didn't get through," announced Sebastian after several tense heartbeats. He looked around at the floating crewmembers and the relief on his face was obvious as his eyes met Katherine's. "I'll make some adjustments to the firewall and tighten things up. We were fortunate. We can't afford to use the superluminal computer network again. Not after such a close call."

Lyle nodded in agreement and he patted Sebastian's arm. "That's all right, Mr. Thomas. You did good, getting us that information. I didn't even think it could be done, to tell you the truth. Now we've just got to process it and send it down to Hell's Gate through the secured line. Maybe there's something in that data that can give us a clue of where the base is hidden on Pandora."

Katherine shut her eyes. It was maddening to know there was an enemy compound somewhere near the northern polar cap and they couldn't locate it. "There's only so much land there," she sighed. "The polar caps on Pandora don't have solid land masses, so the base would have to be somewhere in the Bavaris chain. Surely, they wouldn't build a base on a floating ice cap!"

Before anyone could respond, her face underwent an interesting series of expressions and she groaned. "Oh god, how could I be so blind?"

Sebastian was maxed out on stress and he didn't follow. "Darling?"

Katherine visibly shook herself. "We've been looking for activity on land," she explained, "but I never thought to ask about off-shore constructs."

* * *

After going over the data sent to him from the ISV, Max arranged a late meeting with the top staff so that he and Trudy could discuss what they had learned and plan accordingly. He apologized to everyone as they settled in, stifling yawns. Trudy had some coffee brought in and passed around to those who wanted it. When everything was in order, Max shared the information he'd gotten.

"And so you see, Selfridge wasn't exactly fabricating everything he said," Max explained to the assembly. "The data Mr. Thomas managed to procure proves that there _has_ been a war of sorts between the RDA and the UN, but it's a war of politics instead of physical violence. Commissioner Archer was telling the truth when she tried to explain it to me."

"So at least _she_ can be honest," grumbled Trudy.

Tom restrained a yawn. "Well, that's all interesting to know but it doesn't help us much here on Pandora...unless you found information concerning their plans here in those files?"

"Actually, there _was_ something about that," confirmed Max. "I found a reference to drilling and bypassing the treaty with the natives."

Beside her mate, Tanhi tensed. "I _knew_ they could not be trusted!"

Tom took her hand in his and tried to soothe her, though his eyes were on Max. "How did they intend to bypass the treaty without alerting anyone to it? None of the clans would tolerate unsanctioned harvesting in their territory. We should have heard something about this by now, but most of the trouble the RDA has caused so far has been with Hell's Gate and UNEC, not the natives."

"That's because they aren't directly causing any trouble with the natives," explained Trudy. "They've been sneaky about it. They aren't doing any mining, drilling or blasting anywhere near populated areas. They're doing it off the charts."

"Which means that technically, they aren't breaking the peace treaty," added Max unhappily. "Nobody lives in the coldest regions near the polar caps. The Mune'tsyal clan and their neighbors weren't able to locate the base with their scouts because it's not actually near their territory. The places these black market profiteers are harvesting from aren't really habitable by the Na'vi or most of the land creatures on this moon. The climate is too cold and there isn't enough vegetation to sustain a reliable food source."

Tom nodded. "No, you wouldn't be likely to find any clans much further north of the Mune'tsyal and Swizaw people. The temperatures of the southern half of the Bavaris chain are challenging enough for Na'vi to thrive in."

"I take it this means you've confirmed a location for the enemy compound," reasoned West calmly.

"That's right." Max produced a slender remote from his pocket and Trudy dimmed the lights. The biologist activated the big, flat screen on the back wall and brought up a satellite image of Pandora. "We've already got people working on incorporating the information into the holographic tactical map. Dr. Thomas realized that we've been searching for and monitoring man-made facilities on land, but we didn't take into account some of the off-shore facilities built by the RDA when they were still in power. Some of them worked like oil rigs, drilling for natural fossil fuels to be used for use with our ground, air and assault vehicles. Others were intended to be additional bases, either to be used as secure refueling stations or processing plants."

Lee raised his hand. "I've got a question. Why weren't any of these facilities ever finished? I mean, if they were building all of these back when they were in full power, why waste the resources and funds to start something they weren't going to finish? Everything we've found so far except for remote factories has been half-finished and swallowed back up by the jungle."

"According to their old records, the RDA intended to make some of those facilities fully operational, eventually," answered Max, "but they needed the resources to do it and that was partially why they so stridently went after the Omaticaya territory. The rich unobtanium deposits under the Hometree there would have given them all the materials they needed to finish those projects, while giving them plenty to ship back to Earth."

"But first they had to get the Omaticaya out of the way," Allen recapped.

"And they brought in Dr. Sully's brother to help do that," finished Ramona with a gesture at Tom. "Damn, it all goes back to Jake, doesn't it? Norm will have a field day with that."

"So which off-shore facility are they using?" queried Ellis.

Max's expression went grim and he messed with the remote, scrolling the satellite image up and to the left. It settled on a region south of the free-floating polar icecaps and the offshore naval compound was easy to spot. The room went quiet.

"Hol-ee shyiit," Ramona finally said. "How the hell did we miss _that_?"

"We're going to need more guns," Darren added.

Max drew a deep breath. "Yes, it's formidable and that's just proof of how long they've been gathering their power and setting this up. Tom, I was wondering if it might be possible for you to finish that flux generator prototype you tried to use years ago, when we raided that compound to free the Ikran clan."

Tom raised his eyebrows. "Not at such short notice and not without a lot of unobtanium at my disposal. I don't think we can make a device of a practical size that can generate enough flux interference to make a difference. It isn't the same as generating a repelling charge to stop flux interference."

"So how big would you have to make it?" Trudy asked.

"Well, after my work with the FSG's I'm pretty sure a machine that could make a flux vortex big enough to affect a compound of _that_ size would have to be pretty massive. I'm sorry, but unless you want to postpone this invasion for a couple of years, I don't see us building a reliable generator in time to use it against these people. I'd be more likely to kill us all in the attempt, in fact."

Trudy frowned. "Don't be dramatic, Tomcat. You didn't get anyone killed with your first machine fizzled out."

Tom looked around the room and he flushed a little, appearing sheepish. "Yeah...about that...we got lucky. That could have gone horribly wrong if it had actually worked. I can't believe I even tried it."

Max grimaced. "Things such as an electromagnetic backfire that could have fried the brains of everyone within one-hundred feet, I take it?"

"That sounds about right."

Trudy looked between Max and Tom with wide eyes. "You two both knew that could happen and you tried it anyway?"

Tom winced, avoiding his mate's curious gaze. "I wasn't as careful in my youth as I am now and my mind was on rescuing Tanhi's people."

Tanhi's features softened slightly and she covertly squeezed his hand. "You risked much to free them."

"Yeah, he was prepared to throw everyone under the bus for it," Trudy said dryly. "Ain't it romantic?"

"The risk of such a catastrophe happening was so minimal, though," Max defended his friend. "I wouldn't have allowed it if I thought Tom didn't know what he was doing and I'm sure he wouldn't have tried it if he wasn't confident that it was safe enough."

"Now wait a minute," Harris said nervously, "I'm not sure I want to be flying in a bird that has one of those flux things in it if it could blow up and fry everyone. I didn't sign up to go on a kamikaze mission."

"Relax," Trudy advised, "the FSG devices installed in our equipment aren't the same thing as the generator Tom tried to use back then." She looked at Tom uncertainly. "Right?"

"Right." Tom smiled at the avatar MP, who had just returned to duty the day before. "Major Harris, there's no need for concern. Repelling harmful flux interference isn't the same as attempting to create it. There's absolutely no chance of the FSG's exploding or harming anyone. Their only purpose is to shield electronic instruments from magnetic interference. The worst that would happen if one malfunctioned would be a failure to generate the shield, and we've had plenty of time to test each and every one of them for functionality."

"I guess it's best to leave nature alone, when it comes to creation of flux energy," sighed Max. "Clearly it isn't meant to be harnessed as a weapon."

"Which probably means the RDA would try to do something like that," Joyce said.

"And if they do, we've got the FSG's to counter it," replied Trudy with a shrug. "They can't use flux against us in this fight, whether they try and make a vortex or use an existing one."

"That reminds me," Max said, "There actually _is_ a strong resonance of flux energy all along the shoreline and above the enemy base. I really think they deliberately chose this particular off-shore facility to rebuild because the location provides flux interference in surrounding areas, without compromising the compound's devices. They can watch for incoming travelers and have the advantage of seeing them on scanners before their base is seen. The mist from the northern icecaps offers some obscuring cover. You can see how it clouds the area if you look at the satellite scan. This image was taken when there was a break in the sea fog and cloud cover."

"So this place is practically invisible from the air or water until you're almost on top of it," reasoned West, "and ordinary means of scanning would have the same result...by the time you detect them, you're already in their airspace and they know you're there. No wonder they went undetected for so long."

"They're really talented at sneaking," sighed Lee.

"Exactly," Trudy agreed, "and that's why Tom's flux thingy is a godsend. It may not seem like a small advantage right now but when we're fighting in flux heavy areas, it's going to make a huge difference. Plus, we'll get a target lock before they can send out the defense. They'll expect us to be blind."

"That's going to count for something," West said with confidence. "I'm not a fan of sneak attack tactics but given what we've seen, I think we need to put a solid keep-away plan together, people."

"Absolutely," agreed Ellis.

"We'll get right on that when everyone's had a chance to get some rest," announced Trudy. "I've got to contact Jake and give him the skinny. He's probably going to want to come for the meeting with Neytiri and that kid who's leading the clan now."

* * *

Jake did go to Hell's Gate with Neytiri, Emazu, Norm and Ni'nat the day after getting the news from Trudy. Emazu was very reluctant to go into the human compound but Jake sternly reminded him that if he wanted to lead the clan well in the future, he was going to have to learn to work with their human allies.

"Remember," Jake warned, "If it weren't for Hell's Gate and the Na'vi helping each other over the years, life wouldn't be anything like it is now."

Norm drove the point home. "As a matter of fact, if it weren't for some of the people on this base, the RDA probably would have completely taken over this world by now and all the clans would be stuck on reservations, cut off from Eywa and the ancestors."

The morbid prediction had the desired effect on the young chieftain. He gave Neytiri a troubled, questioning look and the _tsahik_ nodded in confirmation. "They speak truth, _Olo'eyktan_. If it were not for the _kewong 'eylans_ helping us defeat our enemies, we would not be a free people today. It can be hard to look past things other Sky People have done but one day, you will learn as I have that they are not all the same."

Neytiri smiled sidelong at her mate and took his hand, a meaningful reminder of how she had learned that people from Earth could be brave, spirited and honorable.

Emazu absorbed this and though he was obviously wary and mistrustful of the humans, he went along with his council and he allowed them to be his guides when they arrived at Hell's Gate. He kept his bow clutched in one hand and he eyed the troops and vehicles moving about the open compound of the colony defensively, ready to attack first and ask questions later if any of them came too close.

"Cool it," Jake advised in a mutter when Emazu reached for his hunting knife in response to an avatar MP hollering a greeting at them and waving. "These are our friends. Making kabobs out of them isn't the way to go."

"Jake, maybe we should take him to the avatar compound first," suggested Norm. "We can get settled in there and have something to eat before the meeting. It's not for a couple of hours."

Ni'nat agreed with her mate. "A full stomach will improve everyone's mood, I think. It will give our chieftain time to adjust, and relax, as well."

Jake nodded. "Good call."

* * *

After discussing everything they had learned and agreeing on a convergence plan between the Hell's Gate teams and the participating Na'vi war parties, Tom and Tanhi made some arrangements of their own. They contacted their daughter back home and informed her that she was to bring the ikran volunteers, herself and the _tsahik_ to the Omaticaya Hometree. From there, those who were going to participate in the fight would leave for the Tree of Souls, where they would meet up with the Guardian and Horse clan volunteers. They would rest for the night at the sacred site before resuming the journey to the Northern coast of Australis.

After that, it would get tricky. Alyara and her group didn't fly to Australis on their ikrans for a good reason. The distance between the southern continent and the northern land masses wasn't so great that it was impossible for an ikran to make the flight over the sea, but it was quite risky. A hunter would have to travel very light to make it safely and there were factors such as wind speed, weather and temperature to influence how quickly a banshee would fatigue. The animal's age and the weight of the rider were also factors to consider.

They could ferry supplies over on the boat Alyara's people traveled in and they could possibly construct more of them, but that didn't eliminate the risk of losing several warriors to the sea. Getting the Na'vi forces across the sea to Mune'tsyal territory seemed to be the biggest obstacle thus far to the plan.

* * *

_Later that evening, in the Ikran village:_

After speaking briefly with her parents over the secured transmission, Karyu sat at her father's computer desk in the research trailer and chewed her bottom lip in a rare moment of indecision. Her first impulse was to try and reach Baxter through live chat and tell him she would be paying a visit to Hell's Gate while she was in the Omaticaya territory, but she considered the time and she realized he was probably still on duty.

"Why should I tell him everything that's going on anyhow?" she reasoned to herself between lip nibbles. She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest. "It's not his business."

Still, a part of her would have loved to see the ecstatic look on his face. Girlish fantasies still prevailed and she foolishly imagined Baxter meeting her at the Avatar compound gate with a cup of nectar in one hand and a leaf plate of fruit and nuts in the other—whilst wearing nothing more than a collar with her name on it and a loincloth.

Karyu slapped a hand over her face and groaned into her palm, shaking her head. "No, no, no! Just stop it!"

Her imagination only partially cooperated with her. It obligingly stopped tossing images of Howell collared and practically nude at her, only to replace those images with him jogging over to her in his military garb with one of his bright, playful smiles and a wink.

The second scenario was no less distracting than the first, unfortunately. Karyu found herself staring off into space with a slack mouth when someone knocked on the trailer door. Startled out of her reverie, she squeaked a little and hopped out of the chair. The piece of furniture skittered backwards on its wheels and bumped into the counter behind it. Karyu glared at the chair accusingly as she steadied herself.

"Who is it?"

"It is Meuia," answered a male voice from outside the trailer. "Karyu, may we speak?"

She groaned, wishing she'd never spoken out when he knocked. "About what?"

She needed to tell him about the conversation she'd had with her parents and the instructions given by her mother, but she really wasn't looking forward to it. Her suspicion that he was setting himself up to court her had only become greater over the past few days. His advice was as solid as ever but his compliments and praise had a definite romantic feel to them. His eyes gazed upon her with more than a mentor's fondness and each day, he reminded her that she was a fine young woman and any male would be proud to have her as a mate.

"There are matters I believe we should discuss," he answered evasively, "and I would not want the silence to grow like poison."

She shut her eyes and groaned again. Being alone with him in a remote trailer away from the village didn't seem like the best idea. Nobody would know if he tried anything inappropriate. She angrily reminded herself that she could handle him, if he tried anything. Besides, it was _Meuia_. Creepy and lecherous though his changed interest in her seemed, Karyu knew deep down the man would never sink low enough to try and force himself on her, no matter how entitled to have her he might feel.

"Karyu?"

She sighed. She had to tell him about her mother's instructions anyway. Delaying it would only result in tardiness that Tanhi wasn't likely to forgive. She was told to get the war party moving before noon the next day. "All right, just a minute."

She self-consciously adjusted her chest adornment to be sure the beaded and feathered necklace was sufficiently covering her bust—something she never worried about when men in her age group looked at her. All women had boobs and hers were at the shallow end of the size department, so it generally didn't trouble her if a boy caught a brief glimpse now and then. Baxter's appreciative green gaze even gave her a little thrill and a sense of empowerment.

The _tsahik's_ gaze had the opposite effect on her, though. Now that she knew he saw her as a woman and not the girl he helped raise and train, she felt a little vulnerable and violated every time he gave her an admiring glance. Shuddering a little at the thought of Meuia looking at her that way, she walked to the door and unlocked it. She pulled it open and stepped aside for the _tsahik_ to come in and join her. He gave her a respectful nod before stepping inside and moving out of the way for her to close the door again.

"I actually have to talk to you about something too—" began Karyu, uncomfortable with the thought of discussing what she suspected the _tsahik_ wanted to discuss.

"We can discuss that," he insisted, "after I have told you what I came to say. Karyu, I cannot help but notice how you have grown, both inside and out. I have also noticed—"

"I'm going to stop you right there," she said hastily, interrupting him. "I think I know what you're about to say and I'm telling you—_not_ asking you—to put the idea right out of your head. It isn't going to happen."

He looked both annoyed and confused. "If you would let me finish speaking—"

Karyu shook her head and closed in on him, looking up at him with a steely-eyed gaze. "No, I don't need you to finish because I already know where this is going."

Meuia backed up, until he was pressed against the door. His confidence visibly deflated and he looked down at the petite huntress with wary bewilderment. He opened his mouth to speak but Karyu jabbed him in the chest with a finger and laid her ears flat, baring her teeth aggressively.

"I know you and the council think you know what's best for me," she growled, "and I know you think you can seduce me or intimidate me into agreeing to mate with you. I know the council will try to tell me it's a perfect match, because you're the _tsahik_ and I'll be the _olo'eyktan_ some day. I know the council will go on about 'tradition' and try to guilt me into pairing with you out of obligation, but there are _some_ things I _will_ remain in control over, and who I choose as a mate is one of them. Understand?"

"I—"

"One day, I'll give the clan more daughters and sons like the council wants, but I get to choose who I make them with and when I have them, got it?" The more she talked about it, the more frustrated she got and the more frustrated she became, the more her resentment grew. "I'll try to pick a mate the council approves of, but ultimately I get to decide who I make a life-long bond with!"

"You are speaking half in English," Meuia informed her, firmly yet gently. "I don't speak the language well and cannot understand some of your words."

Karyu stopped in the process of blasting him with another indignant rant and she took a deep breath, trying to calm down. She withdrew her finger from his chest and crossed her arms over hers, rubbing them absently. She lowered her gaze and struggled inwardly. The man hadn't laid an improper finger on her. All he was really guilty of was admiring her with his eyes...a crime some of the younger clan males were guilty of as well. Yes, it bothered her and yes, he was obviously trying to change the dynamics of their relationship, but Karyu had to admit that through it all, Meuia had been someone she could count on for support.

"I won't mate with you," she said bluntly, raising her gaze to look at him. Her anger was fading and the disappointment in his expression _almost_ made her feel bad. "I know that traditionally, the spiritual and war leaders are supposed to be a mated pair, to make decisions for the clan as true partners. I understand that and I know the council wants this clan to go back to its roots."

He looked faintly hopeful. "Then would you at least consider me as a suitor, Karyu? I would be good to you. You know that I respect what you say and I care for you."

She fought a grimace. It wasn't like he was a bad-looking man, after all. If she didn't know him, she would have thought him quite the handsome older male. That wasn't the case, though. "I like you, Meuia, but not that way. To be honest, you're too old for me. You helped deliver my brother and I when we were born! Thinking of you as my mate is...yucky."

His mouth twitched. "That word, I am familiar with. I repulse you this much, Karyu?"

She shrugged uncomfortably. "Only as a mating prospect. There are three men in this world that I really look up to: my _Sempul_, my Uncle Jake and you. Don't wreck that for me. You are a father figure to me and that is the only way I'll ever see you."

Meuia sighed softly. "Then there is nothing for it. I only wanted you to consider me as a choice, but I would not destroy your trust in me with unwanted attention."

She relaxed; glad to know that his honor was greater than his personal desire. "Just think of me as the daughter you never had. You wouldn't want to mate with your own daughter, would you?"

The disturbed, animated grimace he gave her was answer enough for her. Karyu grinned at the _tsahik_ and she snapped her fingers and pointed at his face. "There. _That's_ the expression I want to see on your face from now on, when you think of me. If you keep thinking of me that way, you're sure to lose interest eventually."

Meuia stared at her for a moment and then he shook his head and chuckled under his breath. "Perhaps it is for the best that you reject my offer. I could not keep up with you or your strange ways...though they are what makes you special. Are you and I...what is the word...'_okay'_ now?"

She wanted to say 'yes' but the truth was; it was a bit too fresh for her. "Give me some time. I know you meant well but it wasn't a pleasant surprise to find out you had _those_ kind of feelings for me."

He looked regretful. "It was a risk, but you cannot blame an old man for trying."

Karyu snorted. "You're not old...at least, not _that_ old. You're the same age as my parents and even though I pick on them all the time, they've still got years to go before they're elders. There are plenty of women your age in the clan that would be happy to start a courtship with you, _Tsahik_. I see them watching you when you aren't looking."

"You don't have to flatter me," he insisted, smoothing some flyaway strands back into his queue with a sigh. "I waited too long to seek a mate of my own. The only women my own age are those that never felt the mating stirrings and those who lost their men to sickness and fighting. I cannot compete with spirits."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, quit feeling sorry for yourself. I don't flatter people and you know it."

He smiled a little. "No, you do not usually praise or flatter people needlessly. You are being truthful, then?"

She nodded. "Of course. You shouldn't be so surprised. You keep yourself fit, you give our people spiritual guidance and you help care for them when they are sick or injured. People can eventually move on after losing a mate. My mother did and so did my friend Gracie. Women still have needs and I'm can tell some of the widows wouldn't object to having theirs taken care of by the _tsahik_. I think some of them are curious about what else you can do with the feathers you use in your ceremonial garb."

Meuia cleared his throat in response to her last sentence. "That is not appropriate talk, Karyu."

"Do you really think you're in a position to tell me what's appropriate and what isn't?"

The _tsahik_ didn't back down. "Yes, I am. Your mother charged me with the duty of teaching you to speak well before your people and others. I have explained my actions and I have been careful not to deliberately offend. _You_ seem to go out of your way to embarrass or annoy others. This is not a good thing when representing this clan. You speak too boldly at times and you must—"

"Okay, I get it," she snapped impatiently. "We don't have time for a lecture on manners right now, _Tsahik_. You and I need to make a head count of everyone that will be fighting against the RDA to the North. _Sa'nok_ and _Sempul_ contacted me earlier and told me to bring you and the war party to the Omaticaya village, for a mass council and preparation for the journey. We're supposed to be out of here by noon tomorrow at the latest, so please save the lessons for another time."

He stared at her with surprise. "Why did you not say this before?"

She could have cheerfully throttled him. "Because," she explained with deliberate slowness, between clenched teeth, "you came in here making courtship overtures at me. I was too busy fending you off to talk about war councils."

Now it was Meuia's turn to be annoyed. "You talk like I assaulted you. I resent that, Karyu."

She had the grace to feel just a _little_ shamed. "Okay, fine. You were a perfect gentleman. Exaggeration and sarcasm are both part of my nature. So on that subject, will you tell the council to forget about trying to pressure me to mate with you?"

Meuia actually blushed a little bit and he averted his eyes. "I...will speak with them."

Karyu smirked. She was coming to know the elders like the back of her hand. "Good. Now, let's just drop this subject and concentrate on getting people organized for travel. A battle is on the way and I want our people ready for it."

* * *

_At Hell's Gate:_

As it turned out, Karyu didn't need to tell Baxter she was on her way—her father did it for her. As Howell escorted him back to the avatar compound from the research facility, Tom decided to let him know his daughter would be visiting...at least for a brief time before the allied forces started on their journey.

"Karyu should be here by tomorrow evening, at latest."

Baxter was just taking a swig of a bottle of water when Tom casually gave him that information and the young avatar coughed, half-inhaling his drink. "She...she will?"

Tom solicitously patted Howell's back, amused by the reaction. "Yes. She's to bring our clan's war party to Hometree first, and then she'll travel here to visit with her friends before everyone needs to be on the move. Tanhi and I thought she should get the opportunity to see everyone, before this all intensifies. Her duties will keep her too busy to come again for a while, if things don't go the way we hope."

Baxter grimaced, coughing a couple more times to clear his airway. "Don't talk like that, Doc. We may not know the exacts on what those guys are packing but the Na'vi clans and the people on this base have pulled through much worse odds before."

Tom sighed, forcing a smile at the taller male. "I admire your optimism. Still, there's a difference between trying to think positive and deluding yourself into false security. I'd rather plan ahead, if it's all the same to you."

Howell shrugged and stuck his gloved hands into his pockets. "I guess that makes sense. So, does Karyu know you guys don't want her in this fight?"

Tom winced inwardly and shook his head. "Not yet. Tanhi and I both agree that it's better to deliver _that_ news to her face. Arguing with that girl is tough as it is, without the anonymity of long-distance transmission making her bolder."

Baxter chuckled and looked sidelong at the scientist. The overhead street lamps cast his features in artificial, pale light and it made his eyes seem to glow. "Think she'll listen to you, Sir?"

Tom pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger, rubbing gently to ease a growing headache. "Knowing my daughter? Not a chance. When she finds out Kato's going she'll be even _more_ pissed off."

Baxter took a slow breath and exhaled. "Can you blame her for that?"

"No," answered Tom immediately. "And believe me, my mate and I both know we're in for a fight with that girl. As her father, I'm not totally opposed to making her stay behind. I admit I'll feel a lot better knowing at least _one_ of my kids aren't in the middle of this garbage. I'd keep them both safe in the village or on this base if I could."

Baxter nodded and he absently kicked a pebble on the street away with his combat boot. "At least this will give me a chance to give her the book."

Tom glanced sharply at the marine, detecting the wistful, anxious note in his voice that he was so clearly trying to hide. He would almost like to be a fly in the wall to see the look on his daughter's face when Howell presented her with a mint copy of her favorite work of literature. He doubted his mate would be as pleased but he was confident that ultimately, Tanhi would put her daughter's happiness above tradition.

It was just going to take some patience and convincing.

* * *

Late the next afternoon, Karyu arrived at Hell's Gate just as Tom predicted. Baxter was on active duty as the doctor's bodyguard but he hung back while Tom, Tanhi, Kato and Savanna greeted Karyu and the Ikran _tsahik _by the avatar compound gate. He watched the petite huntress exchange hugs with her family and he smiled, somehow resisting the urge to approach and offer a hug of his own.

He admired the way the setting sun cast yellow-orange light on her multiple braids, highlighting it and her sleek body with a warm glow. She was wearing one of those numbers made up of multiple sea shells, looking like some pretty little nymph caught in the waves and reeled to shore. The colors of the matching loincloth and shell top were green and yellow, complimenting her eyes and skin-tone. She smiled at something her twin said and she pinched him on the ear. Baxter chuckled softly as Kato blurted a complaint.

"You have got it _soo_ bad."

He was so startled he almost took a swing at Janet, who had come up beside him while he wasn't paying attention. Baxter sighed, but he remembered that he was on duty and she was his superior. "Sergeant, Ma'am. You shouldn't sneak up on me like that. I almost took a swing at you."

She nodded in Karyu's direction. "When I heard she was coming in, I thought I should come to give you a little backup support, just in case. Looks like I made the right call, Howler. If we _did_ miss someone and they decided to take this opportunity to take out someone in Dr. Sully's family, I don't think you would have caught them. I snuck up on you in plain sight."

Baxter grimaced at her. "Hey, I'm alert enough. You snuck up on _me_, not _them_."

"And if I were an enemy, I could take you out to get at them before anyone knew what was happening," Janet countered without missing a beat. She looked at Karyu again before tilting her head and gazing at Baxter. "We need you to have a clear head, Bax. You've got to be able to put the Ikran princess out of your thoughts and do your job. Understand?"

He blushed, feeling like a scolded teen. "Have a little faith. I'm still a marine."

The woman sighed and she patted Baxter on the arm. "Rank aside, you're our friend, Howler. Darren and I are worried about you. We don't want to see you get hurt, and I'm not just talking about the firefight we might be getting into."

It was hard to misunderstand her meaning. Baxter smiled at her and shrugged. "It's my risk to take. "

Janet looked at Karyu and her family pensively. The young huntress pulled out of Savanna's embrace and she noticed Howell across the distance. She stared at him for a moment, with an uncertain look on her face. She gave him a wave of greeting but she remained near her family.

"Just remember," Janet warned, "That girl is royalty to her people and you're just an outsider."

Baxter shot her an annoyed look and he fished his sunglasses out of his pocket. He put them on and straightened his spine, schooling his expression into an emotionless mask. "I've got a job to do, Ma'am. Is there anything else?"

Janet sighed in response to his clipped tone and soldier mask. "No, Corporal...that will be all. Your relief should be here soon, so I'll just leave you to it."

She walked away and Baxter returned his attention to the Sully family. Jake and Neytiri approached from the direction of the avatar lodge and Howell considered a certain important fact that proved things weren't written in stone. Both of the Sully brothers were mated to Na'vi women of "royalty status", too. Tom and Jake were "outsiders", yet they were good enough for Neytiri and Tanhi. The disheartened feeling caused by Janet's ruthless, negative observations began to lift and Baxter started to smile.

He didn't care _what_ people said; there was always hope and he wasn't giving up until there was none left.

* * *

Karyu exchanged hugs with her aunt and uncle, trying not to stare at the marine waiting quietly in the background. Howell looked so disciplined all the sudden and she wondered if the woman that came and spoke with him said something negative about his performance. She knew that she was Baxter's superior and Ellis' wife. Maybe he was goofing off on the job too much and in trouble because of it. Karyu frowned and she hoped that wasn't the case.

"So how's life in the village treating you, kid?" Jake asked as he released her from his embrace.

Karyu looked over at Meuia, who was speaking softly with her mother. She shrugged. "Okay, I guess. Sometimes the council gives me a headache, but I think I'm picking up on chieftess duties fast enough."

Jake grinned and he glanced at the Ikran _tsahik_ and _olo'eyktan._ "Looks like your _tsahik_ is giving your Mom his evaluation now. Good luck, Karyu."

"I don't _need_ luck, Uncle Jake. I'm awesome."

Jake laughed out loud at that and Neytiri chuckled. "Now _that's_ confidence."

"More like arrogance," disagreed Kato with a smirk. "Don't get so full of yourself that you can't see the forest through the trees, Sis."

She smacked him lightly on the back of the head. "Hey, anytime _you_ want to step up and do this job for me, go right ahead. The way I see it, I've earned a little hubris. You have _no_ _idea_ how asinine the elders can be. I need all the self-confidence I can get, with that bunch."

"Are they really that bad?" Savanna asked with a smile.

"Tribal councils can be trying," Neytiri said in a low voice. "More so for young people who don't yet have the experience to deal with them gracefully. This is why each new _olo'eyktan_ and _tsahik_ is traditionally assigned a teacher...someone they can confide in, to help them find their way."

"Politics suck," agreed Jake with a casual shrug. "Neytiri and I have been helping Emazu and Norm helps too, when he can."

Neytiri took Jake's hand and nodded. "And when Grace takes her place as the next _tsahik_, I will continue to be her mentor until she is ready to be without one—as my _sa'nok_ did for me."

Karyu crinkled her nose. "I don't know how you put up with Emazu to train him."

"He has matured, since taking his place as clan leader," Neytiri assured with a wry little smirk. "He was even polite to our friends here, when we had council with them. He is anxious to leave this place, though. It will take time for him to come to trust the people at Hell's Gate."

"Ugh...so he's here?" Karyu couldn't hide her dismay. "I was hoping I just happened to miss him when I dropped everyone off at Hometree."

"He is _Olo'eyktan_ now," Neytiri answered simply. "He must be involved in all war councils and alliance talks."

"So how's Meuia working out as your mentor?" Jake asked with a nod in the _tsahik's_ direction. "Is he helping you cope?"

Karyu bit her lip, unwilling to tell anyone about the man's subtle advances on her and the confrontation she had with him the night before. "Yeah, he does what he can. I'm not easy to work with, though."

Kato snorted. "At least you admit it."

Karyu thumped him on the nose and made him sneeze.

"Well, we should get everyone to the Avatar lodge and get ready for dinner," Jake suggested with a chuckle. "We'll stay here through tomorrow and then we'll head to Hometree the next morning and get things organized there. You'd better get your visit in with your friends while you can, because after tomorrow nobody's going to have spare time."

The group broke up and began to walk toward the cabin. Karyu fought a smile as Baxter Howell joined her and her family. He gave her a nod and a little smile of welcome.

"Nice to see you again, Karyu."

Mindful of the audience that included her mother and Meuia, Karyu kept herself in check and she gave Howell a nod back. "I hope you've been taking good care of my father."

"Absolutely," he agreed. "There haven't been any incidents since the raid. We're not letting our guard down, though."

She couldn't read his eyes thanks to the mirrored shades he wore but she guessed he was winking at her. They had already discussed most of this through online chatting, of course. The exchange was for the benefit of those that weren't aware that the two of them kept in touch regularly. Karyu sighed, wishing they could speak to each other plainly. That they had to be so careful in the presence of everyone except her closest friends and perhaps her father was just more evidence to her that they could never truly be together.

Still, she couldn't stop the fluttery feeling in her stomach when she saw his dimpled smiles or looked into those gorgeous green eyes of his. She couldn't ignore those feelings, no matter how much her head told her she should.

* * *

Karyu was a little surprised when Tanhi invited Baxter to have dinner with them, but she reminded herself that her mother was a staunch believer in hospitality and repaying others for acts of kindness. Given that Howell had already rescued Tom from death once and had been guarding him with his own life during the course of the project, it wasn't so shocking that Tanhi would insist he have good meals during his shifts. She probably fed the other bodyguards as well, and Karyu could easily imagine the response they would have gotten if they had tried to refuse her hospitality.

Howell chose to sit between Karyu and Kato around the cooking fire and several times, their fingers brushed against one another's when food servings came around to be passed between them. The wink he gave her after one such incident confirmed that the contact wasn't accidental at all and to her horror, she felt her cheeks warm up. Being away from him for a while only seemed to make her attraction to him that much stronger, and she felt like an awkward maiden all over again—despite the kisses they had shared in the past.

Karyu was a bit worried that someone might start to notice Baxter's subtle flirtations, but her mother was engaged in a deep conversation with Neytiri and Meuia. Tom was chatting with Jake, while Norm and Ni'nat talked to Emazu and Ikran hunter that had come with Karyu and Meuia.

"If you get a chance tonight, come to my quarters," Baxter murmured into her ear as soon as everyone's attention was occupied enough.

Karyu shivered a little in response, ridiculously affected by the feel of his breath on her ear. "Why?"

He lifted his eyebrows a little. "I have a present for you, remember?"

Karyu actually _had_ forgotten, after the task of getting organized and traveling all day long. His words reminded her that she had something to give him as well and the bioluminescent markings on her body glowed a little brighter. She turned her concentration inwards and regulated the intensity of the spot patterns, relying in intense practice and discipline to force the intensity to die back down.

"I'll be there."

He looked pleased with himself and for a moment, they locked gazes and simply stared into one another's eyes. Everything felt like it was shrinking around them—becoming insignificant. Kato nudged Baxter with a leaf tray, breaking the spell between him and his twin.

"If you don't want some of the baked roots, pass them down," advised Kato. He shared a knowing glance with Savanna, who grinned briefly before looking down at her plate and wisely avoiding teasing Karyu.

Baxter took the plate and selected one of the steaming blue beetroot-like veggies before giving the plate over to Karyu. She made her own selection without really paying attention and she avoided looking at anyone else, struggling to control the blood flow to her cheeks and the intensity of her spot pattern.

* * *

Baxter looked as though he would have liked to hang around for a while after Harris came to relieve him, but he said goodnight to everyone and he gave Karyu one last, meaningful glance before taking his leave. She stared after him, unaware that her gaze was sliding over him in a decidedly possessive, caressing manner until her father cleared his throat, reminding her that others were around.

"Karyu, your mother and I need to speak with you and Kato alone."

She looked up at him with a frown. "What about? The raid on that RDA compound up north? We're both ready for that…you two don't need to worry about us losing our nerve or anything."

Something like guilt flashed over Tom's face briefly and he wiped imaginary crumbs off of his t-shirt. "It _is_ about the raid, but not for the reason you think. Everyone is going to have a role to play in this conflict and it isn't always the one they expect."

She regarded him suspiciously and crossed her arms over her chest. "Why don't I like the sound of that, _Sempul_?"

Tom put an arm around her and coaxed her toward the garden area, where Tanhi and Kato were already going. Savanna gave Karyu a curious, questioning look and the huntress could only offer her friend a shrug of ignorance. She went with her father to the gardens, dreading this family talk for reasons she couldn't name yet.

* * *

Nearly an hour later, Karyu stormed out of the gardens and straight up to her uncle Jake, who was still sitting outside the cabin by the fire. Evidently, everyone was enjoying a bit of storytelling before letting the blaze die down and calling it a night. Jake was laughing at something Savanna said but when he saw the thunderous look on Karyu's face, his amusement died into concern and he got to his feet.

"Hey, Starfish. Why don't you come and sit d—"

"They're making me stay behind in the village while everyone else goes to fight," interrupted the young woman, too upset to check her tone or worry about the impression she might make on people.

Norm stood up and tried to reason with her. "Someone has to stay behind to lead the clans while we're away and you're going to be the next _Olo'eyktan_, Karyu. If something happens to your parents, your people are going to look to you for guidance."

"They already gave me that line," she snarled. She made a gesture at Emazu. "What about _him_? He's going to be in on this raid and he's a next generation clan leader, too."

"Tsu'tey is going to lead the Omaticaya while Emazu is away fighting," Neytiri obliged in her calm, stern voice before Emazu could part his lips to speak. "And Grace will be _Tsahik_ while I am gone. You must understand, Karyu; you are not the only one asked to stay behind for the good of your people."

Meuia added his insight to the discussion. "The clans _must_ have the _Olo'eyktan_ and the _Tsahik_ to turn to. You have been chosen for that role because your people trust in your leadership. You should be honored."

"I never chose this," Karyu reminded, beyond caring if she was offensive or disrespectful. "I was born into it and I've spent my whole life doing as _Sa'nok_ says, trying to please her. I want to _fight_ for my people, not cower at home, waiting to learn who survived and who didn't!"

Kato came jogging into the firelight at that moment, calling Karyu's name. "There you are," he said, skidding to a halt. "You ran off on us. Karyu, I don't think they're doing this because—"

"Save it," she snapped. "I'm going to be stuck playing nurse-maid to a bunch of ingrates while you're all taking down those bastards that murdered Tommy and tried to kill our father. I don't want to _hear_ any more, right now. I'm going to go inside and get some things and then I'm going to stay at your apartment for the night. I don't even want to look at our parents, right now."

Kato blinked and Savanna hesitated for only a moment before getting to her feet and approaching her friend. "Of course you can stay with us tonight, Karyu. Whenever you're ready, we'll all go."

Karyu spotted her parents approaching from the gardens and she went inside the cabin without wasting another moment. She decided to take her whole pack, since she had packed so lightly for the visit to Hell's Gate anyhow. The most important objects were safely wrapped up and buried at the bottom of the satchel. At this point, she didn't really give a thanator's fart whether her mother or the clan approved of Baxter Howell or not.

* * *

After gathering her things, Karyu started for the open exit of the cabin and she paused for a moment upon hearing part of the conversation going on between Norm, Jake and Tom. The three of them were huddled together close to the cabin steps, talking about transportation issues, by the sound of it.

"Most of the warriors are never going to agree to cooping their ikrans up inside a Valkyrie, Tom," Norm was saying. "We might convince some of the Omaticaya and maybe some of the Ikran people to do it, but there's no _way_ the rest will. They don't trust human machinery."

"And it would take more than one shuttle to carry that many ikrans across the sea," Jake added.

"Max has already talked to Jackson about borrowing the Star Chaser's two shuttles for this mission," explained Tom, speaking in such a low voice that Karyu had to strain to hear. "There will be plenty of room to get most—if not all—of the ikrans and their riders safely to the nearest northern land mass. From there, they can fly the rest of the way to the Mune'tsyal village. It's too far a distance for everyone to fly from one coast to the next without fatigue taking some of the banshees down. We don't need to lose fighters to drowning on the way there, guys. Find a way to convince them."

"Easier said than done, man," Jake sighed. "Emazu isn't the only one with trust issues and these are proud people. They aren't going to take well to needing human help to get across the sea and they _damned_ sure aren't going to want to crowd into those shuttles. I'm not even sure they could control their mounts long enough for the trip, even if they're linked with them."

"Yeah, _tsahaylu _doesn't eliminate the ikran's thoughts and put it totally under the rider's control," agreed Norm. "And those animals won't handle being locked up in the cargo bay of a Valkyrie for very long, even with their riders linked to them."

"Hmm, good point," conceded Tom. "But if the pilots make use of the shuttles' speed potential, the trip could be over before the animals or their riders get a chance to panic. Don't forget that those Valkyrie shuttles can make it from the ground to an orbiting ISV in twenty to twenty-five minutes."

Norm grimaced. "If they don't secure the banshees and their riders before engaging those fusion rockets, there's going to be a mess."

"I'm not suggesting they use full gravitational-breaking speed," Tom said with a chuckle. "But they can move a lot faster than gunship speed without jarring the passengers too much. The sooner we can get them to landfall, the sooner we can move on to speak with Alyara's clan and organize things with them."

"Okay, but we've still got to convince them to give it a chance," Jake reminded.

Norm considered his friend thoughtfully. "Well, _you're_ the _Toruk Makto_. With the Omaticaya and Ikran leaders backing you, maybe you can convince the rest."

Jake smirked. "I _used_ to be _Toruk Makto_. Shadow's gone and the title kind of loses its impact when there's no toruk in the picture, you know?"

"What about the one that attacked our transport the day after my son's wedding?" Tom said. "It seemed to respond to you and you said it was one of Shadow's brood."

"Are you saying I should go out and try to tame it?" Jake chuckled. "Once was enough, bro...and I'm not as young as I was when I got Shadow."

Norm shrugged and regarded Jake tactfully. "You're the one that said we've got plenty of years before we reach Na'vi retirement age, Jake. You're older now but you're still in as good of shape as any of the younger hunters in the clan. I'd even say you're in _better_ shape than some of them."

Jake shrugged. "Maybe, but we don't really have the time for me to go looking all over the thorny mountain range for that bird. Let's just see if we can come up with a better solution and if we get really desperate, I'll see what I can do about getting the mount to go with my title again."

Karyu had heard enough and she stored the information away in her mind for later. Maybe when she wasn't so angry, she could think over the problem and come up with a solution that would get her people across the sea without stuffing them into a human flying machine or drowning any of them. Right now, she had somewhere else to be.

When she stepped outside the cabin, her father stood up and approached her. Karyu waved him away and stepped out of his range before he could even attempt to give her more excuses or try to comfort her.

"Don't bother, I'm mad at you." She pouted at him childishly, angry that the man who had always managed to be on her side either openly or in secret was now siding with her oppressive mother. "I'm staying with Kato and Savanna at their place tonight. Don't expect to see me around tomorrow either, until the last minute before we have to go. Kato, Sav...let's get out of here before _Sa'nok_ comes back from wherever she went and tries to put me on a leash."

Tom stood there helplessly and watched as his daughter ushered her twin and Savanna away. Kato looked back at him with an apologetic shrug, but he felt that his sister needed his support more than his parents did, right now.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Kewong_** = Alien

**_'Eylan_** = Friend

**_Nantang_** = Viper wolf

**_Yerik_** = hexapede; deer-like animal


	33. Chapter 33

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 33: Sting of the hellfire wasp**

* * *

_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. WARNING: This chapter contains graphic sex. See the end of the chapter for an additional author's note. **_

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film. **

* * *

Savanna's eyes were soft with sympathy as the three of them walked the streets toward the bio dome. She nibbled her lower lip and tried to think of something to say to her friend that would help.

"I'm not going to be in the fight either," Savanna reminded softly. "I have to stay here and help with the technical stuff while people I care about go off to fight."

"Yeah, yeah," grumbled Karyu. "You're not going, Tsu'tey's not going, Grace isn't going, Dustin's not going...that's all fine—but _me_ not going is like a _nantang _passing up the chance to bring down a big, juicy _yerik_. It's just not right!"

Savanna looked helplessly at her friend and she had to agree. Karyu was one of the fiercest and most skilled hunters they could ask for—not to mention deviously calculating. If they were to go into battle together, she had no doubt the twins would take out more enemies than a dozen warriors combined. They always worked in synch and with Karyu at his side, Kato was more likely to survive the battle. It was a little surprising that Tanhi didn't see that, but nobody could truly blame the chieftess for wanting someone there to lead the clan if she didn't make it.

"Let's not think about it tonight," suggested Savanna. "We can talk about other things and play a game or something. We have some unopened wine that we got as a gift and there's some beer in the fridge, too. Maybe we can invite Dusty and Andy to come over to join us."

Karyu grimaced a little. "Actually, I'm not going to be staying with you two tonight. I just needed a cover story so I could go somewhere else without my parents finding out about it."

Kato stopped walking and looked at her. "You're going to Howler's quarters, aren't you?"

"Not that it's any of your business, but yes," admitted the female twin. "I might even stay the night with him, too."

"Now just a minute," he argued, "I know you're upset and I know you two have this thing between you but don't do something you might regret in the morning."

"Like what?" she pressed. "Fuck him?"

Kato flushed and visibly winced. "I was thinking more along the lines of sharing _tsahaylu_ with him and becoming a mated pair, but screwing him would be almost as radical."

"Radical?" Savanna pressed, frowning at her mate. "I thought you _wanted_ Bax and Karyu to end up together. Now you're saying it's a radical idea?"

He shrugged. "If she does it out of spite for _Sa'nok_ and the council, yeah. Karyu, we've talked about this. I'm all for it if you two get together but I know how impulsive you can get when you're worked up. You know there's a point where you can't turn back, so just don't do anything you can't _undo—_unless you really mean it. Okay?"

Karyu stared at him for a moment before nodding. "Fine. The big klutz probably won't do anything with me when I'm like this, anyhow. He'd see it as taking advantage. I just...need to spend a little time alone with him, while I have the chance."

Savanna felt a lump form in her throat. She understood her friend's hidden meaning. Baxter could get killed in the upcoming conflict. On that note, Kato could die too. Savanna had been trying so _hard_ not to think about that part, but Karyu's situation reminded her that she stood to lose her husband and this could be _their_ last night together, too.

"We'll cover for you, Karyu. _Won't we, Kato_?" She nudged her mate and looked up at him expectantly.

He heaved a little sigh and nodded. "Sure. We'll be your alibi."

"Nothing's going to happen," Karyu promised, rolling her eyes. "Stop looking so worried."

Kato smirked. "You can say that all you want, but when two people click like you do and things get heated...well, let's just say I know common sense can take a dive." He leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "See you tomorrow, brat-face."

They parted ways then—Savanna and Kato heading for the bio-dome and Karyu changing course to the military barracks.

* * *

Baxter grinned broadly when he opened the door to find Karyu standing there. He stepped aside and gestured invitingly. "Come on in, Miss Sully."

She arched a thin brow. "Now it's 'Miss Sully'? Not 'Sugar-lips', 'Honey-pot', 'Baby-doll' or 'Prissy-pants'?"

He chuckled and shut the door behind her as she entered the bunker. "I'm just getting warmed up. I haven't seen you face to face for a while, so sue me for being a little off my game." He noticed the satchel she had slung over one shoulder and he nodded at it. "I guess you've got somewhere else to be?"

She stopped and turned, looking over her shoulder at him. "I haven't decided yet."

He found the response puzzling and he scratched his head, combing his fingers through hair that hadn't completely dried yet from his earlier shower. "Okay...so where are you thinking of going and what's keeping you from doing it?"

She blinked slowly, her long lashes sweeping down to conceal her amber gaze briefly. "Where I might go isn't important. Whether I do it or not depends on you."

He stared at her in perplexity. It sounded like flirtation but sometimes she spoke in ways that he couldn't quite translate. "You're a confusing woman, you know that?"

She smiled a little and shrugged, lowering her pack to the floor as she turned to face him fully. "That's what you keep telling me." She shook her braids back over her shoulders, fully revealing the delicate mesh of shimmering beads that hung around her neck and over her chest. The garment both revealed and concealed her endowments in a maddening way.

Baxter swallowed and exhaled through slightly pursed lips. "Karyu, did you just come here to tease me some more? I usually love our little games but tonight isn't the time for them...not with what's coming. Tell me what's on your mind. Talk to me."

She frowned and lowered her eyes. "Fine. If you want to know what's really on my mind, I'll tell you. I've been ordered to stay behind and act as _Olo'eyktan_ for my clan. My mother doesn't want me joining the fight."

He looked at her with sympathy. "Yeah, I know."

"You _know_?" She raised her eyes again and searched his face. "How did you know?"

"Your dad," he explained. "We talked about you sometimes during my shifts. He told me your Mom didn't want you in the fight against the RDA because your clan needs a leader if something happens to her."

She scowled. "So even _you_ knew how they were planning my future before I did."

Baxter took a step toward her, urging with his eyes for her to try and understand. "Hey, don't be too mad at your old man. You're his daughter and it wouldn't be natural for him to not want you safe. As far as your mom goes, she just wants to make sure one of you survives to lead your tribe. Your folks love you, Karyu. It might not be fair for them to ask you to stay behind, but I'm sure they aren't doing it to punish you."

"Quit sticking up for them," she snapped, her tail swishing so angrily that it bumped against the side of his desk chair. "I'm worth more in a fight than I am in clan politics and they should know that by now. I should be going north with everyone, but now I'm going to be stuck in the village, not knowing if my family or friends...or you...are alive or...dead..."

Baxter closed the distance between them and put his arms around her. "Hey, cut it out," he muttered gruffly when she tried to pull away, "the world won't end if you cry in front of me. Blow your nose on my shirt if you want...I don't care."

She shuddered against him as he pulled her to his chest and stroked her hair. A broken little sound escaped her throat and she sniffled, hugging him tight around the waist. "Idf nop pair," she mumbled against his chest, her breath hitching.

Baxter frowned and looked down at the crown of her head. "What's that?"

She sniffed again and pulled back to look up at him. "I said...it's not _fair_. Pay attention!"

"Sorry." He smiled. "It's a little hard to hear you when you're talking into my chest. Hey, try to look on the bright side. The RDA is stupid enough to come back and try again if we beat them back this time, so sooner or later you'll get your chance to kick some ass."

"But it won't be the same people," she insisted. "I want to get the ones responsible for killing my cousin and trying to kill my father. I want them to see death coming when they look at me."

He wasn't sure what to say. She looked so vulnerable and sweet, gazing up at him with such trust in her teary eyes. At the same time, her words were macabre and her frustration was born of a thwarted desire to shed blood in her cousin and fathers' names. Na'vi women really were complex creatures.

Being cursed with a reckless tongue as well as a reckless nature, Baxter just said the only thing that came to mind. "You can be absolutely terrifying, you know that?"

Her expression hardened. "You asked me to open up and talk to you. If what I have to say scares you, then—"

"No," he protested, holding her tighter when she started to pull away from him. "I was just wagging my tongue because I couldn't think of anything helpful to say. You don't scare me, Karyu. I think you're pretty cool." He brushed a thumb under her right eye, wiping away the tear that escaped.

She sniffed. "I _am_ pretty cool. Nice of you to notice."

He laughed helplessly and lowered his head to nuzzle her hair. "And modest...don't forget that."

"I'm modest enough," she insisted, "when it counts. I'd rather be proud of what I _am_ than sorry for what I'm _not_."

He couldn't stop grinning. "Okay, then tell me some of the things you aren't. Let's hear this modesty of yours."

She shrugged, her tears drying as the discussion distracted her from her distress. "I'm not patient. I'm not maternal. I'm not polite most of the time. I'm not friendly or very compromising. I can't make a dessert to save my life. I'm not romantic. Oh, and I'm a sloppy eater...and a little gluttonous."

"No, really?" He said teasingly, immediately picturing how she had looked with his barbeque sauce smearing her pouty lips and delicate face, the day he grilled for her and her family. "I never would have guessed that last part."

She poked him in the stomach with her finger. "So what if I don't eat like a human queen at court? I might be sloppy but there's nothing wrong with a girl enjoying a good meal."

"I didn't say there was," he assured her, lightly pinching her chin with fond affection. "I think it's cute, the way you dig in and enjoy your food. It's there to be eaten, right?"

"That's right," she agreed with a little smirk. "Okay, your turn. What would you say your flaws are?"

Baxter checked his watch. "How long do you have?"

Her smile grew. "All night, if I want. You've got to keep me interested, though."

He rubbed her back, unable to resist the challenge. "Okay. I can be clumsy—"

"Pfft...knew that one."

"Do you want to tell this story?"

She bit her lip and grinned. "Go on."

"As I was saying," he obliged. "Clumsy. When I'm not distracted by work, I'm kind of a ditz. I make jokes too much when I should be focusing on the job. I'm a cheesy romantic. I'm not a good dresser, so uniform regulations are probably a blessing for me. I let my feelings get in the way too much sometimes. I don't always think before I act. I'm a little dyslexic—and it got worse after the Nova accident. Uh...that's all the really obvious stuff, off the top of my head—unless you count a grown man still liking cartoons to be a fault."

"Hell, my Uncle Jake still likes cartoons and my father still likes reading fairy tales. I think you're in the clear." She looked up at him thoughtfully. "A cheesy romantic, huh?"

He took a slow breath, holding her eyes. "Yeah. As a matter of fact, I still have that gift to give to you."

She eyed the satchel lying on his floor. "And I have one for you, too. Get yours first."

He chuckled and released her. He went to his desk and picked up a drawstring velveteen bag. He handed it over to her and Karyu frowned as she felt something hard and square inside. "What is it?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out. Open it up and look for yourself."

Shrugging, she did as he suggested and she reached into the bag. She pulled out a genuine hardback, leather-bound book with gold-leaf protection on the pages. Her lips parted and she tilted her head to one side in wonder as she turned over the deep brown book and read the embossed golden lettering on the cover.

"Watership Down, by Richard Adams." Her eyes slowly widened and she impulsively reached up to rub at them with the fingers of her free hand, as if convinced her eyes were playing tricks on her.

Baxter smiled at her, loving the expression of awe on her face as she opened the cover and carefully turned the first few pages. When it came to literature, she really was her father's daughter. "Do you like it?"

Karyu raised her eyes from the book and stared up at his hopeful face. "Where did you _get_ this from?"

"I worked something out with an imports tradesman," he answered evasively, shrugging. "When I found out he had this copy, I knew I had to get it for you."

She looked down at the book again. "I...don't know what to say." Her eyes searched his again and her expression softened. "Nobody's ever given me something so thoughtful. Most people don't even know me well enough to guess what I'd like and even my best friends and family have never...you didn't need to do this."

He impulsively reached out to stroke her hair, touched by her uncharacteristic shyness and gratitude. "I wanted to. I thought you deserved it, after putting up with me while I was recovering in your village."

Her melancholy faded a little and she smirked. "Well, you _were_ a pain in my ass." She stroked the cover of the book again and sighed. "But this extreme, Green-eyes. I don't know how I can repay you for it."

It was on the tip of his tongue to make some dirty, humorous insinuation or waggle his eyebrows at her, but Baxter sensed her sincerity and he didn't want to ruin the moment. He smiled at her and he cupped her face in his hands, willing her to understand how he felt.

"That look on your face is plenty reward for me. Besides, you said you got something for me too, right?"

She lowered her eyes, her cheeks flushing in another unlikely display of bashfulness. "Nothing like this gift you've given me. My present sucks in comparison."

"Hey, don't say that," he insisted. He slid his hands down and rested them on her slender shoulders. "I'm sure anything you give me is going to be great."

Her face screwed up delicately. "I wouldn't be so sure of that. I made yours." She nodded at the satchel on the floor.

"A hand-made piece of Na'vi craftsmanship," he declared with an encouraging smile. "And from my girl. What's not to like?"

"I'm not your girl," she said, but her voice lacked the usual conviction.

She looked down at the book in her hands again and she went to the satchel, squatting smoothly before it as he watched. She replaced the book in its protective cloth bag and carefully packed it into her satchel. Once she finished doing that, she retrieved something wrapped neatly in soft leather out of the satchel and she got back to her feet. She stopped before him and hesitated, grimacing at the wrapped gift uncertainly.

"Well, it's the thought that counts," she sighed. "Here. Open it."

Baxter took the gift with enthusiasm he couldn't quite contain. Honestly, he didn't care _what_ she was giving him. Whatever she made for him was as good as gold, as far as Baxter was concerned. He untied the cord holding it closed and he unwrapped the leather. There were more layers than expected and it took a few seconds for him to fully unwrap the hide.

Inside were two pieces of handcrafted Na'vi jewelry: a choker and a leather bracelet. They were both strung with glass and clay beads, colored in green and blue tints. The braided straps of the items were laced through with delicate tubular beads that almost had a metallic glint to them. The larger beads were made of shaped sea glass and they were carefully set into the leather in a pattern. There was a flat, oval bauble in the center of the choker that looked almost like jade. It took Baxter a moment to realize it wasn't a stone, but was made of dyed, glazed clay. He rubbed it between his thumb and forefinger curiously and he studied the symbol etched into the surface of it. He recognized it from somewhere before, but he couldn't recall where or when.

"Wow. I'm not usually a jewelry guy but I'll wear these all the time," promised Baxter. He smiled at her. "How long did it take you to make them?"

She shrugged, trying so hard to look casual he had to struggle not to laugh at her. "It's nothing. It isn't even my best work. Sav's better at making jewelry than I am and she doesn't even live with the People."

"Well, if this is mediocre, you'd probably blow me away with your best work," he complimented. He rolled up his shirtsleeve and started trying to tie the bracelet onto his wrist, finding it a little odd that it seemed to be so big. The craftsmanship was outstanding but the size was wrong. His wrist would have to be as thick as his bicep for the piece to fit around it correctly and he paused in confusion, not wanting to hurt her feelings.

"No, it doesn't go on the wrist," explained the huntress with a faint smile. "Here, take that army shirt off and I'll put it on you."

He looked at her curiously and handed the gifts over to her so he could remove the button-up shirt he wore over his white tank. "You've got me wondering, now."

He shrugged out of the shirt and draped it over his desk chair, leaving his arms bare. Karyu gave him the necklace and she was blushing curiously as she began to bind the bracelet not to his wrist or forearm, but to his bicep. Baxter felt like a moron. Of course...he'd seen countless Na'vi men wearing pieces like this before. He looked down as Karyu secured the armlet into place and adjusted it so that the beads were facing outwards properly. He noticed that there was a flat oval disk in the center of the armband—similar to the one on the choker but scaled down to fit the armlet. The same familiar symbol was etched into it and he frowned, struggling to recall where he'd seen it before.

"There," Karyu said softly, looking up at him again. There was something unreadable in her golden eyes. "Now the choker."

He lifted his chin a little to give her full access to his throat as she lifted the necklace to put it on him. He couldn't tear his gaze off of hers as she fastened the piece around his neck. Her lips were parted and there was a gleam of satisfaction in her eyes. She stroked his neck in a possessive manner once the choker was secured and he glanced down at the piece wrapped around his bicep and the symbol etched into the middle stone caught his attention again.

Suddenly, Baxter remembered where he'd seen it before. Back when her family was nursing him back to health, he noticed the same symbol on her arrow quiver and some of her other personal belongings. He glanced down at her satchel and studied it with narrowed eyes. Yes...he could see that same symbol on the bottom left corner of the bag.

"You've etched your name symbol into these," he observed.

Karyu averted her gaze and the blush on her cheeks deepened. "It's customary."

He tilted his head, curious. "To put it on everything you make or just your personal belongings?"

"Sometimes both."

Baxter's eyebrows furrowed. "Huh?"

She compressed her lips and met his eyes challengingly. "Any Na'vi woman that sees that necklace or armlet will know that another huntress has already claimed courtship rights with you. They can still make their interest in you known, but most will respect my territory. Too bad it won't warn human or avatar women away but I feel better just knowing you're wearing my symbol."

Baxter's heart was beating hard and fast...and for once, it wasn't due to an impending panic attack. As usual, he said the first thing that came to mind. "So you've basically just branded me, right?"

She faltered and pulled away, misunderstanding his reaction. "This was stupid. I shouldn't have—"

He quickly grabbed her before she could get her pack and make a run for the door. She started to impulsively knee him in the groin but this time, Baxter was ready for it. He turned his body enough to avoid the hit and he saw a flash of alarmed mortification on her delicate face when she realized what she'd almost done to him—again. He found it encouraging that the near miss was the result of instinct and not a conscious desire to hurt him.

"Karyu, don't," he implored softly, before she could recover her wits and break free of him. "I'm sorry I said it like that, okay? I don't know much about Na'vi dating and you know I've got a big mouth. Don't kick me in the balls and don't run off."

She swallowed and licked her lips to moisten them. He could feel her trembling as she visibly struggled with what she wanted and what was expected of her. "I keep saying this can't happen," she whispered, "but that's my mother talking. She wants me to be with a Na'vi male."

Her eyes were warm with desire as she leaned into him and began to trace patterns on his chest over the muscle shirt he wore. His breath quickened to match his heartbeat and he hoped he wasn't misreading her. "But what do _you_ want?"

Another tremor shook her lithe frame and she reached up to cup the back of his head. "I want to see what an avatar marine has to offer me."

Baxter took the hint and lowered his mouth to hers, hardly believing she was finally starting to cave. He held her closer as their lips met, just in case she got skittish again.

She didn't. Karyu Sully showed him just how great she could kiss when she gave into her passion.

* * *

The slow, sensual glide of his tongue against hers made Karyu forget all about her anger with her parents, the impending fight and her uncertainty that she was doing the right thing. Now she realized that she'd just told him she wanted a courtship with him, by giving him the items and explaining the purpose behind her mark on them. She couldn't even bring herself to be alarmed, though. This was _their_ night and no matter what happened in the future, she wanted her first time to be with this man.

His gloved hands stroked her back encouragingly and his lips and tongue did things to her mouth that all the smutty romance novels in the world couldn't lend justice to. She wondered how many other women he'd kissed this way and a flash of jealousy prompted her to thrust her tongue aggressively into his mouth. The move only seemed to excite him further and he made a low sound of approval and encouragement in his throat.

The floor didn't feel as solid under her feet as before and her pulse was racing. His pelvis pressed against her stomach and when she felt the hard bulge of his arousal pushing against her body, she decided that kissing wasn't enough, this time. She wanted to see him..._all_ of him. She wanted to touch him, to explore his body until she knew every inch of it. She wanted his layers of clothing out of the way. She reached for the knife secured at her hip and she drew it without breaking the kiss or warning him.

Baxter saw the gleam of the blade and he hastily stopped kissing her and released her. "Whoa, what the hell—"

Karyu smoothly grabbed his shirt with his free hand and she sliced it open straight down the middle. She sheathed the knife as soon as the garment was split open and she gazed at his chest in hungry approval before grabbed the separated ends of the shirt.

"I want this off."

"Well okay, but you could have—"

Karyu yanked the ravaged piece of clothing over his shoulders and down, letting it fall to the floor at his feet.

"—Warned me," finished the marine, blinking.

She closed the brief distance between them again, rubbing her cheek against his bare chest before pressing her lips against his clavicle, just under his new collar. She _almost_ giggled in reaction to thinking of it as a collar, remembering the daydream she'd had of him serving her beer on the beach, while wearing a collar that labeled him as her property. She felt giddy and ridiculously pleased that he wasn't trying to stop her or direct her actions. He stroked her back and nuzzled her hair as she breathed in his male scent and brushed her lips back and forth over his skin.

She stroked his ribs and stomach with her hands while her lips ventured over the hard planes of his chest. She could feel his heart pounding beneath her lips and fingertips, answering her own fluttering pulse. She sensed the tension in his powerful body and she completely emphasized. Holding back for this long, wanting him but unable to reconcile her needs with her clan's wishes, it was all finally coming to a boil and she couldn't deny it any longer.

She wanted his pants off, too.

This time, Baxter saw what she was doing fast enough to stop her. He grabbed her wrist before she could try to use her knife to cut his pants open. "Easy," he advised when she huffed in frustration and pouted at him. "The shirt wasn't a big deal, but these are regulation pants and I have to report every pair that gets damaged or lost."

He eased the knife out of her hand and placed it on his desk. "Besides, I don't want anything sharp and pointy near my junk, okay? Let's just leave the knife out of this."

She grinned, unable to blame him for being protective of his genitals. "I don't care how it happens, I just want these off." She hooked her thumbs into the beltloops on either side and tugged at the fatigues, not entirely familiar with the mechanisms of them.

"Easy," he said again in a murmur, kissing her softly as she began to fumble with the zipper and fastenings. He started to help her, gently pushing her hands aside so that he could undo the pants. "I'll get them off, baby. Just don't go tearing up my clothes."

She contented herself with caressing his upper body while he worked at removing the clothing concealing his lower half. His mouth met hers again for another kiss while he finished unfastening his pants. When he pulled away and bent over to pull his fatigues down, she was disappointed to see that he wore boxer briefs beneath them. He pulled his socks off and kicked the pants away recklessly as she started to voice a complaint about the last piece of clothing blocking her view. Before she could get a demand past her lips, he was kissing her again.

Karyu dreaded the thought of how horny she was going to be when her body was ready to try and conceive for the first time. The feelings she was experiencing now were supposedly _regular_ mating urges, and they were making concentration hard to come by. She decided she needed to dial it down and regain control of herself. Her lust was quickly overpowering common sense and that could lead to accidental _tsahaylu_. She wasn't ready to dive _that_ deep into dangerous waters, just yet. She broke the kiss and eased out of Baxter's embrace, looking up at him searchingly as he reluctantly let her go.

"How much do you want this?" She tried to work some moisture back into her mouth as her anxiety rose to the surface. She had only book knowledge and self-confidence to guide her into this. She knew for a fact that the same didn't hold true for the object of her lust and she tried not to think about him with some other woman before her.

His expression was completely earnest as he answered her. "Like you wouldn't believe. It's your call, though. I know you're upset about your Mom's decision and I'd never take advantage of you. You know that, right?"

She lowered her eyes. "I knew you'd say something like that. Yes, I know you'd never take advantage of me," she raised her eyes again and smirked at him, "not that I'd ever let myself be in a position where you could. I might be angry about this situation with the RDA fight, but I'm not so emotionally fragile that I need you or anyone else to protect me from my own sexuality." She removed the bola coiled up and secured to her other hip and she tossed it to the floor.

"Well yeah...I know you don't need anyone to uh...do that..." His words came out sluggishly and trailed off completely as she shook her hair back and began to unfasten her beaded halter-necklace.

* * *

Baxter's eyes automatically followed the feathered, beaded chest piece as it dropped to the floor. His gaze slid back up again and he tried not to stare at the breasts now gloriously bared to his vision. They were just how he imagined them: small, perky and perfect. True, Karyu didn't have much in the way of cleavage but what she _did_ have in quality made up for what she lacked in quantity. They were perfectly shaped and the small, erect nipples were the color of her stripes. The skin looked so smooth and soft, he barely resisted the urge to reach out and fondle them.

He swallowed, forcing his gaze off her breasts to look into her eyes. She was blushing again, but she held her ground and regarded him with quiet expectation. He couldn't guess whether she wanted him to ravish her or wait for verbal permission to do anything, so he decided that honesty was the best policy.

"I'm having a really hard time not grabbing you, right now."

"Hard" being the operative word. The front of his boxer briefs were poking out obnoxiously, making his desire for her rudely apparent.

In response to his comment, Karyu hooked her fingers into the connecting straps of her loincloth and she tugged the garment down, wriggling her hips a little and reaching behind with one hand when the cords got caught up on her tail. Even in a slight struggle, she moved with a sinuous grace that was both primal and feminine at the same time. Her loincloth joined her necklace on the floor. She looked into his eyes again and he could see the steely determination behind her gaze. She moved backwards, toward the bunk. She eased herself onto it and lay down on her side, against the wall.

"Come here, Marine," she invited in a purring voice. Her eyes went to his tented underwear. "And take that off, while you're at it."

Baxter glanced down at his undies before devouring her sleek, reclined form with his eyes and deciding he'd earned this. The only guarantee in life was death, and he hated the thought of meeting his without making love to Karyu at least once. Baxter Howell's chivalry finally ran out.

"I thought you'd never ask."

* * *

Baxter pulled his underwear down and nudged it into the pile of clothes on the floor as Karyu watched. When she got a clear view of his proudly erect manhood, her eyes bugged out. She knew they came in various sizes and the protrusion of Howell's underwear and pants when he got excited led her to believe he was above average. Imagining how it would be was nothing like seeing it completely exposed and pointing at her, however.

Like Na'vi men, his body was hairless and thus he had nothing to conceal his genitals. She tried to reason with herself that the lack of pubic hair could be making it seem bigger to her eyes, since all of the images she'd seen of erect penises were of human subjects with a full "bush". She reminded herself that like Na'vi men, Avatars grew substantially when aroused and Baxter couldn't really be _that_ much bigger than average.

Howell didn't seem to notice her surprise at first, and he closed the distance to the bunk. Karyu instinctively backed up against the wall as he climbed in with her. Baxter paused and frowned, finally noticing the nervous stare she was giving his groin. He stretched out on his side and propped himself up on one elbow, reaching out to caress her shoulder.

"You okay?"

True to form, she spoke her mind. "That isn't going to fit." She pointed meaningfully at his crotch.

He gave her an openly quizzical look, his mouth parting silently as he thought over his response to that. He finally smiled and reached for her hand, holding it gently in his. "It might not _look_ like it, but it will." He brought her hand to his lips and turned it over so he could kiss the palm. "Hey, don't worry. You've got all the power here, Karyu. We'll only go as far as you want to, okay?"

She felt silly for getting so worked up over a body part and she flushed, unwillingly comforted by his words. She calmed her raging thoughts and considered what she knew of male anatomy and the images she'd seen when studying to satisfy curiosity. Howell wasn't actually a monster. According to what she'd read, seen and heard, he was definitely gifted in the size department but he wasn't abnormally huge. She wondered if the heart-shaped tip was as silky to the touch as it looked. She squeaked and looked away.

Baxter chuckled softly and leaned toward her to brush his lips over her cheeks. "I never knew you had such a shy side. It's really cute."

"There's nothing 'cute' about it," she mumbled. "It's stupid and I—"

He interrupted her complaints with a kiss that made her dizzy. His fingers caressed her face as his lips and tongue moved cajolingly against hers, seducing her fears away. The restless feeling of need returned and she stroked his bicep and shoulder, returning his kiss. She resisted impulsively as he began to guide her onto her back and he broke the kiss to murmur soothingly against her lips.

"It's okay," he promised. "I just want to kiss you, baby."

She let him ease her down and she started exploring his chest, stomach and back with curious hands as he settled on top of her. Eywa, she loved his body. She could feel the strength in the toned muscles beneath the smooth, striped skin. He was just right: athletic without being overly bulky. He moved subtly on top of her, rubbing against her enticingly as he kissed her into a greater state of urgency.

She wanted to touch him between the thighs, but an even greater curiosity took hold and she slid her hands down his back to cup his bottom. She took a moment to enjoy the firmness of the cheeks before she began to test for the infamous "g-spot" at the base of the tail. Everything she had heard from other women suggested that the stimulation would put him in a state of panting desperation and she almost grinned at the thought.

Baxter kept kissing her and rather than be shocked stupid, he purred and lifted his tail a little to give her better access. He gently rubbed against her and pressed little kisses all over her neck and face. His breath caught a little and he moaned softly, but he wasn't rendered mindless with carnal need the way some males supposedly were when stimulated. Rather, it seemed to be putting him into a euphoric state. He shivered a little and gasped a question that made her smirk.

"Okay, something's not right. That's making me all hot and bothered. That isn't normal, is it?"

"It is," she assured him, kissing and nibbling his chin and jaw. "This is what you get for invading my dreams, Green-eyes."

He grinned and then gasped a little, rotating his hips and shutting his eyes. "So you've done this before?"

"No," she answered, admiring the expressions of pleasure that flitted over his face. "I just pay attention to things I hear from other women. I've never even kissed a boy, before you."

He opened his eyes and grinned down at her. "Really?"

She stopped stimulating his tail and she smacked his right butt-cheek, enjoying the brief contact of her palm against the smooth skin. "Stop looking so pleased. It could have just as easily been someone besides you, if you hadn't woken up from your coma and nearly killed yourself saving my _sempul_."

He tried to look contrite. "Yes ma'am. Oh, and for the record; you can smack my ass anytime you want."

Karyu bit her lower lip, trying not to laugh. "Is that so?" She smacked his left cheek and he winced a little, but the grin remained. "Kinky pervert."

"Hey, who's doing the spanking, here?" he pointed out. "You're just as perverted as I am."

She resumed fondling the spot under his tail and she licked his chin when he shuddered in pleasure. "You're a bad influence."

He purred again and nuzzled her ear. "You have _no idea_ how much I want you, Peaches."

Karyu disagreed, thinking she must want him at _least_ as much as he wanted her. Baxter trailed kisses down her neck and clavicle and the tension in her pelvis rose dramatically. She started to demand that he stop, but a sharp gasp escaped her lips instead as a shock of pleasure pulsed from her nipple to the rest of her body. His tongue flicked over the sensitive, hardening tip and his lips sucked at it. He wedged a thigh between hers and pressed against her loins as he licked and sucked. He murmured husky compliments between kisses, telling her how much he loved a pair of small, perky breasts.

Karyu's fingers threaded into his hair and she tilted her head back, shivering helplessly. She felt an acute sense of disappointment when he stopped kissing her nipples, but she was too fascinated by the feel of his lips caressing her stomach, belly-button and hip. She went still when his hands urged her thighs apart and she looked down, blinking.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

Instead of answering her verbally, he demonstrated his intentions. Karyu's objections froze in her throat as he spread the outer folds of her loins and began to stroke, swirl and thrust his tongue against her sensitive parts. He purred when she shivered and clutched at his hair. If he minded having his hair pulled at all, he didn't show it. He pleasured her with single-minded determination, grasping her hips to hold her still when she squirmed. Heat spread through her face, down her neck and through her whole body as the delicious, wet pleasure sufficiently stupefied her and stole her ability to speak coherently. She braced herself on her elbows and panted, getting closer to that final explosion of pleasure she had only recently become acquainted with.

"Baxter," she whimpered, her toes curling of their own accord. She cleared her throat, angry with herself for practically whining his name like that. The whole encounter was so unexpected and for some reason, she hadn't thought a man could give her an orgasm so easily. She was still learning how to pleasure herself but this marine did it like it was second nature.

"S-stop it," Karyu moaned, even as she ran her fingers through his hair encouragingly.

Howell _did_ stop, then. Karyu stared down at him in bewilderment as his green eyes flashed up at her from between her spread thighs. "What? Why did you stop?"

He chuckled. "Because you told me to, sweet stuff. I don't keep going when a girl says 'no'."

"I wasn't serious," she excused, desperate to reach that climax he had come so close to giving her. "You didn't need to stop."

"Maybe we need a safe word, then," suggested Baxter with a smug little grin. He kissed her thighs and watched her with a promise in his gaze. "Unless you think I really _should_ stop."

She narrowed her eyes at him. Her pride urged her to put an end to this encounter before she lost all dignity, but she ached with unsatisfied need. The way he was kissing her down there felt sooo good and she wanted more of it. "Fine. I'll say '_maway_' if I really want you to stop, all right?"

He gently licked her thigh, making her tense up. "What does that mean, '_maway_'?"

"It means 'calm'," she answered.

Baxter smiled at her. "You're going to be anything but calm when I'm finished with you."

She snorted, regaining some of her wits now that she was calming down. "How can you be so sure that you're as good as you think you are?"

His breath tickled her sensitive flesh as he laughed. "I'll let you be the judge. I'm sure you'll let me know if I'm wrong."

She started to make a scathing reply to that but his mouth was on her again and her eyes fluttered shut. She tried to encourage his actions without being overly expressive, not wanting to boost his ego too much. Each sensual stroke of his tongue made it harder for her to be still. He circled, licked and swiped with leisurely care and when she expressed particular enjoyment of a move, he repeated it gladly for her. She had no idea how he managed to do it without the benefit of a queue connection but the marine soon figured out what made her squirm the most. Try as she might, Karyu couldn't remain quiet or still.

Howell paused and laughed, disrupting her bliss and making her stare down at him. "What's so funny?" Karyu demanded breathlessly.

"I'm not used to being cussed out when I'm doing this," he answered with a grin.

There wasn't much that could humiliate Karyu but that was pretty awful. "I…didn't realize I was saying anything."

"It's okay," he assured. "It just surprised me. Relax, Karyu. I'm not going to quit until you're satisfied."

Karyu was about to blurt the safe word anyway, having no desire to embarrass herself further with impulsive swearing. His lips closed around her clitoris and sucked, making a jolt go through her that almost made her go cross-eyed. She slapped a hand over her mouth just in case and decided to try and enjoy it while it lasted. This time, he didn't stop or pause until her thighs were trembling, her back was arching and she was crying out beneath her muffling hand. He slowed the motions of his mouth and he reached up to fondle her breasts gently. The added pleasure of his touch drew her climax out further and she reached overhead to grab the bunk railing, hanging onto it desperately in the throes of her pleasure.

He eased up beside her on the mattress when her climax faded and he kissed her gasping lips softly while tracing patterns over her stomach with his fingertips. His sex was still swollen with arousal and it pressed against her hip as he soothed her with calming words and little kisses. Karyu looked down at it, admiring the shape, length and girth. She reached down to touch it, giving him a silently wary look. He didn't stop her and he nuzzled her throat with his lips as she gripped the shaft curiously.

"So did I do okay by you?" His warm breath tickled her skin.

She bit her lip and smiled. "You'll do."

"Wow. Coming from you that's practically singing praise." He grinned teasingly and caressed her hip.

"If I don't make you work for it, you'll get lazy."

She turned her head and kissed him on the mouth. She was surprisingly comfortable and relaxed now...possibly because that mind-blowing orgasm drained the last of her modesty. His lips parted and she leisurely pushed her tongue between them to explore the inside of his mouth. She stroked him with more confidence and his soft groan of pleasure re-awakened her desire. She looked down again and a viscous bead of dew formed over the tiny hole crowning his glans. She stared at it in fascination as it caught the light and glistened. She smoothed it over the cap with the pad of her thumb, smearing the velvety flesh and massaging it gently. Baxter gasped a little and he groaned, making her smile.

_Now_ she understood. _Now_ she knew what it was to have a woman's desires and a part of Karyu felt awful for teasing her brother and friends so often. At the time, their sexual behavior was nothing more than an amusing curiosity for her and she thought they acted like morons. She couldn't understand why they made such a big deal out of it and she couldn't imagine ever wanting her body infiltrated by a male. Now all she could think of was how badly she wanted Howell inside of her. Whether it was Eywa's will or simply the nature of becoming a woman, that one unsatisfied need was throbbing like a living thing inside of her. She tried to reason with herself, aware that if she did this, she couldn't un-do it.

But Baxter could get killed if the conflict with the RDA came down to a fight, as everyone expected. They weren't going to just surrender peacefully. They were sick with greed, those Sky People. They represented all of the bad that came from humanity. The people from Hell's Gate, her father, her uncle and Norm Spellman represented the best in humanity and the two sides were almost certain to clash violently, when the combined forces converged on the hidden base.

This truly could be her last and only chance to mate with the man she really wanted. No matter what happened in the future, Karyu _needed_ to experience that kind of connection and love, at least once.

She urged him to roll onto his back and he complied with an intrigued little smile, looking up at her curiously. "What'cha going to do to me, Sugar-plum?"

The flush in Karyu's cheeks rose again as she considered previous fantasies of tying him up and licking him all over. She glanced at her bola, coiled on the floor with her garments. She almost got out of the bunk to go for it but she decided that it wasn't appropriate for tonight. She wanted Howell's hands free to work their magic and he had already demonstrated that he was capable of being still for her and allowing her to touch and caress him at her leisure.

"I'm going to ride you," Karyu answered huskily, after considering the question. She straddled his hips and she looked down at his erection, which was now resting intimately against her pelvic area and lower abdomen.

Baxter blinked, sobering. His hands settled on her waist and he looked up at her with a curious mixture of excitement and concern. "Karyu, I don't want to wake up tomorrow and find you all withdrawn and moody. I need you to tell me you really, really want it."

His calloused, scar-roughened palms stroked her skin gently, gliding over her ribcage and up to cup her breasts briefly, before sliding back down to rest on her hips. Karyu shut her eyes and sighed, entranced by the way he touched her. His hands felt heavenly on her body and she resisted the urge to purr again with difficulty. She opened her eyes and placed her hands flat on the expanse of his chest for balance as she shifted into a more comfortable position on top of him.

"I'll tie you up and have my way with you, if that's what it takes to convince you." She peered into his eyes, not entirely joking.

Baxter laughed breathlessly and he sat up, embracing her around the waist to keep her from going anywhere. "Since you put it that way—"

His mouth covered hers again and his kiss let her know he was more than happy to accommodate any desire she gave voice to. She combed her fingers through the shorter, tumbled locks of his unbound hair and she wrapped her legs around his waist, settling firmly into his lap. His swollen length rubbed against her loins as she undulated instinctively and Karyu nibbled his lip and purred, excited by the feel of it.

"You're a goddess," Baxter assured her in a breathless, husky voice. "You've got instincts I've never seen before. I may not survive tonight."

"You'd better," she murmured between kisses and nibbles, "because I'm going to expect more from you later."

He laughed and he slipped a hand down, caressing between her breasts and along her stomach as he went. She jumped a little as his fingers sought out the folds of her womanhood and he soothed her with a whispered promise that he'd be careful. Karyu bit her lip uncertainly when his fingers stroked back and forth, spreading the slippery moisture from her arousal all over her loins. She gasped as one of his fingers eased into her and her thighs clenched hard around his waist.

"Okay," grunted Baxter, going still for a moment, "Ribs cracking here...easy, baby."

She immediately relaxed her thighs and looked at him with wide-eyed concern, taking his words literally. "Howler? Did I hurt you?"

He took a steadying breath and grinned at her. "No, but you came damned close. Just try to relax and do what comes naturally—as long as it doesn't involve maiming me, okay?"

She felt a little guilty…just a little. He'd been so patient with her and in return, she tried to crush him. She kissed him softly and traced his lips with the tip of her tongue. "I'll try to be more gentle. Just be sure you do the same, Green-eyes."

He tensed and his erection twitched a little against her stomach, revealing the effect her teasing lick had on him. "I promise. I just hope you know it might hurt at first, no matter how careful I am."

She shrugged. "It's only temporary and all women go through it, the first time they mate." Inwardly she was a little scared, but she didn't want to give that away. Everything she'd heard from other women indicated that it was worth the brief pain in the beginning.

He traced the faded scar on her forearm, where her ikran bit her during her trial. "And you're one hell of a woman." He kissed the spot before moving his lips up to her throat.

Karyu tilted her head to the side and shut her eyes, kneading his shoulders and focusing only on the sensations and desire coursing through her. He fondled her for a little while and he stroked other sensitive areas of her body with his free hand. She reached down to return the favor and he murmured in approval, flexing his hips to encourage her touch. This time, she didn't flinch away when he penetrated her. She took a slow, deep breath and tried to imagine a flower opening for the morning sun. He waited for her to relax before slipping a second finger in. The stretching was more uncomfortable than painful but it soon passed. His gentle thrusts began to feel good and the spot pattern on her body lit up in various places as her lust for him peaked again.

"Better?" he asked, searching her face. He fondled her right breast with his free hand, tweaking the nipple before brushing his thumb back and forth over the nub.

She was distracted by the combination of feelings he was invoking and it took her a moment to comprehend the meaning of his words. "I'm ready."

He looked slightly dubious. "Maybe we should give it a little more time."

Karyu gripped his erection a little more firmly, recalling her concerns that it could never fit inside of her. She was surprisingly unconcerned now. She was listening to her instincts and they wanted her to mate. "I want you _now_, though."

He smiled at her, his eyes flashing with answering desire. He eased his fingers out of her and he kissed her. "I just need to get some protection." He started to lift her off of him.

"Why?" Karyu resisted and frowned at him, honestly puzzled. "Are you afraid my parents are going to barge in and attack you or something?"

Now he looked confused. "Uh, not really. I mean a condom. I've got some in my desk drawer."

"You don't need one of those," Karyu insisted. "Na'vi women aren't receptive unless we're in heat, and we hardly ever go into heat without being mated to a life partner."

A horrible thought occurred to her and she remembered how that Jill woman had thrown herself at him. "Unless you've been with another woman and think you might have something contagious?"

"No," he said immediately, shaking his head. He rubbed her back and gazed at her earnestly. "I haven't been with anyone at all since I've been in this body. Jill and I came close but we never made it that far before she dumped me. You'll be my first."

Karyu found that information both fascinating and amusing. "So technically, that makes you a virgin too." She brushed a loose, wavy lock of hair away from his eye and smirked at him.

He shrugged and winked at her. "I guess so. How does it feel to know you're about to pop my cherry?"

She traced the stone in the center of his choker with her fingertips, where her symbol was carved. "Satisfying. I like knowing no other woman has been in my territory—at least, not since you came here."

Before he could respond to that, she threaded her fingers through his hair and kissed him hard, letting him know in no uncertain terms that she considered him to be her man. Baxter groaned low in his throat and he cupped her bottom, urging her to lift up. She complied and he reached down with one hand to position his sex. She felt the tip press against her entrance and Baxter cupped her bottom again.

"Ease down, Kitten," he encouraged. "Take it slow."

She took his advice and she gasped when the thick girth of his sex breached her. She almost lost her nerve and stopped, alarmed by the stretching sensation. Reminding herself that her body was designed to adapt to this sort of thing, she took some steadying breaths and put her arms around his neck, resting her forehead against his. Baxter supported her bottom and reassured her in an unsteady voice.

"No rush," he reminded her. He rubbed his forehead against hers before kissing her on the mouth.

Karyu's confidence returned when the burning feeling began to fade. It was still a really tight fit, but her flesh was relaxing enough around him to accept more. She let her weight take her down further on his shaft and she bit back a whimper as she took him deeper into her body. Baxter nuzzled and kissed her throat, holding still for her as she slowly sheathed his sex.

There was resistance after a while and when she tried to ease down further, it hurt. Karyu grimaced, knowing they had reached her "maidenhead". She wished that she was one of those lucky girls that broke prior to sex through horseback riding or other vigorous activities common in Na'vi life, but there was no help for it. Unfortunately, she wasn't sure how to proceed. Her anxiety rose again and she looked at Baxter uncertainly, unable to hide her confusion.

"I...I'm not sure what to do now," she admitted, silently asking him with her eyes to fix the problem.

Baxter traced her parted lips with his thumb before moving his hand around to the back of her neck. He kneaded the spot around the base of her skull and he pressed soft, brief kisses on her face and mouth. "Some people say you should think of England."

Karyu forgot the distracting pleasure of his massage and she frowned. "What the hell does _that_ mean?"

"I'm not sure," he confessed. "I think it's supposed to relax you."

"Well, I've never _seen_ England and from what I hear, it's just as trashed as America now," she huffed. "Don't you have anything more helpful than th—_AAAHHH_!"

While she was complaining, Baxter's hands settled on her hips and he bucked beneath her, breaking through the barrier with no warning. The abrupt pain provoked her shocked cry and he muffled the sound with his lips. She started to recoil, but the sting faded almost immediately and she was left with the feeling of him resting deep inside of her. It ached and there was a lingering burning sensation, but it wasn't as bad as she expected. His husky whispers of apology and his kisses helped ease her distress. Karyu reconsidered her decision to pull his ears off in retaliation and she forgave him for the nasty surprise.

"I thought you'd want it done fast," Baxter murmured, pulling back to gaze at her uncertainly. "Was I wrong?"

No, he wasn't wrong. She wouldn't have wanted to prolong the discomfort and truly, it felt much better now that it was over with. She smirked, more relieved than she cared to admit. "You distracted me with that dumb advice about England."

"Yeah," he confessed, "I figured you'd get caught up in trying to figure out the meaning behind it and that would give me the chance to...you know...get it over with for you."

A biting remark almost passed her lips but he looked so sincerely worried that she couldn't bring herself to make it. Their bodies were joined now and though it ached, there was pleasure in the experience as well. Karyu stroked his chest and shoulders, feeling a little bad for the way she almost took it out on him. He really _saw_ her. Not just the surface, but beneath. One thing that had held her back through all of this was her doubt that the marine could see with his spirit as well as he saw with his eyes. Now she knew differently.

She hesitantly shifted on top of him, trying to decide how she should proceed. His hands slipped around to the front of her body and stroked upwards, sliding over her ribcage and pausing beneath her breasts. She couldn't contain a distressed sound as she tried to find a motion that would bring some relief to the pressure of his sex inside of her, without making him leave her entirely.

Baxter cupped her breasts for a moment before sliding his hands down over her hips. "Move like you're dancing," he suggested, "just rock your hips a little, Karyu."

She swallowed and took his advice, finding it difficult to undulate with the same grace while part of him was inside of her. He kissed her neck, jaw and the spot below her left ear as she gingerly tested her motions. His breath caught and his fingers dug into her hips a little when she felt comfortable enough to put more motion into it.

"How's that feel, baby?" Howell asked her breathlessly when she moaned and started to rock sinuously and rhythmically on top of him. He began to move his hips carefully, matching the rhythm she had chosen so that his sex was slowly pumping back and forth inside of her.

Karyu couldn't think of words to respond with. The discomfort was still there, but now it was accompanied by a low, deep throbbing sensation that seemed to get more intense with every pelvic rotation. Each time his length withdrew and thrust, the glide of it against her inner flesh felt better and better. She let her eyes flutter shut and she cupped the back of his head, pushing his face against her chest unceremoniously.

Baxter didn't complain. He held her tighter and he moved with a bit more force, his breath hot and heavy against her breasts. He kissed the nipples and his hands rubbed her flexing bottom in a circular motion. Karyu tilted her head back, amazed that it just kept getting better. She moaned softly when his lips closed around her left nipple and tugged at it. One of his hands moved from her hip and slipped between her straddling thighs. She gasped when the pads of his fingers found her swollen clitoris and stroked it gently.

Karyu pressed her palms against Baxter's chest, urging him to lie down. He complied and he continued to caress her as she rocked and gyrated on top of him, his vivid emerald gaze locked with hers. His lips were parted and his hitching breath came faster and faster. The spots lining his body were bright with arousal and he groaned her name in a desperate manner. He started to pump his hips with a little more force and she gasped, her tail curling with delight.

Now the pleasure was so much greater than the discomfort and she honestly didn't mind his enthusiasm. He began to lift her off the mattress with each thrust, penetrating her deeply without being harsh and causing pain. Karyu started to lift her body when she rocked forward, letting him slip out of her almost to the tip. When she dropped back down, the feel of him sliding back into her made her whimper. She repeated the motions, familiarizing her with the rhythm before moving faster. His hands cupped her breasts and he groaned her name raggedly, tossing his head.

"Karyu...baby...I'm really trying to hold back, but it's getting close."

She smiled at him and laid her hands over his larger ones—which were still fondling her breasts. "Show me what you've got, then."

Baxter sat up abruptly and held her tightly, startling her a little. His kiss was almost bruising in its intensity and Karyu purred in approval. She cried out against his lips as he started to thrust his hips with powerful, smooth motions. It _almost_ hurt, but Howell restrained himself enough to avoid crossing the line from pleasure into pain. She could sense that he was still holding back and she was vaguely thankful for that. He guided her up and down as he pumped beneath her, gasping husky encouragement.

All she could do was hang onto him and moan, unable to match his motions right away. Though he'd taken over the encounter physically, Karyu knew that she still had all the power. She trusted him to stop if she told him to, so she let go of her inhibitions and panted his name. He growled and she growled back, biting his lip teasingly between kisses. To his credit, Baxter didn't try to flip her onto her back. He let her stay on top, giving her a sense of control to balance her current helplessness.

"Baxter," she moaned, rubbing her cheek against his.

Something happened then and he thrust deeply into her, tensing up all over. He groaned heavily and held her tight enough to make breathing difficult. "Karyu…"

She felt him pulse inside of her and she felt the spurt of his seed. He trembled as he came, his breath halting temporarily. He groaned as he exhaled and he kissed her shoulder before resting his cheek on it. Karyu smirked a little, feeling accomplished. His next words brought her head out of the clouds and confused her, however.

"I'm sorry," Baxter gasped.

Karyu stroked his hair and frowned. "What for?"

"I wanted to make you come again before I did," he answered, as if the answer was obvious.

She shrugged, still not getting it. "Don't worry, you took care of me earlier. It was your turn. Besides, I read most women don't orgasm the first time they have sex, anyways." She didn't mention that if they'd been linked in _tsahaylu_, his climax would have fed her own. It was one of the advantages Na'vi couples had over human ones.

"You're being really generous," he observed, kissing her lightly. He caressed her back, tracing her spine in that way that always gave her a pleasant shiver. He smiled when this time proved to be no exception.

Karyu rubbed his shoulders. "Male egos are fragile things. I can show mercy."

He laughed softly. "Ouch. You really don't pull your punches, Sugarplum."

"That's how you know my compliments are sincere." She rubbed the tip of her nose against his and relaxed, sore but content.

He kissed her again and shifted beneath her, turning his body so that his legs dangled over the side of the bed. Karyu was understandably confused when he lifted her and she clung to him instinctively, like a sloth.

"What are you doing?"

"Carrying you," he answered with a wink. "Isn't it obvious? Ow." He bumped his toe on his desk chair in passing but he didn't stumble or drop her.

"Carrying me _where_?"

He chuckled. "To the only other room in this bunker. How does a warm shower sound?"

She winced a little as his member slipped out of her completely. A warm rinse between her thighs might soothe the sting from mating and she was sure there would be blood, if she checked. "I'm sold. You have some ibuprofen, don't you?"

"You bet." He struggled to get the bathroom door open but he seemed to be unable to do so and hold onto her at the same time. He poked the tip of his tongue out the side of his mouth and shifted her in his arms. "Hold on a minute…I can get this."

Karyu rolled her eyes and kept one arm wrapped around her neck while she leaned over. She turned the knob and pushed the door open before giving him a satisfied look. "There. Fixed it for you."

"What would I do without you?" He gave her a smooch and pushed the door open the rest of the way before carrying her through.

* * *

Karyu woke up early the next morning, just as the sun was coming up. She was sprawled halfway on top of Baxter and as she lifted her head from his bare chest, she recalled everything they'd done the night before. After mating, they showered together and he again demonstrated how generous and attentive he could be to a woman's body. He proved to her that even sore, she could orgasm easily under his care. After bathing and drying each other, they lay down together and went to sleep.

She looked at his sleeping face, admiring his handsome features. He was snoring softly and the occasional incoherent murmur passed his lips. She grinned, not regretting her actions in the slightest. She traced the choker around his throat and lowered her head to his chest to press a soft, brief kiss there. Whatever happened now, she had her night with her Green-eyes to carry with her for the rest of her life.

The problem was that now she knew for certain no man would ever measure up to him—not in personality, not in sense of humor and not in bed. She could try to please her mother and the clan by taking a more traditional mate that couldn't possibly fit her the way Howell did, but that would break her heart and probably Howell's, too. That was assuming he was still alive after the situation with the RDA base was resolved.

Karyu's good mood evaporated. No matter how much her father hoped that the people at this newly discovered base would see reason and surrender, the RDA's history on Pandora was well known and violent. Her family, friends and lover were going to be embroiled in combat when they made it to the location and she would be helpless to aid them. Prayers to Eywa were all well and good, but she knew the All Mother had better things to do than grant special favors of divine intervention. If Eywa were to be inspired to interfere at all, it would be to save _all_ her children, not just a handful for Karyu.

The young huntress tried to tell herself that her marine could handle himself. He was trained and skilled in combat, after all. No matter how hard she tried to convince herself though, she couldn't help but think of how often and easily he managed to get himself hurt. He could barely cross a room without causing a small catastrophe. She gently blew into his ear and she smiled when it twitched and he mumbled in his sleep. She almost traced his features with her fingertips but she didn't want to wake him.

There had to be some way she could participate in this battle without having to fight her mother for it every step of the way. There had to be some way she could eventually get her people to accept Baxter as her man. His act of heroism wasn't enough to convince the council to overlook the fact that he was an outsider. They had already made too many allowances and it would take more than that single act to change their feelings on the matter.

She used to be so _good_ at concocting master plans to make things fall into place, more or less to her satisfaction. Together, she and Kato were a team of strategists to be reckoned with. Maybe she could talk to her brother and ask him to brainstorm with her to find a solution. Maybe she could even speak with her _Sempul_—without informing him that she was no longer a maiden, of course. Maybe her Uncle Jake could speak to Tanhi on her behalf, or…

…It was then that a different idea came to Karyu. She recalled the conversation she'd overheard between Jake, her father and Norm the night before. They needed _Toruk Makto_ to inspire the participating clans and gain their cooperation with the humans. Jake seemed ambiguous about taming another toruk himself—which was understandable, considering how strong the bond could be between a rider and his or her mount. What must it have been like, for him to bond with such a fierce creature and fly the skies with him for so many years? She had never really considered it before. After losing an ikran, some Na'vi couldn't find the heart to bond with a new mount. She knew her Uncle Jake loved Shadow and saying goodbye to the animal was probably a lot harder than he let on.

What if someone else took up the torch, so to speak? What if another, younger hunter became the next _Toruk Makto_. What if that person were a female…who desperately needed to convince her people that their ways wouldn't wither and die if the next chieftess took an avatar operative for a mate?

"The Thorny Mountains," she whispered softly, her eyes going blank. That was where Jake said they saw the young toruk. It was a smaller mountain range between the Hallelujah Mountains and Omaticaya territory, and it was known to be a favored breeding ground for the fierce toruks of Australis.

It might be vain, it might be delusions of grandeur, but Karyu Sully knew that she could do practically anything, if she set her mind to it. She looked at her boyfriend again and she allowed herself one more leisurely caress of his chest and throat. She swallowed at the thought of losing him and her eyes stung with treacherous tears as she considered the rift this could cause between herself and her mother. Karyu didn't mind bullying the council into compliance but she hated the thought of her mother looking at her with disappointment and resentment. Tanhi was dead-set to see Karyu follow the path that she herself had declined to take.

She felt like she had to choose between her mother and Baxter. She sniffed as the tears welled up faster and she hastily wiped her eyes and whispered for Howell to go back to sleep when he stirred and muttered a question. He settled down again and Karyu waited for a few moments until his breathing was deep and even. As silently as possible, Karyu eased out of the bunk and retrieved her clothing and gear from the floor. She respected Howell's senses and military training, even if he did act like a doofus most of the time. Despite her efforts to leave without waking him, she heard his sleepy voice speak just as she made it to the door.

"Where you going, Kitten? Don't tell me you regret last night."

Karyu stopped and turned to look at him. He was squirming into a sitting position and rubbing his eyes. "No. I told you before: I don't do or say things I don't mean. I just have some things to take care of while it's still early. I'll come back later."

Baxter frowned and glanced at his watch. "But aren't you supposed to be leaving for your village tomorrow when your family goes to get everything ready?"

She sneered before she could stop herself. "That's _their_ plan, yes."

Baxter pulled the sheet aside and swung his legs over the side of the bed. "Well, why don't you just spend the day here with me, then? It could be a while before we get to see each other again, Karyu. I want to spend as much time with you as I can."

She stammered like a nincompoop when he stretched, unconsciously displaying that physique of his for her eyes. He might be clumsy when it came to everyday activities, but damned if he wasn't a picture of masculine grace right now. "I want a body too, but I've got to do that thing."

Baxter cracked one eye open and frowned. "Say that again? I think my brain is still half asleep."

She bit her lip and cursed silently at herself, thankful that he believed he had misunderstood her in his sleepy state. "I said I've really got to do a couple of things, Green-eyes. If I could stay here with you for the rest of the day I would, but if I don't get out and take care of this while I have time, it won't get done."

He got up out of the bunk and approached her, looking a bit worried. Her eyes automatically followed the symmetrical V of his pelvic area and she shut them before they could settle on his endowments. "Howler, I don't have time to mess around."

"It's a little late for you to blush like that, Peaches," he teased in a murmur as he closed in on her and put his arms around her. His lips brushed against hers and his hands stroked her shoulders gently. "Can't we have a quickie before you go? Or are you too sore?"

Dear Eywa, she was so _very_ tempted to take him up on his offer, but she _was_ sore and she knew that if she mated with him again before she left, she'd have all the grace of a bow-legged drunkard. She kissed him back before answering, truly regretting the time limitations they were under.

"Yes, I'm too sore and I think for it to be a 'quickie', you'd have to hurt me a little."

Baxter winced and lowered his jade eyes. "Sorry. I didn't think of that."

He impulsively cupped his hands over his groin and he eyed her in a convincingly warily manner that made her grin. Karyu reached out and pressed the tip of her pointer finger against the dimple in his chin—the way she had the night she came to him drunk and confused.

"I'll forgive you..._this time_."

Her grin faded a little at the warmth in his eyes and she sighed, admitting to herself that no matter how confident and determined she was, she could fail in her plan and end up dead. This could be the last time she saw those brilliant eyes, that charming smile or that gorgeous body. With that thought in mind, Karyu slid her fingers through his hair and urged his head down to hers for another kiss. She had to push him away after a few minutes, because he was getting visibly excited and her stupid body was responding in kind.

"Okay," she said breathlessly, through kiss-swollen lips. "I'd better go and get this over with."

"You'll come back when you're finished, right?" He looked boyishly hopeful and if she were a lesser woman, she might have melted.

"I'll come back," she agreed. She eyed him up and down again as she turned toward the door, lowering her lashes seductively. "I'm not finished with you, avatar. We still have another night to spend together, before I'm supposed to go."

He waggled his eyebrows and his state of arousal became more apparent. "Looking forward to it, Sexy."

She smiled crookedly at him, pleased that she could so easily excite him with nothing more than a promise and a glance. Of course, he didn't have to do much to excite her either, so it was fair enough. She opened the door and started to walk out, but Baxter's voice stopped her again.

"Hey Karyu...this thing you've got to do...you'll be careful, right?"

Her expression softened. Somehow, he'd sensed the danger involved and though he clearly wanted to know what she was going to be doing, he respected her privacy enough not to ask. "I'll be as careful as it's in my nature to be, Green-eyes."

He smirked, unable to hide the concern in his eyes. "That's not real comforting, but I'll hold you to it."

* * *

Kato groaned in protest as the incessant beeps of the cell phone dragged him out of pleasant dreams. He forced bleary eyes open and he rolled onto his side to reach for the object. He could hear the shower going and he guessed his lovely little wife was getting cleaned up. He grinned, thinking of the activities they enjoyed the night before. With that pleasant memory foremost in his mind, he picked up his phone off the nightstand and he answered it almost cheerfully.

"Kato, here."

"Good morning, son," his father's voice greeted.

"Morning, _Sempul_." Kato stretched a little and grunted. "What are you and _Sa'nok_ doing today? We were planning to come and meet up with you for lunch, if that's all right."

"Good," Tom agreed pleasantly. "It would be nice to have some family time together, before we leave. Have you heard from Savanna's parents?"

Kato almost blurted that they were still on the ISV and would probably remain there until the conflict with the RDA base was resolved. Remembering that there was reasons for code speak—even though the authorities believed they had caught all the moles on base—he spoke carefully.

"They're going to be at the research facility for a while. They don't know how long yet. Savanna spoke to them and she said they were doing fine, though."

"Good. Is Karyu awake yet? I'd like to speak with her, if you can convince her to talk to me."

Kato winced, having completely forgotten that his twin was supposed to have stayed the night with him and Savanna. "Uh, let me check. Hold on a minute."

Kato put the phone down and stumbled out of bed hastily. He made a beeline for the bathroom, where his mate was currently showering. Without ceremony, he opened the door and traipsed in. Savanna gave a little shriek of reflexive surprise when he slid the shower door open and she rubbed water out of her eyes to blink up at him with a remonstrating expression on her face. Seeing that he was nude, she raised an eyebrow.

"You could at least _ask_, Kato! Sometimes a girl likes to bathe alone, believe it or not!" Though he'd already seen every inch of her body, she covered her breasts with her hands in a gesture of lingering maidenly modesty.

He glanced down at himself and he understood why she concluded that he was there to crash her shower. He really hadn't given her much of a break since their marriage, but it was hard to feel remorse for that with impending danger around every corner. The sight of her naked and wet had an immediate and obvious effect on his body. Grinning sheepishly, he corrected her.

"That's not what I'm here for. My _sempul_ is on the phone and he wants to talk to Karyu."

Savanna's hazel eyes widened a little and she bit her lip, looking around as if seeking answers. "But, she's not here," she protested. "She's with—"

"I know," he said. "But if I tell Dad she isn't here, he's going to ask where she's at and if I lie and say she's heading back to the Avatar compound, he's going to be expecting her."

"Well, we have to tell him _something_," she reasoned.

He considered the issue, still groggy with sleep. "I've got it! You pretend to be Karyu. Just tell him you're going to hang out here with us for a while and you'll come to lunch with us."

Her mouth dropped open. "You're not awake yet, are you?"

"Not really, but what does that have to do with—"

"Because if you were, you'd know what a stupid idea that is," she said candidly, gesturing at nothing in particular and splattering him with water in the process. "I can't impersonate your sister!"

"You're doing a pretty good job of it right now," he grumbled. "Come on, Sav! If we don't come up with something, Dad's going to get suspicious and he'll talk to _Sa'nok_ and then _she'll_ start asking questions and Karyu's going to get in trouble and Howler's going to end up as an avatar rotisserie!"

Savanna groaned, unable to argue with his babbling predictions of impending doom. "Okay, here's what you do: tell your father that Karyu is in the bathroom and can't come to the phone. He'll either take your word for it, or he'll assume she told you to lie because she still doesn't want to talk to him. That should at least buy us enough time to get in touch with her."

Kato felt foolish, but he smiled at her and he leaned over to kiss her—ignoring the spray of the water against his skin. He was good with equations and logical tactics, but Savanna was queen when it came to practical solutions to sticky social situations. "You're a genius."

"I've just learned a few troubleshooting skills over the years, is all." She returned his smile, her initial modesty fading now that the surprise of his interruption had warn off. She patted his naked bottom before shooing him out of the shower. "Go on, before your father starts wondering what's taking so long."

* * *

"Sorry Dad, she's taking a dump."

Tom shut his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, torn between amusement and mortification. He dearly hoped his son wasn't quite that blunt with non-family members when he or Sav couldn't make it to the phone due to body functions. He wasn't as bad as his sister, but sometimes Kato shared her penchant for being vulgarly open about some things.

"Well, would you tell her to call me back or at least ask her to sit and talk to me in private after lunch? I really don't want to head into this thing knowing she's so resentful of me. I'd rather part on good terms."

"I understand," Kato said, his voice softening with sympathy. He sighed. "If it helps, I don't think Karyu's all that mad at you. It's _Sa'nok_ she's really mad at and you're just caught in the middle because you're the other parent in the equation. She was probably hoping you'd stick up for her more than you did."

"Believe me son, I'm trying." It was Tom's turn to sigh. "I don't think either of you appreciate the position I'm in. Your mother isn't the sort of woman that handles demands well. The more you resist, the harder she pushes. The harder you push, the more she resists."

There was a pause on the other line. When Kato spoke again, his tone was sympathetic. "I've never thought of it that way, but you're right. How the hell do you _deal_ with her, _Sempul_?"

"When it comes to women like your mother and sister," answered Tom, "psychological warfare is the only way. In this case, it's more like psychological meekness. You have to appeal to their need to be in control and whatever you do, don't try to take control away from them."

"So how do you win an argument?"

Tom chuckled. "You don't. Arguments aren't about winning or losing, but compromise. If two parties can't agree then nobody 'wins'. The trick is to get what you want without leaving the other person empty-handed."

"Okay...what if you can't do that?"

Tom glanced through the open entrance of the avatar cabin and he looked outside at his mate, who was talking with Neytiri and Emazu. "Then you have to decide if it's worth staying at war with your mate until it drives you apart from her. I personally choose surrender, when it gets that bad. I've always been a peaceful man, though."

"Hmph." Kato didn't sound impressed. "So does _she_ ever surrender to _you_ or does _Sa'nok_ just always get her way when you can't agree on something?"

Tom grinned, admiring the sight of Tanhi's pert little bottom when she turned her back to him and walked a few paces with Neytiri. "Believe it or not, your mother _does_ give in on occasion. If she knows deep down she's in the wrong or she sees how important something is to me, she _will_ bend. It just takes patience to get her to that point."

"Wow, Mother actually _caves_ sometimes?"

"Of course," Tom assured with amusement. "You just never hear me bragging about it—with good reason. Never get smug or cocky, son. New battles get started that way."

Kato laughed. "Okay, Dad. Uncle Jake is always saying you've got a way with women, so I guess I should take any advice you can give me." His voice sobered a little. "So do you think you could talk Mother into giving Karyu a little slack? I know you probably can't change her mind about the fight, but I think Karyu should at least be allowed to mate for love instead of duty."

Tom frowned, sharing his son's pity for Karyu's situation. They never spoke of it, but he was sure Kato was aware of the chemistry between his twin sister and a certain avatar marine. "I think I'm making progress in that department, but I can't press it too fast with your _Sa'nok_, or she'll turn back into stone again."

"Sounds like there's a real art to reasoning with her," grumbled Kato.

Tom smiled softly. "Yes, but it's a challenge I always enjoy." He glanced outside again and he saw Jake coming up the stairs with an expectant look on his face. Checking his watch, Tom saw that it was close to time for the scheduled meeting. "I've got to go, son. Do me a favor and please try to talk your sister into speaking with me before we go. While you're at it, try to convince her to forgive her mother."

"I can't make any promises, _Sempul_."

* * *

Baxter swore as the oatmeal he was cooking bubbled up and spat a glob of hot goo on his forearm. He wiped it off hastily and took the small saucepan off of the burner. His mind was on Karyu Sully, of course. As such, even cooking something as simple as oatmeal was a challenge to his concentration. He couldn't stop wondering what sort of "things" she needed to take care of and he wondered if he did the right thing by not specifically asking her. He had no doubt she appreciated the lack of prying but he also knew she was still upset over her mother's decision and she could be reckless.

"Just what the hell are you _planning_, princess?" Baxter murmured, narrowing his eyes unseeingly at the oatmeal.

He should have just picked out an instant meal, but he was sick of bland, processed food. He sighed and reached for the cinnamon, shaking his head to clear it. Karyu wasn't the kind of girl you pushed around, not even with good intentions. If she thought he needed to know what her plans for the day were, she would have told him. Invasion of privacy was a big no-no in a new relationship such as this. Heckling her about her affairs would surely buy him a one-way ticket back to bachelorhood.

"Gotta be careful, Bax," he muttered to himself as he seasoned his breakfast and stirred it. "Don't screw this one up."

Someone knocked on his door and his heart did an annoying little flip at the possibility that Karyu changed her mind and came back to spend the day with him. "Just a minute," he called, turning the burner off and transferring his saucepan to a cool one.

He went into the bathroom and had a hasty look in the mirror. He grabbed the comb off the sink and tried to tame his hair, but without dampening the wavy locks first, it was an exercise in futility. He grimaced at his reflection and chuckled.

"What the hell am I doing? She's already seen me with bed hair this morning."

He put the comb back down and exited the bathroom, narrowly avoiding tripping over the boots he'd left sitting out by the foot of his bed. When he opened the door and found Kato and Savanna waiting behind it, his hopes fell. Stifling his disappointment, he stepped aside to give them space.

"Hey guys. Come on in. 'Scuse me for a minute while I get a shirt on." He winked at Savanna. "Wouldn't want to offend the lady."

She glanced at his attire and she shrugged. "You don't offend me. My husband comes home from hunts wearing a lot less than a pair of tracksuit pants."

Howell chuckled and went to his little closet to obtain a muscle shirt. He noticed that both of them were looking around curiously, as if searching for something—or someone. He had a feeling that Kato already knew his sister had stayed the night with him and for the sake of friendship, he thought it was better to be honest. He pulled the white tank top on and regarded Kato soberly.

"If you're looking for Karyu, she left about twenty minutes ago. I'm guessing that's who you really came to see, right?"

"Yeah, Sav and I are covering for her," admitted the hunter bluntly. He put an arm around his mate's waist and she leaned against him. "She needs to touch bases with our parents before they send someone looking for her and we're all supposed to have lunch together."

"Was she going back to the Avatar compound?" Savanna asked.

Baxter turned back to the kitchenet and he went to his cooling breakfast to stir it and dish it up. "I don't know. All she said was that she had some 'things' to take care of. I didn't push for more info. Are you two hungry? I could fry up some eggs or make more oatmeal, if you want."

"No, we've had a quick breakfast already," Kato assured. His eyes went to the choker around Baxter's throat and he smirked a little when he recognized the symbol etched into the center stone. "So are you and my sister together now or what?"

Baxter absently adjusted the armlet around his left bicep and he nodded. "Yeah, we are. Are you cool with that, man?"

"I'm one of the people that encouraged her to go for it," answered Kato with another shrug. "I knew it was going to happen sooner or later and she's an adult. It's not like I could forbid her from being with you even if I wanted to."

Savanna regarded him shrewdly from the corner of her eye, while speaking to Baxter. "He was worried she might rush into it too fast, though. So you two...you know?"

Baxter grinned and finished spooning his breakfast into a plastic bowl. "Gentlemen don't kiss and tell, Toots. Let's just say Karyu and I are dating now and leave it at that."

"But it isn't as simple as that," Kato reminded earnestly. His eyes were faintly troubled and sympathetic on the marine. "You know she can't be open about this relationship yet, right? She's got to convince our mother and the clan that you're worthy of her."

"Kato!" Savanna nudged him rudely in the ribs with her elbow, making him grunt. "Don't say it like that!"

"Like what?" he demanded, rubbing the spot. "I'm not the one that has an issue with it!"

Savanna looked at Howell and smiled diplomatically. "He didn't mean to say you aren't good enough for Karyu, Baxter. Of _course_ you're worthy of her...it just might take a little time to convince Tanhi and the council that you won't disrupt their people's lifestyle, by being mated to their future _Olo'eyktan._"

Baxter paused with the first mouthful of oatmeal halfway to his lips. "Mated? Uh, I'm not sure what you think happened between us but Karyu and I aren't hitched yet. We didn't do that braid thingy."

Kato looked like he couldn't decide whether he was relieved or dismayed. "But you did _other_ 'thingies'?"

"She's an _adult_, remember?" whispered Savanna out the corner of her mouth.

"She's also my _sister_," Kato whispered back.

"Wow, you two are subtle." Baxter set his bowl of oatmeal on the counter and he leaned against the surface. "Listen Kato, I know this might not come as much of a comfort to you but I'm crazy about your sister. I've _been_ crazy about her ever since she took care of me back in your home village. You've got to know I'd never do anything to hurt her."

Kato regarded him searchingly. "You're my friend and I've got no reason to think you'd deliberately hurt Sis. Just tell me one thing, Bax: if she got the council's approval and asked you to seal a permanent mating bond with her, would you do it?"

"In a heartbeat," answered the marine without hesitation. His eyebrows went up with surprise. "Whoa...that came out faster than I thought it would."

Savanna giggled. "Then it must mean you really mean it, if you didn't even have to think about it. See Kato? You can relax. He's not going to do Karyu wrong."

Kato's stern expression softened into a brotherly grin and he reached out to pat Baxter on the shoulder. "I guess not. Well, if it ever gets that serious, I'm happy to welcome you into the family, bro. In the meantime though, you probably shouldn't wear the choker or armlet in public or at least keep them covered up around my family or any visiting Na'vi. You can't go advertising this relationship until Karyu's had the chance to win the council over."

Baxter grimaced. He hadn't thought about that. "I guess we're going to have to keep this a secret until then. Thanks for pointing that out, man. I don't want to cause a big family dispute and I _sure_ don't want to piss your mom off."

"I'm surprised Karyu didn't think of that," Savanna mused. "She's struggled over this for so long, I thought for sure she would have covered those bases with you before leaving."

"Maybe I should call _Sempul_ and ask if she's showed up yet," Kato muttered.

"But what if she wasn't going there?" asked Savanna. "What if she just wanted some time alone to clear her head? She could have gone hunting or just gone for an early morning flight."

"And what if she gets hurt?" Kato demanded. "Normally Karyu can take care of herself, but she's upset about being left out of the fight. She doesn't always make good choices when she's worked up."

Baxter cleared his throat. "Standing right here, bud."

"I'm not talking about you," revised Kato. "I'm talking about spur of the moment things. Sis was hung up on you long before this RDA shit started so what happened with you two was at least semi-planned. I'm talking about Karyu getting a wild hair up her ass to challenge a thanator or something, to blow off some steam."

Baxter frowned. "You really think she'd do that?"

"I don't know," admitted Kato. "You're her boyfriend, what do you think?"

"You're her twin brother," argued Baxter. "You'd know better than me."

Savanna tried to have her say in the matter. "Guys, I think maybe—"

"She was pretty pissed off," interrupted Kato worriedly. "And when Karyu's that angry about something, she thinks she can move mountains."

"Maybe you should—"

"But Karyu loves animals," protested Baxter. "Even the big fangy ones. She's told me before she doesn't like killing them except for food or self-defense. Why would she pick a fight with one and take her anger out on it?"

"I didn't say she'd try to kill it," corrected Kato. "I said she'd challenge it."

Baxter got a crazy image in his head of his slender lover arm-wrestling with a hulking thanator and one eyebrow drifted up to his hairline. "I think even Karyu would have more sense than that. How do you 'challenge' a thanator to a fight without one of you ending up dead?"

"Guys—"

"It's Karyu." Kato shrugged. "If anyone can find a way to do it, she can."

Savanna put two fingers to her lips and whistled shrilly, startling both men out of their discussion. When they stared at her in surprise, she grabbed her mate's arm and looked up at him earnestly. "If your gut instinct is telling you that your sister is going to do something extreme, then you should probably listen to it. _Go and look for her_. We could be worrying over nothing and she might not appreciate you checking up on her, but it's better to be safe than sorry, right?"

"What about my parents?" asked Kato.

"Let me handle it," Savanna assured him. "You just get changed into your hunting gear and find Talon."

"Think you can track her down if she doesn't want to be followed?" Baxter frowned, wishing he could search for her too without having to book a pilot for the day. Odds were his request would be turned down, as all aircrafts were being primed for the journey north.

"Anybody else might not be able to," answered Kato. He tapped his temple and smirked. "But I've got twin radar. Karyu and I can always find each other. 'Hide and seek' never lasted long with us, when we were kids."

"Which way are you thinking of heading?" Baxter silently considered all of his options and he thought he might have a solution for his dilemma.

Kato thought about it for a minute. "Northwest, I think," he answered. "I've got a feeling about Northwest."

* * *

_Meanwhile, elsewhere on the base:_

"What the hell is _he_ doing here?" Jake gestured at Selfridge, halting in the doorway of the meeting room so abruptly that his twin bumped into him from behind.

"Please come in and have a seat, Jake," Max said calmly. "Parker is here to help us plan. So is Miss Archer. They both have experience with the people involved in the RDA's treachery and their input could influence whether we succeed or fail."

"Come on, Jake," Norm urged, sitting next to a reluctant Emazu in one of the up-scaled chairs around the huge, circular table. "I don't like it either, but we've got to know what we're up against. You can't go in blind against the RDA."

"Sit down, Jarhead," Trudy added. She leaned back in her chair and casually propped her booted feet on the table—ignoring her fiancé's disapproving frown. "If he does wrong by us, you have my permission to rip his spine out...if you can find it."

"It would take a full body cavity search to find this bastard's spine," Jake said with a scowl, "but Max has a point. I guess it won't hurt to hear what he has to say."

"You wouldn't be here right now if I didn't have a spine, Sully," reminded the former administrator bluntly. "I could have let them kill you."

Jake grimaced at the little man, forced to agree with him. Previous wrongs and old resentment died hard, though. He gave Archer a nod of greeting, treating her with more courtesy. Neytiri came up beside him, adjusting her exopack uncomfortably. She glared at Selfridge and he held his breath, hoping she would control her righteous anger for long enough to get through this meeting. She started to say something and then she glanced sidelong at Jake and sighed. She gave him a reassuring nod, silently promising that she would hold back her old rage for the sake of this council. Jake took her hand and joined Norm, Ni'nat and Emazu on the Na'vi side of the table. He exchanged a nod with General West as he sat down directly across from him and Ellis. Tom and Tanhi came in last with Meuia and they sat next to Neytiri. Once everyone was present, Max locked the door and took his place at the northern end of the table.

"We have everything more or less in order for a convergence," explained Max, "and our military has the teams sorted out and ready to do their parts in this. We have our allies on the Star Chaser willing and available to help us conduct this with as few casualties as possible. There's one remaining problem, however."

People exchanged glances and Ramona sighed when Max left the sentence hanging. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm over the drama. Quit acting like you're auditioning for a part in a soap and spit it out, Max."

"We don't have any details of the interior of the enemy base," obliged Max. "We've managed to pull old schematic files from when the facility was first being built, but it's obviously been altered since then. I think we can safely assume the layout of this compound doesn't remotely resemble the original plan, any longer."

"Why do we need to know what it looks like inside?" Emazu demanded. "We are going to destroy it. What does it matter how it is made?"

"Because there could be nasty surprises hidden in there," explained Jake, "and we don't want any of those if we can help it."

"We do not know what hidden weapons they may have inside," Neytiri agreed, nodding. "Humans make very destructive things, Emazu—things that explode and destroy everything around them. They can even fire these explosions into the air, like screaming arrows. You have not yet witnessed how destructive Sky People weapons can be."

Emazu cast a mistrustful look around the room at the humans. "But we are fighting with these destructive people at our side."

"I guess you've never heard the term 'fight fire with fire'," Trudy said. "Listen up, kid: like it or not, we're your allies and the best weapons to use against these people are their own. The RDA fights dirty. They don't care about honor or fairness or mercy. All they care about is building their enterprise back up and staying rich. Our lives—and the lives of your people—don't mean jack shit to them, got it? You need our weapons and we need your trade, so let's just work together to bring these folks down and make this moon a safer place."

Beside her, the avatar operative that had worked so long with her grinned and held his palm up. "Right on, Mama Trudy," Harris approved as she accepted his offer and high-fived him.

Emazu lapsed into silence, unable to think of a further argument or retort. Seeing that there were no further objections, Max cut to the chase. "We have people working on it but I'm afraid that our best chance of getting a more recent, detailed layout of the compound lies with Mr. Selfridge and Miss Archer."

Selfridge frowned. "I don't know what you think we can do for you, Patel. Pamela and I have never been to that place. They didn't even tell us where it was."

"So you claim," Tom said shrewdly.

Parker spread his hands. "What would I get out of keeping that information from you, after everything I've told you already? Who the hell do you think I've been contacting when I'm sitting in my little jail cell, huh?"

"This isn't getting us anywhere," Archer insisted. She grimaced as she shifted in her chair. She was still too weak to walk for long and her wheelchair sat in the corner of the room. "If I had _any_ information concerning the layout of this place, I assure you I would part with it, Dr. Patel. I believe Mr. Selfridge would do the same, no matter how ungracious his is. If you want my opinion, your best chance of getting that information outside of hacking the RDA network is to get it from an agent."

"You mean like one of the prisoners we're holding here now," reasoned West. "They've already been interrogated and none of them have offered up anything useful. So far, you and Selfridge are the only two involved parties to cooperate with us, Ma'am."

Parker appeared to consider the matter and Jake exchanged a quietly wary look with Tom. Prior to this meeting, everyone agreed to keep certain aspects of the mission classified. While there was no evidence that either Selfridge or Archer had any intention of contacting the enemy with information and they had no access to communications, no chances were taken. The Hell's Gate Special Ops team had a specific job to do in this fight; one that required some knowledge of the layout of the RDA compound.

"You've got a prisoner here named Miller," Parker said after some thought. "Agent Patrick Miller. He's still in custody, right?"

Tanhi tensed in her seat and narrowed her eyes, recognizing the name from reports gone over with Trudy and Max. "That is the man who led the people that tried to kill my Tom, here on this base."

"Yeah, but they didn't succeed," Trudy reminded the chieftess. "We've got him locked away, Selfridge. You think he's got some information he could give us?"

"He was getting his orders from the people running the black ops here on Pandora," explained Parker. "I think he's been to that hidden base before, back before they got him transferred to Hell's Gate with some of the other covert operatives. He's your best bet for getting that information you want."

Max shook his head. "As General West has said: we've already interrogated all of the prisoners. If what you say is true and Miller has seen the inside of this facility, I doubt we'll have any luck convincing him to share that information."

"We could torture him," Trudy suggested—and it was hard to tell if she was joking. Jake frowned at her, faintly concerned. He saw the same worry reflected in his twin's eyes and he realized that the death of Wilson had a bigger impact on Trudy than she let on. Trudy had always been a very moral person, no matter how crudely she spoke. Now it seemed like she was having a harder time distinguishing right from wrong—or her sense of humor had just become more macabre.

"We don't torture prisoners," Max insisted, as if he'd said it before. "No matter _how_ severe their crimes or how desperate we get. I won't have this base turning to uncivilized methods and the military made an agreement to honor that."

"Well, you'll have to get the guy talking somehow," Jake pointed out. "I'm not saying torture is the way to go but we've got a time limit before these guys get too powerful to handle, Max. If you can't get the information then we're just going to have to give it our best shot with what we _do_ have."

"How do we even know this Miller has the information we need?" demanded Joyce with a disdainful look at Selfridge. "We only have _his_ word to go by. From what we've been told, only select people involved in this are given access to information about the facility itself."

"That's right," agreed Allen, siding with his wife. "What if Selfridge is wrong about this guy? He could lie about the information just to get us to back off and then we'll be even worse off than before."

"The agent in question won't do that," argued West, "not even under torture."

Everyone looked at him and the General expanded on his comment. "Agent Miller isn't the kind of man to crack under pressure. I know his kind. Threats, torture and mind games won't work. You've got to offer a man like him something greater than what he's already got, if you want to press his cooperation."

"Well, he's a trained assassin," Tom sighed. "If we had gone ahead with Kato and Savanna's wedding as we originally planned, I would probably be dead now. The second would-be killer that Corporal Howell caught was willing to die to keep his secrets, too. The RDA chose people that are willing to die for their cause—or at least people that have nothing left to lose. I think General West is right; even if he _does_ have this information, he isn't likely to give it up."

"Ask him about his sister," suggested Parker.

Everyone's attention turned to the former administrator again. "What about his sister?" Jake asked.

"He's got a sister back on Earth," answered Selfridge. "I don't know all the details but he had some kind of arrangement with the RDA to send medicine to her every month. He was making half the pay as other people with his qualifications, too. I'm betting he took the paycut to fund whatever the hell kind of meds they were supplying his sister with."

"So…you're suggesting we _threaten_ this man's sick sister?" Ramona said with a properly outraged expression on her dark features.

Selfridge rolled his eyes and leaned toward Archer. "I thought these people were supposed to be smart," he muttered to her.

"Parker," warned Pamela softly.

"I'm _suggesting_ you give the guy a better offer than whatever the RDA gave him," said Parker, taking his companion's quiet warning to heart. He looked up at Max, who had gotten out of his chair and was unconsciously pacing. "You've got _one_ advantage, as I see it. He must care for his sister and you can use that."

"Why didn't you tell us any of this before?" Lee asked with a frown. "If this guy has information about the enemy and you kept it to yourself—"

"I didn't say

"Then we should send you in to talk to him," Trudy said, frowning at Selfridge. "Since you know all this shit."

"That's a mistake," answered Parker. He nodded at Max. "You don't need a salesman, you need a humanist. He's the man you should send in. He's your diplomat. If not him, then send Sully."

Tom frowned. "I don't know if—"

"Not _you_, Doc," interrupted Selfridge. "Your twin brother. Miller's a soldier at the core, right? I hate to admit it, but Jake's got a way with people and he can relate to this guy a little. You want to convince him, you send someone like him or Max…maybe even both of them together."

Jake and Max looked at each other. Beside her mate, Neytiri twined her fingers into his and she offered her own encouragement.

"I hate this man," she said with a scowl at Selfridge. "He will always be the coward that allowed his people to kill mine, but he is not wrong about you, Jake. If a council with this other man could help us defeat the enemy, you and Max should do it."

Jake smiled at her and returned the pressure of her hand. He looked at Max and nodded. "Well, I'm in if you are."

Max nodded in compliance. "Mr. Selfridge, we need all of the information you can give us about this man before we even try to convince him. Tell us all that you know of his circumstances."

* * *

While Jake and Max made plans to negotiate with a prisoner, Karyu flew over the Thorny Mountain range, deliberately keeping her trajectory above the canopy and out in the open. She sniffed the wind and patted her ikran, silently encouraging the animal to disobey its instincts. Hunters sometimes flew solo during daylight hours but there were methods one was supposed to use, to discourage aerial predators from attacking. Karyu was deliberately ignoring all of them. She was purposely exposed; offering herself up as bate to the one creature on Pandora that might help her gain the proverbial crown of authority she needed.

"Where are you?" She muttered over the wind, keen eyes searching left, right, up and down. "I know you're here somewhere. Bring it on, _Hufwe Tsmukan_."

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Hufwe Tsmukan_** = Wind Brother

**_Additional Author's note: I argued with myself over the length of the Karyu/Baxter scene but in the end, I chose to give the full experience to them (and readers) rather than cut it in half. Romance is one of the primary elements of this story after all, and I saw no reason to sell this pairing short when they finally got together—especially given what they're about to face. I will confess that they have become my favorite OC couple of all and truthfully, I wrote their long love scene for myself as much as anyone else. This will be the last detailed romance scene in this story, so I hope some people enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it._**


	34. Chapter 34

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 34: Adaptation**

* * *

_**Author's note: See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. I recently had the unpleasant experience of contracting a keylogger virus on my computer through an infected email sent from a friend's compromised account. I've since recovered my stolen email account and World of Warcraft account, but I had quite a time sorting things out. The incident—combined with other issues—obviously slowed my fanfiction writing even further. Thank you for your patience and understanding. **_

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film.**

* * *

After some discussion on the matter, they decided not to send Jake in right away to talk to Miller. Max respected the prisoner's shrewdness, after the reports he got from previous attempts to glean information from him. Sending Jake in right away to try and reason with him might be too obviously manipulative, so they agreed that Tom and Max should try first. Together, the two scientists went to the top security sector of the detainment center, where Miller was being held.

The prisoner looked up at Tom as he ducked into his cell. He somewhat reminded Tom an avatar version of Pierce Brosnan. The prisoner raised an eyebrow at the doctor and he looked at the small human that came in after Tom. Miller unhooked his fingers from behind his head and sat up on his bunk, regarding both scientists with an opaque gaze that gave nothing away. He looked up at Tom again and a crooked smile adorned his lips.

"Still breathing, aye?" He had a bit of an accent that lent testimony to the information they had on his Earth background.

Tom returned his stare levelly. "Sorry to disappoint you."

Miller shrugged. He began to stand up but the guard that came in with the two scientists trained his gun on him and shook his head. The avatar operative wisely sat back down, holding his hands up passively. "It was nothing personal, man. I was just doing what they ordered me to do."

Max considered him for a moment and then he turned to the guard and gave him a nod. "You can go now. We'll be fine."

The guard looked at the prisoner dubiously. "You sure, Doctor? This guy almost escaped a team of fully armed and trained marines. He messed up one of our guys pretty bad, too."

Max smiled humorlessly. "Then I'm sure that if he wanted to harm either of us, he'd do it before you could react. Please, allow us some time alone to speak with Mr. Miller."

The guard eyed Miller with a frown and the prisoner waved at him cheerfully. "I don't know about this, sir. This one isn't to be trusted."

"We know that," Tom stated, eyeing the avatar prisoner thoughtfully. "We'll be fine."

The guard grumbled dubiously under his breath, but he left the room and shut the door behind him. Max and Tom turned their full attention to the prisoner, both of them seeking some minute detail that might give them a clue about his character. Miller looked to be in his mid-twenties and he had two piercings in his left ear and three on his right. The silver ball and small hoop in each ear was offset by the little skull and crossbones adorning the bottom of his right lobe.

"Admiring the jewelry, are we?" Miller observed, tugging his right ear lightly. "They've already scanned it for bugs, if that's what's worrying you."

"I was just thinking of how fitting it is, for you to wear the Jolly Roger symbol," Tom answered. "You'd make a good cutthroat."

"It was a gift," answered the agent with a shrug.

"From your sister?" guessed Max.

Miller's face went blank. "So, what can I do for you today? I'm guessing this isn't a social call."

Tom took note of the perfectly calm, icy expression. This man wasn't the sort to easily give away his thoughts or emotions. "She lives in Belfast, is that right?"

"Her name is Bethany," added Max. "That's a pretty name. You have my sympathies for her illness."

"Huntington's disease," Tom said with a frown. "That's a nasty condition for anyone to have—particularly if it goes untreated before it reaches an advanced stage."

Max nodded. "If you don't catch it by then, it's too late. I've seen patients in the final stages of that disease. It's a terrible way to go, drooling like an infant, with no muscle control and no coherent thought."

Miller was the picture of calm. "You can both stop trying to play detective, by the way. You'd make awful cops. What exactly does Beth have to do with my situation?"

"We aren't trying to play the role of cops," Max insisted. "We're just trying to make an offer."

Miller leaned back against his pillow and propped one ankle over the other. "And what 'offer' might that be? More importantly, what do you think you'll gain?"

Tom exchanged a look with Max before obliging the man. "The treatment for your sister's disease can only be manufactured here, on Pandora. I understand it's highly expensive to obtain on Earth—and it will only be more so if the RDA comes back into full power. You _do_ realize this, don't you?"

Miller shrugged. "I'm covered."

"Yes, you are. You've given up most of your pay in exchange for treatments for your sister," Max said, "Which leads me to believe you aren't completely void of feeling. How many treatments has Bethany received, since you joined up with the program?"

"None of your bleeding business," answered the prisoner, finally showing a hint of emotion with a scowl.

"I can tell you," Tom offered. He retrieved his palm-sized holopad from his breast pocket and fiddled with it. "Twelve. Two treatments per year, since you left Earth. That's _just enough_ to keep the disease from progressing further, without actually curing it. Are you okay with that, Agent Miller?"

"Can't do much to change it if I'm not," answered the prisoner, crossing his arms over his chest. The orange prison uniform may as well have been body armor, the way he wore it. Miller was the sort of man that could adapt quickly, and the way he schooled his expression back into a blank mask reminded Tom of that fact.

"Actually, you _can_ change it, if you truly want to," corrected Max. "The treatment they've been supplying your sister with isn't as effective as the treatment she _could_ be getting. It's been improved over the past ten years, yet your sister is still receiving the inferior treatment. Did the company tell you this?"

An undercurrent of wariness spoiled Miller's attempt to look relaxed. "What do I know about medicine? They don't discuss the details with the likes of me."

"The likes of you?" repeated Tom with interest. "So you feel some guilt for the line of work you're in?"

"Didn't say that," answered the other avatar coolly. "I just said the science folk don't talk about their methods with us hired guns, anymore than we discuss our combat strategies with them."

Tom smirked. "And why would they, if it meant you might catch onto the fact that you've been taken advantage of?"

"You know that for sure, do you?" challenged Miller. "You'll have to give me a good reason to take your word for it. I didn't just fall off the turnip truck."

"How about this for a good reason," supplied Max. He nodded at Tom. "You're looking at the man that _created_ the treatment to begin with. In fact, most of the Pandora-manufactured medical treatments people on Earth have been benefiting from over the past two decades are a result of this man's hard work and dedication. Dr. Sully knows the value of his own treatment and if he says your sister isn't getting the care she _could_ be getting, you'd be wise to believe him."

Miller looked up at Tom thoughtfully, narrowing his eyes. "Say I hypothetically go along with this. How exactly would you ensure that my sister gets her treatment? If the company is blocking medication like you've implied, they aren't likely to let you send the good stuff through, now are they?"

Max grimaced, but Tom wasn't concerned. "We have connections, Agent Miller. How do you think we found out so much about you? I have colleagues back on Earth that I can trust to get the treatment to your sister. I should know; they've been smuggling medicine under the UN's nose for years, treating people that can't afford the costs."

Max stared up at Tom, bug-eyed. "You're running a smuggling ring? When did _this_ happen?"

Tom glanced sidelong at the bio-engineer. "It's been happening for years, now. Do you really think I'd trust the people running the government to put the well-being of their citizens before profit? Big pharmacy isn't likely to change, no matter who's in charge of it. I set this up before my kids were even born, Max. People deserve treatment, no matter how rich or poor they are."

"But...why didn't you _tell_ me about this?" sputtered Max, completely forgetting they had an audience. "I'm your colleague _here_, on _Pandora_. I'm the one that organizes the trade with those people...don't you think I had the right to know I was helping you conduct illegal activity?"

"Because the less you knew, the better off you were," answered Tom calmly. "Plausible deniability, Max. You can't be held responsible for something you didn't know about."

"Well, I know about it now and it has to stop!"

Tom frowned at his friend and he knelt down to look him in the eye—inadvertently addressing him as a child. "Why did you come to Pandora, Max?"

"For the same reason _you_ did," answered Max incredulously. "To help people. You know that, Tom."

"And does your definition of 'people' include the poor?"

Max frowned. "You know better. How could you even ask me that?"

"Because you seem to have an issue with helping people access medication they otherwise can't get. Is an unjust law a fair one, Max?"

Max glanced at Miller. "You already know my answer to that question, Dr. Sully. I'm offended by what you're implying."

"Medicine shouldn't discriminate," Tom said stubbornly, "and if I have to slip under the UN's radar to ensure that—"

Miller cleared his throat, interrupting the argument. "Begging your pardon for interrupting your lover's spat, but can we get back to the subject at hand? I believe you ladies were trying to bribe me."

Tom straightened back up and combed his fingers through his hair, pushing back some loose strands that had fallen over his forehead. "Of course. Well, as you can see Mr. Miller, I have no compunctions about getting medicine to those in need of it. We can make that happen for your sister, if you cooperate with us. She could be cured within a year and you would be free to make your choices without that burden hanging over your head."

Miller sucked his teeth in thought and then he looked at Max. "And what about you, then? Can he even make that promise, without you opposing it?"

Max gave Tom one last look of annoyance before nodding. "I was prepared to pull whatever strings I had to in order to make this happen, but it seems my colleague already has that taken care of. If you'll give us the information we need, your sister will get full treatment as promised."

"And I'm to just take you at your word?" Miller smirked. "Not to mention, the word of a man I was sent to kill."

"We aren't liars," defended Max. "You're an observant man. Look into my eyes and tell me I'm lying."

"We took an oath in medicine," added Tom with a nod. "Regardless of what you tried to do to me, your sister deserves treatment like any other patient."

Miller looked back and forth between the two men. "Hmph. Well, the two of you at least _believe_ you're telling the truth, by my reckoning. What exactly do you want me to exchange for this favor of yours?"

Max's tension eased a bit. "We need a tour guide."

Miller frowned. "A tour guide."

"That's right," answered Tom. "We need someone who's been inside the RDA's secret base to give us all the details of the layout."

The prisoner smirked. "Are you planning to infiltrate the joint, then? What makes you think _I've_ got these details you want?"

"You've been there before," Max answered with confidence. "You can drop the act. We know you were transferred to Hell's Gate from there and told to wait for further instructions. We have our sources."

"Selfridge, you mean," guessed Miller. "I heard you had the little rat here somewhere. You don't _really_ believe he's on your side now, do you?"

"Parker has only ever been on his _own_ side," Max conceded. "That isn't likely to change and we all know it. Still, cooperating with us is currently in his best interest and I have no reason to believe he deliberately lied about you. So, what's it going to be, Agent? Can we make a deal or not?"

The prisoner regarded the two of them silently for a moment, his eyes and expression opaque. "Let me think about it for a while. Come back later."

Tom exchanged another glance with Max. "Don't take _too_ long, Agent Miller. Now that you're out of commission, your employers aren't likely to keep supplying your sister with her medication, even if it _is_ the outdated, cheaper treatment. They have no reason to."

"I'll keep that in mind." Miller made a shooing motion with his hands. "Run along now, lovebirds. I'll give you my answer later."

"Lovebirds?" Max pondered with a frown.

Tom ushered him to the door and waved one of the guards over to let them out. He glanced once over his shoulder at Miller as they left the man alone in his cell. The avatar operative appeared to be completely relaxed. He reclined on his cot again and threaded his fingers behind his head, staring up at the ceiling.

"We'll come back in a couple of hours," Tom informed the guards. "If he wants to talk to us before then, you can reach either of us on our satellite phones."

The guards promised to comply with the order and the two scientists left the top security holding area. Once they left the building and made it outside, Max sighed in relief. He looked up at his companion through the exopack he wore and he frowned unhappily.

"I feel dirty now. I think I'll go and have a shower."

Tom smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "You did fine, Max. You were convincingly appalled about the medicine smuggling. I think he bought it."

Max squinted against the sunlight and smirked wryly. "I didn't have to fabricate most of that, actually. I'm still disappointed that you waited until this morning to tell me about this smuggling ring of yours."

"I know," Tom said apologetically. "I just didn't want to get you involved. You've got enough on your plate and I knew you'd have ethical objections to it, even if you agreed with the purpose behind it."

"Then why tell me at all?"

Tom shrugged. "Because it's easier. If I hadn't told you about it, you would be splitting your head open trying to figure out a way to get the treatment to Bethany Miller without alerting the RDA. There's no 'legal' way to do that now, Max. Not while the chain of command and trade routes are so corrupted, anyway."

"Well, our plan seems to have worked," sighed Max. "With any luck, our friend will trust your word, now that he knows what you're willing to do to get medication to people."

"With any luck," agreed Tom. "If he doesn't give us something by this afternoon, Jake can try to convince him."

* * *

_Meanwhile, somewhere between the Thorny Mountain range and the Hallelujah Mountains:_

"Come on, where are you?"

Karyu searched every inch of sky, canopy and shadow around her, keeping an eye out for any sign of the ferocious sky predator. From what she knew of toruks, they were generally loners unless it was mating season and they were very territorial. There were no natural predators for the toruks to worry about. Their smaller ikran cousins tended to avoid them, except to defend their young or each other from attack. Aside from other toruks, the great predators had no enemies that could match them—save humans.

Karyu frowned and she pondered the possibility that UNEC or RDA goons could have passed through this way and killed the object of her search. As mighty as the toruks were, human manufactured bullets and explosives had a tendency to kill even the strongest Pandora life forms. What if the toruk allegedly spotted by her family in this area had died? She couldn't imagine it surrendering ground to an opponent. Toruks fought to the death over territory. She considered trying to come back later but the young huntress was pressed for time. Her family and clans folk would be traveling tomorrow and if she had a limited window to convince them that they needed her in this fight.

She was so absorbed in thoughts of someone killing her toruk before she could tame it that she almost failed to notice the shadow falling over her and her ikran. She looked up at the last moment and she knew what it was like to see her death looming over her.

* * *

While Savanna prepared to meet up with Kato's parents for lunch and cover for him and his sister, Baxter tracked down Dustin at the lab and dragged him off to an unused lab room for a private talk. When he explained the situation and asked the young man to get access to a Samson and pilot him around to look for Karyu, he was disappointed to be turned down. Dustin was clearly worried about Karyu as well but he wouldn't budge.

"Come on, man. Help me out, here. I wouldn't be asking you to do this if I wasn't really worried about her."

Dustin looked agonized, practically wringing his hands. "I'd love to help you Corporal Howell, but if I take a Samson without authorization now, I could end up incarcerated. You _know_ they have all flights grounded while we're preparing for this operation. Not even my Ma could get me out of it if I break protocol now."

Baxter ran his fingers through his hair and cursed. If Kato would have just agreed to let him ride double on his banshee, he wouldn't need to be there begging Dustin to break the rules on his behalf. "I know it's a lot to ask, but Karyu's your friend, right? Can't you try to convince your mom to give you clearance?"

"She won't give it to me without good reason," answered Dusty. "I understand your concern but I think you and Kato might be worrying too much. Just because she's mad about being kept out of the conflict doesn't mean she's going to run off and get herself killed. She's probably just clearing her thoughts."

"That's what Savanna hopes," sighed Baxter, "but Kato's worried and if he's worried, so am I. I don't want to get you in trouble, but I don't want Karyu getting hurt, either."

Dustin grimaced. "You're putting me in a really bad position, Baxter. Didn't Kato take his phone with him or something, so he can contact you when he finds her?"

"I gave him a transmitter," answered Howell. He pointed at the voice transmitter around his throat, just beneath his beaded choker. He tapped the earpiece secured to his right ear as well. "He's supposed to contact me the minute he has news, but I haven't heard anything yet."

"Trust him," suggested Dustin. His eyes stayed on the choker with quiet interest, but he didn't ask about it. "And trust _her_ too, for that matter. Those two have survived a lot worse than Karyu's angry impulses. He'll find her, calm her down and bring her back safe."

Baxter tried not to let his frustration get the better of him. He didn't want to turn into a nanny boyfriend—especially so soon in the relationship—but he could take her annoyance better than he could take her getting hurt or killed. "What if you're wrong about that?"

Dustin frowned in thought. "We'll give Kato until noon. If he doesn't contact you by then, I'll go to Ma and tell her what's happening."

Baxter winced, torn between loyalty as a soldier and loyalty to his girlfriend. If she found out he had search parties sent out looking for her, she'd never forgive him. "I didn't say you should tell her _exactly_ what's happening. Just make something up, so she'll let you take me out on one of the Samsons."

"I couldn't tell her _exactly_ what's happening anyhow," reasoned Dustin with a sympathetic little smile. "_You_ can't even tell me that. All you know is she left your quarters saying she had something to do and Kato thinks she went somewhere northwest. Besides, Ma isn't going to just let me take one of the tiltrotors by myself at a time like this, no matter what I say."

Baxter crossed his arms over his chest. "But if you get the General involved in it, you'll get Karyu's parents involved in it too. She'll dump me for sure."

"So you two _are_ together now," guessed the young scientist with a grin. "I didn't want to say anything, but the choker made me wonder."

Howell tugged self-consciously at the choker embracing his throat. It was a sensual reminder that Karyu had marked him as her man. "So you noticed that."

Dustin nodded. "Now I see why you're so worked up over Karyu stepping out at a time like this. I thought something was different but I wasn't sure until now."

Baxter sighed. "Hey, I don't want to over-react and I sure as _hell_ don't want her to think she can't go out of my sight without me calling out a search party. I wouldn't be asking you about this if I didn't have a good reason to be worried."

Dustin looked up at him thoughtfully and shrugged. "How about this: if it comes to getting our parents involved, I'll take full responsibility. I'll just say you came to me asking if I'd seen her and you mentioned that she was off doing something, and that she wouldn't tell you what it was. With what's going on here, it would be perfectly believable for me to get worried after a couple of hours and send someone to look for her."

The knot of dread and indecision in Baxter's gut loosened a little. "You think so?"

"I'm sure of it," answered Dustin with a nod. "I've rushed off to go look for my friends before when I thought they were in trouble. There's no reason for anyone to think it's weird for me to do it now. We can get people out looking for them without Karyu ever suspecting you were 'babysitting' her."

Baxter sighed. He was still getting to know Dustin Patel but he liked the guy and he appreciated his ability to find quick, rational solutions. "Thanks. I was a little worried after she left but I trusted her to take care of herself—until Kato showed up and started talking about her wrestling thanators."

Dustin smirked. "That's Karyu for you. Even though everybody knows she can usually take care of herself, she scares the hell out of us sometimes with her recklessness. Welcome to the club, Baxter."

The marine relaxed a little. "At least I know I'm not the only one."

Patience was getting hard to come by thoug. Every moment that ticked by without word from Kato made Baxter want to jump in a rover and drive it out of the base to look for Karyu from the ground. He touched the transmitter around his throat again, fighting the compulsion to contact Kato and demand a report.

* * *

Kato patted his ikran on the neck and apologized for being harsh with his commands. The beast was nervous because of his rider's anxiety feeding through the link, and Kato wasn't exactly synchronizing well with him.

"Steady, Talon," encouraged the young hunter. "I'll try to shape up, all right? I guess you and I need to get out together more, so I don't get rusty."

He wasn't being a total klutz, but he certainly wasn't flying as smoothly as he did a couple of months ago. He'd have plenty of practice soon, when the war parties moved out. Hopefully, he could iron out the kinks in his technique by the time they made it to the northern shorelines. How they would get everyone across the sea without relying on the Hell's Gate shuttles was a problem to be worked out later.

"Come on, Karyu," muttered Kato, scanning the horizon and vegetation below with narrowed eyes. "I know you're close."

He feared that his "telepathy" was off, tricked by his desperate need to believe his sister was safe from harm. Karyu had been through so many changes lately and she was a free spirit, at heart. She suppressed her nature and did her duties for the good of the clan and her mother, but Kato knew that her resentment was growing to a dangerous level.

As he thought of these things and kept a keen eye out for his twin, Kato wondered if he had been a good enough brother. Maybe he should have spoken out more strongly on her behalf. He felt like he'd failed Karyu and perhaps if he and his father had both been more vocal, Tanhi might have been swayed to change her mind. He was just so used to following his mother's lead. Tanhi was truly the head of the family and the rest of them tended to just instinctively fall in line when she decided something—even stubborn Karyu. Tom was the only one that had real influence on the chieftess, but Kato felt that he should have tried anyway.

"I wouldn't be out here looking for her, if _Sempul_ and I had worked together to convince _Sa'nok_ to let Sis join the fight," he said to his ikran, patting the animal again. "You're lucky all you have to worry about is where your next meal comes from, Talon. Well, that and being attacked by a hungry toruk or losing mating privileges to another male during nesting season. You get my meaning, though."

A crackle of static in his left ear startled Kato so badly that he almost steered his ikran into a small chunk of floating land. Talon wrestled control away from Kato with an indignant shriek, banking just in time to avoid hitting the earthen mass. "Shit! Sorry, boy. Maybe I should let you drive for a while, huh?"

Talon agreed with a warble. Kato grinned and he allowed the ikran free reign while he adjusted his transmitter. "Hello? Is someone there or am I just getting feedback?" He was getting closer to the Hallelujah Mountains, and while the transmitter he carried was an improved model, flux interference could still interfere with the reception.

The response was broken up, but the voice was easily recognized. "…Howler…copy?"

"Yeah, I copy you, Bax," answered Kato. "I'm getting a lot of interference. Do you copy?"

"Understood." Baxter's voice drifted between military professionalism and worry. "Have you…any sign…Karyu?"

Kato sighed, reminding himself to have patience with his friend. The man was in love and unable to come look for Karyu himself. "Nothing yet. I told you I'd contact you the moment I—"

"Out of the way! _Move it_!"

The sudden shout from somewhere behind and above him sufficiently interrupted Kato's response and he looked over his shoulder with wide eyes.

"Uh, I found Karyu," he said to the transmitter.

His sister was bearing down on him with narrowed eyes, with a frozen expression of concentration and grimly compressed lips. Her green and violet ikran looked a bit panicked and Kato understood why when a monstrous shadow blotted out the sun. Chasing his sister was a huge young toruk.

"Kato? Kato, respond!"

He couldn't grant Baxter's wish, because he had only seconds to get out of the way. Kato banked sharply to the left and he shouted Karyu's name as she dove past him. The toruk was focused on her and it hardly took notice of the male twin as it followed Karyu in hot pursuit. The gust of wind from the creature's passing put Kato and his mount off-balance, and it took him a moment to begin pursuit.

"I've got to cut this short, Baxter," Kato said to the transmitter as he tried to catch up with his sister.

"You found...she okay?"

"I'll explain later," answered the hunter.

He turned off the transmitter then, unwilling to devote concentration to answering Howell's questions when his sister was in such danger. He urged Talon to top speed and he gave chase. Karyu was weaving from side to side on her ikran, barely evading the predator that seemed intent on devouring her for lunch. Kato reached for the bola looped on his harness and he readied it, quickly formulating a plan to slow down the toruk's pursuit without causing it lasting harm.

"Hang on, Karyu!"

He couldn't possibly _throw_ the device at the toruk and expect it to hit—not while in flight. He had a different idea, however. His twin's evasive maneuvers slowed down both hers and the toruk's velocity. Kato predicted that if he flew straight and caught up with the animal, he could get ahead of it. He conveyed his desires to his ikran and Talon faithfully complied, pushing for greater speed. He climbed in altitude so that he was flying over the distracted Toruk and once he outdistanced it, he descended and began to twirl his bola. He had to twist awkwardly to aim behind him, but the trajectory of the bola didn't need to be perfect. When he was confident that he could at least hit the general area of his target, he loosed the object and sent it spinning through the air at the screeching toruk.

It pelted the animal's shoulder and got caught on the right wing's foretalon.

"_Yes!_" cried Kato in triumph as the animal wobbled in the air and paused to hover, wings flapping furiously. It didn't cripple the creature's flight enough to make it crash to the rugged land below, but it created enough of a handicap and a distraction to slow it down.

Kato joined his sister, who had stopped her egress and was hovering a short distance away. She looked as surprised to see him as he had been to see her diving at him. It dawned on him that perhaps in her mad race to escape the toruk, she hadn't recognized him when she first saw him. Instead of a warm greeting and heartfelt thanks, the young woman chewed him out.

"Kato! What the _hell_ do you think you're doing?"

He dared a glance over his shoulder at the toruk—which was stubbornly maintaining altitude while it worked on shaking the annoying bola off its wing talon. "Saving you from seeing your last shadow?" He turned back to her, his heart pounding and his adrenaline pumping. "You can argue that you had it all under control later, Sis. Let's dive under the canopy and ditch this guy while we've got the chance!"

"No." Her fey features were resolute and determined as she shook her head. The beads woven into her braids clattered together in the wind. "I'm not trying to escape it! I want to lead it to an open area, where I can challenge it."

Kato was sure that the only things keeping his eyes from rolling out of his head were the lenses on his wind visor headband. "What the hell _for_?"

She looked into his eyes across the distance and he saw the answer in her gaze. Kato shook his head. "Karyu, no! I'll talk to _Sempul_ and together, we'll convince _Sa'nok_ to let you come with us. Getting yourself killed won't solve anything!"

"We _need_ the _Toruk Makto_, Kato," reminded the young woman with a nod at the toruk. Soon it would be rid of the bola and it wasn't likely to just leave them alone. "If I can do this, _Sa'nok_ won't be able to refuse me the right to fight with our people and the clans will be more willing to cooperate with Hell's Gate. We'll get our forces across the sea a lot easier if they can be convinced to let the humans help!"

"Then let Uncle Jake do it!" pleaded the young man desperately, shooting another anxious look at the toruk. "He's got experience with this kind of thing!"

"His heart isn't in it," Karyu hollered back passionately. She put a hand over her chest and held his eyes with her own. "Mine _is_! Either help me or get out of my way, _Tsmukan_."

Kato couldn't refuse her...not with the soulful, desperate way she was staring at him. He understood why she felt she needed to do this and he honestly couldn't dispute her logic. Becoming _Toruk Makto_ would allow her to help protect the People and make it difficult for the council to oppose her choice in mates. He couldn't say for sure that he wouldn't do the same thing, if he were in her position.

Kato took a deep breath and prayed to Eywa that this wouldn't be the last time he and his sister worked a strategy together. "I'd rather be playing baseball," he grumbled, bracing himself for what was to come.

* * *

_Approximately an hour later, at Hell's Gate:_

Lunch was over and Savanna was just finishing up helping to stack leaf plates and wrap uneaten food to be made into _nikt'chey_ later. The Na'vi wasted nothing and she reminded herself each time she assisted in tasks like this that she should be lest wasteful. She keenly felt Tanhi's sidelong stare as she worked and she flushed under the scrutiny, consumed with guilt over fibbing to her mother-in-law.

"You are not telling us something," Tanhi murmured when the young man helping them took some plates away to store. "Karyu is willful, but she is devoted to her family. She would not miss a family meal and visit, so close to time for us to go our separate ways. My daughter convinced you to hide something from me, yes? And her brother is helping her."

Savanna was expecting the sharp-minded woman to get suspicious, but she was surprised by just how well she knew her offspring. She glanced at the chieftess and she immediately faltered when the unwavering golden eyes held hers. There was no way Savanna would be able to look Tanhi in the eye and tell her a blatant lie. The best she could do was avoid telling the complete truth.

"I...I really _don't_ know where they are." She could at _least_ say that honestly. "But I can't lie to you, _Olo'eyktan_. Karyu was very upset last night and she was gone when we woke up this morning. She didn't leave a note or anything telling us where she was going and Kato decided to go find his ikran and look for her, just to be sure she's safe."

Tanhi narrowed her eyes and looked off at the distance, where the skyline met the treetops. "It is foolish of her to go off on her own at a time like this. Our allies here have captured the traitors they knew of, true, but more could be out there. Kato has not contacted you since he left?"

Savanna shook her head and chewed her lip with worry. "No, not yet."

Tom came up behind Savanna and he overheard the last part of the conversation. "So our daughter took off somewhere without telling anyone or taking a companion hunter with her for safety." He sighed and shook his head. "This is just what we need."

Tanhi considered the situation for a moment and she motioned for one of the ikran warriors to come to her side. "I will go," she decided. "I will find them both and bring them back, and then I will forbid them from leaving the company of our clansfolk again until morning."

Savanna's eyes widened and though she knew it wasn't her place, she thought Tanhi's plan of action could only make things worse. Before she could open her mouth, Tom stepped in and calmly suggested an alternative of his own.

"I think you're being too hasty," he reasoned in a low voice. He waved the ikran hunter away, asking him in Na'vi to give them a moment. The hunter glanced at Tanhi and when she compressed her lips and gave a nod of agreement, he turned away and went back to stringing his bow.

"What do you suggest, Tom?" Tanhi propped her hand on her hips. "We cannot indulge Karyu's temper tantrum. She wishes to be treated as a woman, yet she acts as a child."

Tom's mouth twitched briefly into a frown but whatever he was feeling, he quickly reined it in. "I'm not suggesting we 'indulge' anything. I'm suggesting you give her brother a chance to find her and talk to her. We're asking a lot of her and I don't think you going after her and dragging her back here will improve anything. She resents us enough and she could do a lot worse than fly off for some alone time."

Tanhi wavered and Savanna took an uncertain step back, feeling like an intruder. The powerful chieftess gazed up at her mate, looking as though she had an argument on her lips that just wouldn't come out.

"You know our daughter," Tanhi murmured finally, not _quite_ giving in. "Even the best tracker has little chance of finding her, when Karyu does not wish to be found."

Tom nodded and pushed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "That's true, but Kato's more than a tracker; he's her brother. Our kids have never been able to hide from each other for long, Tanhi. Please, just trust both of them to take care of themselves and trust Kato to help her work through this anger she's feeling."

Tanhi sighed and ran her fingers through her tightly braided mane. She looked at Savanna and sucked her teeth in thought, and then she nodded at the girl. "What do you think, daughter?"

Savanna blinked, as surprised by Tanhi addressing her as 'daughter' as she was to be asked her opinion on the matter. "M-me?"

"You are Kato's mate," reminded Tanhi. "You are Karyu's closest friend. You know them both in ways that Tom and I can never know them. I want to hear your opinion."

The young artist wished she had her mother's steel nerves or her father's eloquence. She swallowed, hoping she could answer the _olo'eyktan_ without insulting her. "Well, I'm not sure how much help _my_ opinion will be, but I'm sure Kato will find her soon and call me. He seemed so certain of which direction to go."

Tanhi mulled it over and exhaled slowly, turning to Tom. "They have one hour to contact one of you. I will wait no longer than that."

* * *

He couldn't take the waiting any longer. He had tried several times to get a response from the transmitter after that last, confusing message from Kato. Either the flux was too heavy to get through, the transmitter unit wasn't working or something terrible had happened. All Howell had to go by was that last response from his friend, and it didn't leave him with a good feeling at all. Clouds were starting to migrate in and weather reports predicted rain.

Rather than wait around impotently worrying, he did what any good marine would do: he acted. Baxter geared up in full uniform and left his quarters. He hopped a ride on a passing transport rover and he thanked the soldiers for the lift when they dropped him off at the Avatar compound. With so many Na'vi warriors and family nearby at all times, Tom no longer required the bodyguard services of Hell's Gate security—but he had adopted Baxter in their time together, in a manner of speaking. As such, the young operative hated the thought of lying to him and he grimaced inwardly, hoping the doc wouldn't ask if he'd seen his daughter today.

As he approached the big avatar lodge on the western end of the compound, Baxter recognized Tom, Tanhi and Savanna standing outside by the extinguished fire pit. Neytiri was off near the trees with Jake, discussing something with that grouchy Emazu character. Baxter forced a smile and he waved as Savanna spotted him and called out. He picked up the pace and jogged the rest of the distance, thankful for the shades that hid his eyes from view. Darren always said his eyes were too honest; that was how he always managed to tell when Bax was trying to bluff in a poker game.

"Hey Sav. Hi Doc…Ma'am." Baxter gave Tanhi a respectful nod as he came to a stop and greeted them all. "How's the day going for you? Wrapping everything up okay?"

"We are prepared to go at first light," Tanhi answered. She glanced at her mate sidelong. "Unless we fail to find something important."

Baxter frowned over her grim tone and meaningful look. "You lost something?"

Karyu was already pushing her luck, taking off to arm wrestle a thanator—or _whatever_ she was up to. If something else had gone wrong, it would only make things worse for her—unless Kato managed to get her back before anyone knew she was missing.

Tom spoke before Tanhi could. "It's probably nothing." His eyes scanned the marine curiously. "You look like you must be busy. Everything's okay, isn't it?"

Realizing it must look a little suspicious for him to come visiting in full uniform, Baxter remembered his contingency plan. "Nothing to worry about, Doc. Security's been tightened but they don't want to make a spectacle of it. We're trying to get this done without making a big, public deal of it, you know? I just came by on my break to see Kato." He looked around. "Is he here somewhere?"

Savanna gave him an odd look and for a moment, he feared she would say something she shouldn't say. She seemed to catch herself, glancing at Tanhi warily. "Kato's with Karyu right now. They're out…hunting."

Baxter was a little surprised at the simplistic excuse; but sometimes the simpler things were easier to believe. The way Tom and Tanhi nodded in agreement was proof of that. "Oh. Right. Hunting."

He winced inwardly at his own response, realizing he sounded like a dope. Baxter scratched his head around the rim of his cap and shifted uncomfortably. "Well, I guess I'll get in touch with him when he gets back. Uh, Sav…can I talk to you for a minute? You know, about that thing we were going to do?"

Tom lifted a brow and Tanhi looked between the two young people curiously. She lacked her mate's restraint and she asked the question that Tom was too polite to ask himself. "What thing is this you are speaking of? I hope the twins don't intend to do something foolish before we leave."

Baxter almost laughed. The woman knew her kids; that was for sure. He bit back a chuckle and reminded himself that the situation as it stood was no laughing matter. He could get his chuckles after his girl and his friend returned safely. Unfortunately, his mind went blank when he tried to think of some explanation to give the chieftess. Savanna made the save, quickly fabricating an excuse while Baxter stood there slack-jawed.

"We're having our friends over after dinner," supplied the hybrid with a quick, warning glance at the tall marine. "You know, a last get-together before everyone has to go. Baxter and I thought it might cheer Karyu up."

Tom looked at Baxter, his eyes seeming to pierce through the concealment of the shades. "Won't that be nice."

Feeling distinctly uncomfortable, Baxter applied a bit of his "soldier face" in the hopes that he wouldn't give anything away. "Well, it was Savanna's idea. You know me though; any excuse for a party."

The biologist's lips quirked. "Just try not to overdo it. You may not need to deploy for another day but Kato doesn't travel well on a hangover."

Baxter nodded. "I'll keep that in mind, Sir. Savanna, want to walk with me for a minute so we can work out the details? I'm kind of in a hurry."

She agreed readily, her hazel eyes questioning on him as he led her away from the lodge.

* * *

"I've got to hand it to you; when it comes to making up stories on the spot, you're good."

Savanna pouted at the marine walking beside her. "Don't be too sure about that. They know Karyu is missing because I couldn't look Tanhi in the eye and lie to her when she asked me a direct question. I didn't say anything about the two of you, but I told her Karyu left early this morning and Kato went to find her."

Baxter stopped so abruptly that Savanna took three steps before she realized he wasn't beside her any longer. "_What_? They _know_? Why the hell didn't you just _tell_ me that and save us both some trouble?"

She turned around and shrugged sheepishly, biting her lip. "Because they don't know that _you_ know. Don't you think it would have raised some uncomfortable questions, if Tanhi knew that you know her daughter took off on her own this morning?"

Baxter frowned and took his sunglasses off to wipe at his eyes. "You've been taking logic lessons from Karyu."

Savanna managed a little smile. "Well, it's true. How would you like to explain to her mother how you know she took off at the crack of dawn? You came into the camp pretending to look for Kato and I had to think of something quick and go along with it. Why _did_ you come to the Avatar compound, anyway?"

"To talk to you," answered Howell. He looked around and compressed his lips, stuffing his sunglasses into his breast pocket. "Have you heard anything from Kato or Karyu since he left to go find her? Anything at all?"

Savanna shook her head and a sinking feeling grew in the pit of her stomach. "Nothing yet. I'm trying not to worry."

He hesitated. "Maybe I should just—"

"Oh, no you don't!" Savanna grabbed his arm and tugged, digging her heals into the earth as if she could succeed in anchoring him to the spot. "You aren't going anywhere until you tell me what you almost just said!"

"Wow." Baxter's eyebrows furrowed. "The women in the Sully clan are way too sharp."

"You gave yourself away," she insisted. "Now tell me what you came here to say, Howell."

He took a slow breath. "Okay. I came to ask you to try and convince your friend Dustin to take me out in a Samson to look for the twins. Kato contacted me before lunch and from what I could get out of the broken up transmission, he may have found Karyu."

She brightened a little. "He did?"

"I think so. We got cut off though and he sounded pretty tense. I tried to wait, Sav, but I just can't do it. I can't get back in touch with him and if _you_ haven't heard anything either, I'm worried. I don't have the clearance to take a bird under the security restrictions but your friend Dustin might be able to pull some strings, if someone can convince him to try."

Savanna grimaced. "Dusty? I don't know; he already hijacked a Samson once when the volcano erupted last year. He could get into serious trouble if he does something like that again."

"That's what he told me when I went to him," sighed Baxter, "Look, I don't want to get the kid in trouble, but I don't want to lose the twins, either. How do you think Dustin would feel if something happened to them that he could have helped prevent? He'll listen to you, Savanna. He's your best friend besides the twins, right?"

"Well yes," she agreed uncomfortably, "but I don't want to use our friendship to make him do what I want. That would be coercive, wouldn't it?"

"Uh, not unless you give him an ultimatum," argued Baxter. "I'm not asking you to tell him: 'do this for me or I'll never speak to you again'. I just want you to ask him. I know you're at _least_ as worried as I am and I'm sure Dustin will be to, if you explain how serious this is. He probably thinks I'm just an over-protective boyfriend."

Savanna smiled wistfully up at the marine, empathizing with him completely. "I know. I'm worried too but I think you should know that Tanhi plans to go out looking for them in an hour, if we don't hear something. We don't need to bully Dusty into stealing a tiltrotor and risking jail or probation, okay?"

Baxter relaxed a little. "I can't say I'm thrilled to hear their mother knows, but I feel a little better knowing someone's going to go look for them soon."

"So do I," confessed Savanna. "And it's a load off my shoulders to not have to cover for them. Tanhi may give them an earful but I'm too worried to care. By the way, it was smart of you not to wear the choker Karyu made for you. One look at that and my mother-in-law would have known something's going on with you two."

"I didn't want to give the chieftess a reason to roast me," agreed Baxter. "I'll worry about how I'm going to get Tanhi's approval to date her daughter later. Right now I just want confirmation that my girl and your husband are both safe."

Savanna couldn't resist making a teasing observation. "It's probably a good thing Karyu isn't going to be in the RDA fight. For a guy that says he knows his girlfriend can take care of herself, you sure get worked up over the thought of her being in danger."

He frowned at her. "You think I can't put personal feelings aside when there's a job to be done? Listen, Sweet-cheeks, I can prioritize. I sure as hell wasn't thinking about girls when the Nova started breaking up and Ellis and I were—"

"Don't be so sensitive!" Savanna patted his arm soothingly. "I was just trying to lighten the mood with a little joke. I guess I touched on a sore spot."

He looked properly shamed. "Sorry for snapping at you like that. I guess I'm just tense and you're not totally wrong. I've got a protective nature and it's gotten me in trouble before."

"Well, sometimes everyone needs a guard dog," reasoned Savanna with a smile. She patted his arm again. "They never would have assigned you to guard my father-in-law if you weren't a good soldier."

He looked down at the ground and smiled, somewhat bashfully. "I won't turn down flattery from a pretty girl. Well, I guess there's nothing else we can do right now and I need something to take my mind off Karyu. I'm going to go see if there's any work I can do around here before my scheduled shift. Call me the minute you know something, will you?"

"I've got your number," she agreed, patting the little pouch at her hip. "And you call me if _you_ hear anything too, okay?"

"Will do."

Baxter started to take his shades back out of his pocket but upon looking up at the clouds rolling in, he changed his mind. Thunder rumbled in the distance and he and Savanna shared another frown of concern. He looked at his watch and sighed. "I'm probably going to be calling you in about forty-five minutes if we don't hear something, Sav."

She looked at the darkening horizon to the west and she nodded when she saw some lightning flicker in the clouds. "Yeah, I think that would be…wait a minute." She frowned and stared into the distance. A break in the clouds allowed the sun through and Savanna was forced to shade her eyes. She squinted uncertainly, able to make out something flying towards Hell's Gate from the general direction of the mountains far in the distance.

"What's up?" Baxter asked.

"Shh," admonished Savanna. "I'm trying to see something!"

"And you can't see and talk at the same time?" His voice was amused. "What's the matter, Savanna?"

She pointed. "Look there on the horizon. Can you make out what that is? Does it look like a pair of banshees to you?"

He looked in the direction she pointed. The sun went back behind a cloud, casting the land into shadow again. More lightning flickered in the distance, just behind the figures flying in from the west. Savanna looked from the sky to Baxter hopefully, wondering if she was right. His jade eyes widened and he shook his head slowly, making her heart sink.

"No way."

Savanna blinked and looked back at the sky. "What?"

Baxter dug through the pockets of his fatigues and produced a small pair of long-range military issue binoculars. "Hold it a sec, I need to be sure I'm seeing what I think I'm seeing."

Unsure of whether she was intrigued or frightened now, Savanna waited tensely while the marine adjusted the vision device and peered through it. When his mouth went slack and his expression went blank with shock, she looked anxiously back at the distant figures.

"Baxter, what _is_ it? Are they ikrans or aren't they?"

He lowered the binoculars, his expression unchanging. "You're half right. Shit…I've got to go tell Dr. Sully!"

Savanna blinked and stood there helplessly as the marine took off at a run back toward the cabin. "_How-well! _What did you _see_?"

He didn't answer or stop his charge, leaving her there at the edge of the compound alone. Knowing she had no chance of catching up with the marine's longer stride, Savanna checked the figures in the distance again and tried to make out more details. They were closer now and she could see that the one on the right was much bigger than the one on the left. She frowned, thinking that her eyes were surely playing tricks on her. She looked back in the direction of the lodge, searching for Baxter. He was already out of sight; swallowed up by the trees lining the path that led to the cabin.

If she was fast enough to catch up, she might get there to hear him tell Tom what he saw that got him so freaked out.

* * *

"Doctor Sully! Doctor Sully!"

Baxter ran full-speed into the encampment. His cap fell off his head to be left behind on the ground by the oblivious soldier. He saw blurred faces and wide, curious eyes as he sped past visiting Na'vi hunters. He muttered apologies as he dodged and weaved between people. He looked this way and that, anxious to warn the twins' father of what he'd seen coming from the west. He recognized Neytiri's face as he blew past her and he muttered a hasty greeting before calling out again for the object of his search.

"Tom, you're not going to believe what I've—"

Baxter saw the good doctor's black and white t-shirt…up close. Tom stepped directly into his path as his head was turned and Howell didn't see him until he was right on top of him. He tried to stop but the biologist seemed to have materialized out of thin air, like an animal jumping in front of a car at night. Baxter crashed into the older man and the best he could do as they went down was to twist his body so that he ended up beneath Tom, breaking his fall. Through no fault of his own, Dr. Sully's elbow drove into Baxter's solar plexus. If the impact of the ground hadn't knocked the breath out of him, the painful jab of the elbow would have.

Tom swore abruptly as he sprawled on top of the younger male. His clan-folk and brother surrounded the two of them as he and Baxter tried to sort out whose limbs belonged to whom.

"Jesus Tom…you're still one of the most accident-prone people I've ever met," Jake commented from somewhere off to the left.

Tom blinked in disorientation as Baxter rolled to the side and caught his breath. The marine gasped an apology to his victim, trying to catch his breath and find his voice. Whatever offense Tom felt over being knocked over vanished when he saw the way Howell was clutching his stomach.

"Are you all right, Baxter? Here, let me help you sit up." Tanhi joined the crowd and she went to her mate's side to help him. Tom assured her softly that he was okay and he helped Baxter into a sitting position.

"Take it easy," advised the biologist. "Just take a few slow, deep breaths. You came flying through here like a bat out of hell, son."

Baxter took his advice and gave him and Tanhi a mortified little grin of apology as he recovered. "I'm okay," he assured them. "Man, I'm so sorry for plowing you down like that, Doc. You just popped up out of nowhere and I couldn't stop."

"That's all right," Tom grunted as he got to his feet. He put an arm around Tanhi's waist as she steadied him. "Like Jake says: I tend to attract accidents."

Jake was grinning as he stepped forward and offered Baxter a hand up. "So what's all the shouting about, anyway?"

Remembering what he'd seen in the distance, Baxter turned to face Tom and Tanhi. "You know how the twins went out hunting?"

Tom and Tanhi exchanged a covert look. "Yes. What about it?"

Baxter thought it was useless to try and water down the truth, after what he'd confirmed with his binoculars. "About that…they didn't go hunting after all."

Tanhi narrowed her eyes. "How do you know this?"

Baxter cringed inside like a whipped dog. The fathers were usually the ones to watch out for when dating a girl, but in this case it was different. "Um…yeah, well when Savanna and I went off to talk about her idea to get everyone together tonight, we saw—"

"Dr. Sully! _Olo'eyktan_ Tanhi!" Savanna burst through the crowd, panting with exertion and wide-eyed. "You…you have to come see! You aren't going to believe it!"

"What's the matter?" Tom looked his daughter-in-law up and down to be sure she was okay. "What do you want us to see?"

"It's the twins! One of them is Jake!" She pointed at the former Omaticaya chieftain, who raised his eyebrows and looked around like a man accused of theft.

Tom gave his brother a comical glance of confusion before attempting to calm Savanna down. "Yes, Jake and I are twins. Savanna honey, did anyone offer you something strange with your lunch?"

"I'm not delusional!" insisted the hybrid. "And with all due respect, you and your brother aren't the twins I'm talking about."

Jake scratched his head. "Okay, I'm confused."

Norm had just come out of the cabin with Ni'nat and he made her way to Jake's side with a frown. "What's going on?"

Jake shrugged and frowned in perplexity as he scratched his chin. "According to Savanna, one of the twins turned into me."

Norm stared at Jake. "Say that again?"

Jake shrugged. "Okay, but it's not going to make more sense the second time."

"Okay look," Baxter said, trying to resist the urge to giggle hysterically. "Sav doesn't mean it _literally_. Turns out one of the twins has—"

"_Olo'eyktan,_" called one of the Ikran huntresses from somewhere behind the main body of the crowd. "You must come! _Toruk Makto!_"

Tanhi gave Tom one confused look before approaching the huntress. "_Mawey,_ _Tsmuk._"

Jake stepped forward, thinking the huntress was calling for him. "What's the matter?"

The huntress tried to calm down and be respectful, but she caught hold of Tanhi's arm and began to drag her away nonetheless. "Come! Look to where the sun falls, Tanhi!"

Poor Tanhi stumbled behind her clan sister, trying to retain her dignity. Emazu followed with frowning curiosity, quietly muttering speculations with one of the hunters that had come with he and the others on the visit. Jake, Tom and Neytiri all looked at Baxter questioningly before following behind the Ikran leader and her clan sister. Others followed suite and Baxter exchanged a look of mixed excitement and trepidation with Savanna before joining them.

"Did you see what I saw?" Savanna asked him as she hastened to match his longer stride.

Baxter looked down at her and nodded tensely. "If what you saw was a great leonopteryx, yeah."

Sav visibly gulped. "That's what I saw, too."

Behind them, Norm and Ni'nat overheard and they came to an abrupt halt, wide-eyed. Baxter and Savanna kept going, oblivious to the stunned couple.

* * *

Tanhi's demands seemed to fall on deaf ears as her clan-mate practically dragged her out to the more open area close to the street, away from the shade of the trees. The huntress pointed frantically at the horizon, shrieking about toruk riders. Tanhi was tempted to slap some sense into the younger woman. Clearly, she was not yet mature enough to go far from home and see new things. She was two years older than the twins, yet she lacked their fortitude.

"If you do not calm down and stop dragging me, I will use force," Tanhi warned the huntress, snatching her arm out of her grasp. "Now speak clearly and stop shouting!"

Tom caught up with them and he was staring at the skies to the west, unblinking. "Tanhi, look to the horizon."

Hearing the note of awe in his voice, she did as he advised. The chieftess stiffened, her eyes going wide as she finally saw what drove the huntress to near hysterics and crippled Savanna's speech capabilities. Flying toward the base at low altitude were three animals. Two were ikrans but the third was a toruk. One of the ikrans flew beside the toruk in the lead and the other followed behind. Tanhi was able to recognize the color patterns on the two banshees and she slowly shook her head, unable to tear her eyes away. The backdrop of ominous clouds and flashing lightning intensified the dramatic moment.

"It cannot be," protested Tanhi softly.

And yet, it was. The two riders and their animal companions began to descend as they approached the base. The guards manning the turrets lowered their sentry guns when they had visual confirmation that the animals had Na'vi companions. Tanhi ignored the excited exclamations all around her and she stepped forward as the two riders broke formation and descended into the compound. The ikran that had been following them flew away into the forest, wanting nothing to do with the crowd of humans, Na'vi and avatars waiting below. Tanhi approached as the animals landed a few yards in front of her. She had her confirmation of the rider as soon as the toruk folded his wings.

"You willful child," hissed Tanhi as Karyu dismounted the great beast and patted its neck. "What do you hope to accomplish with this?"

The emotions of anger, pride and relief warred within the Ikran chieftess and she glared at Karyu. She was angry with her for being so reckless and rebellious, but she was proud beyond measure to see that her daughter was the next _Toruk Makto_. Such a thing happening twice in as many generations was unheard of. She was relieved that Karyu was in one piece—save for some bruising and cuts. An examination of Kato as he dismounted his ikran confirmed that he too only suffered some minor, superficial injuries.

"_Sa'nok_," Karyu said boldly, approaching her mother with confident steps and a level stare. No longer a child, she moved with the grace of a woman and the wind stirred her long braids. "I did this because I was _meant_ to. You want me to be the strongest leader I can be? This is the way." She looked over her shoulder and nodded at the toruk.

Jake blew a low whistle. "So _that's _what Savanna meant when she said one of you turned into me."

Neytiri shushed him and he wisely lapsed into silence.

Tanhi's glare didn't falter. She and Karyu were locked in a challenging stare as Tom approached and checked the twins out for wounds. The biologist's hands were shaking as he gave both of them a quick examination and he sputtered helplessly, trying to understand how this happened.

"Karyu...you...he...it's a toruk."

Karyu nodded, still holding Tanhi's gaze with her own. "Yes _Sempul_. It's a toruk. His name is Dragon."

"But..._how_? What made you decide to go out and...you could have been _killed_!"

"I'm standing here, aren't I?" Karyu smirked. "Kato helped a little."

Tanhi drew a deep breath, her eyes flicking to Kato. He winced and looked as though he wanted to hide behind his sister—which was amusing considering her slight frame wouldn't have offered much concealment for his taller, bulkier form.

"What is done is done," Tanhi finally said, clinging to patience and forcing her anxiety down. "It is enough that you both survived to tell the tale. Karyu, what you did was very reckless, but brave. Our people will surely look up to you as never before. They will respect your leadership while I am away."

"They'll have to respect it from afar," insisted Karyu, her stiff poise suggesting she was braced for battle. "I'm coming with the war parties to end the RDA threat to our people, Mother. You said it yourself; to lead is to protect. That's _exactly_ what I'm going to do."

"No. You are to go to the village and lead with Meuia."

Karyu narrowed her eyes and parted her lips to argue further, but Meuia spoke before she could. The _tsahik_ came up beside Tanhi and gave her a respectful yet firm reminder. "Karyu is _Toruk Makto_ now, _Olo'eyktan_. She belongs to _all_ the People; not just our clan. The duty of _Toruk Makto_ is to—"

"I know what _Toruk Makto_ is meant to do," snapped Tanhi, flushing with anger. "But Karyu's first duty is to her clan!"

Meuia shook his head slowly and insisted. "Not anymore, Tanhi. You know this. _Toruk Makto_ is a living symbol of hope for all Na'vi, to unite us and stir our blood in a time of need. This _is_ a time of need and no matter how much we dislike it, Karyu has earned her status, with the approval of the Great Mother."

He leaned closer to her and lowered her voice, his final words for her ears alone. "Would you defy _Eywa_ herself to have your way, Tanhi?"

She stared at him and a war raged on inside of her. The spiritual leader was right, she knew. Still, Tanhi's unrelenting devotion to her clan made it difficult for her to see past their need for a leader. Should both she and Karyu perish in battle, the Ikran clan would be without a leader until the Council could agree on an initiate someone else. Tanhi truly believed her daughter would make one of the greatest _Olo'eyktans_ the Ikran clan had ever seen. As rude as she could sometimes be, the girl's "take no bullshit" attitude proved to be a great asset in leading the clan.

The crowd was utterly silent as mother and daughter locked stares. Finally, Tanhi admitted defeat and she shut her eyes, sighing. She approached her daughter and laid her hands on her slim shoulders, looking into her eyes intently.

"You have chosen a path you cannot stray far from, Karyu. I hope you are prepared for where it will take you."

Karyu gave her a tentative smirk. "Being unprepared never stopped me before. Some choices have to be mine, _Sa'nok_. I'll deal with the consequences if I'm wrong."

Tanhi nodded stiffly, feeling brittle inside. She turned and walked away, not trusting herself to speak further with the young woman.

"_Sa'nu_?"

The soft call betrayed more emotion than Karyu probably wanted and Tanhi's first instinct was to turn back and comfort her child. She could not, though. She didn't know how to offer Karyu anything constructive in her current emotional state.

* * *

Baxter saw the heartbroken look in his lover's eyes when Tanhi turned her back on her and he reacted as his nature dictated. He immediately went to Karyu and tried to distract her, smiling broadly at her with amazement and relief he couldn't contain.

"_You_ are crazy," he said to her, remembering at the last minute not to embrace her in front of everyone. He looked at the toruk in the background—which regarded the crowd a bit warily. The animal faithfully waited for Karyu to instruct him, though he surely didn't want to be there.

Kato grinned at the marine as he returned Savanna's enthusiastic embrace. "Nobody had guts like my _tsmuk_."

Karyu stared after her mother's retreating form for a moment before giving Baxter a trembling little smile. The gaggle of humans, Na'vi and avatars that had witnessed the whole thing were beginning to disperse reluctantly, eyeing the great toruk she'd captured with amazement. She glanced over her shoulder at her new mount before looking back at him. "So, what do you think?"

More lightning flashed in the overcast skies as she looked at him again, creating a fitting background for her. All Baxter could think of at that moment was how wild and beautiful she looked, with that fearsome creature waiting behind her and the jagged webs of lightning highlighting her sleek form.

"I think you're the best thing I've ever seen in my life." He took both of her hands in his and stared into her eyes sincerely, forgetting that they had a broad audience. He also failed to notice Karyu's mother coming back up the path.

Beside his twin, Kato loosened his hold on Savanna and muttered a warning to the marine. "Cool it, Bax. People are watching."

Baxter flushed and he winced at the flash of alarm and frustration on Karyu's face. He quickly tried to cover up his lapse. "I mean, you two could have both been killed," he improvised, tearing his eyes off his girlfriend to give her brother a weak grin. "You had me worried."

"What are friends for?" Karyu answered through clenched teeth and a fake smile. "But we're both okay, so you can stop worrying."

* * *

Tanhi was brought up short by the way the young marine so passionately expressed his delight to see her daughter alive and safe. He also expressed relief on Kato's part, but she was no fool. She saw the way he tried to cover it up and mask the devotion in his eyes when he looked at Karyu. The nagging suspicions that she had been purposely trying to ignore were proving to be correct. Despite her efforts to steer Karyu's interest toward Na'vi males, she evidently shared Tanhi's weakness for avatar men.

Tom came up behind her and he laid his hands on her shoulders, squeezing gently. He spoke into her ear in a low voice, giving her the final confirmation of her fears. "They love each other. You can see that, can't you?"

The chieftess frowned and narrowed her eyes at Howell, her lips pulling back from her teeth instinctively. Tom's hands squeezed her shoulders more firmly; almost enough to hurt. His voice betrayed a sense of urgency as he spoke again.

"Tanhi, not now. Please, if you feel like you have to fight this, wait until after we've settled things with this RDA base. I'm begging you; don't go into this conflict with hard feelings between yourself and our daughter. Your approval means everything to her and you know it. Don't abuse that power."

"But...he is..." she gestured at Baxter, who was wearing one of those open smiles that made him so charming. There was no denying he was a treat to the eyes—Tanhi wasn't blind to his good looks.

"An avatar?" Tom finished helpfully, rubbing her arms. "Like me?"

A rover pulled up on the road outside the compound. Dustin and Andrew hopped out of it in their avatar bodies, evidently having been contacted by someone with the news. Tom smiled as the young researchers ran the distance to their friends and joined the group, hollering all kinds of questions and chattering excitedly. Karyu pretended to be annoyed with all of the attention but those who knew her best could tell she was preening beneath it.

"Look at them, Tanhi," encouraged Tom softly. He nuzzled her cheek and embraced her from behind. "They don't see race...not the way we do. They all grew up together and our kids have been exposed to humans and avatars their whole young lives. One of the most important parts of Na'vi culture is the ability to 'see' each other, isn't it?"

She nodded, weakening against his logic.

"Do you think they don't see each other, Star?" Tom nodded at the kids again, emphasizing his point. "And while you're considering that, think about how you'd feel if Baxter _wasn't_ an avatar. Origins aside, wouldn't you agree that he has all the best qualities you would want in a mate for our daughter? He's strong and brave, he respects Karyu and he makes her smile. You've admitted yourself that you like him."

"He is a good man," she admitted, biting her lip, "and yes, I know I got the mate of _my_ choosing, but Karyu—"

"Deserves to have the mate of _her_ choosing too," insisted Tom gently. "Tanhi, I know you want our daughter to be happy. Watch the way she looks at Corporal Howell and tell me with a straight face that you think she'll ever look at another man that way. You're a woman...you should know."

Tanhi stared at her daughter and the handsome suitor that had so guilelessly announced his admiration of her, moments ago. She _did_ see it—no matter how she wished otherwise. Try as she might, Karyu could not completely hide the womanly feelings in her gaze. She no longer looked at Baxter Howell with a maiden's eyes; Tanhi was certain of it. She refused to believe that her daughter would form a mating bond with him behind her back, but Tanhi of all people knew that _tsahaylu_ was not a requirement for two people to satisfy the need for intimacy.

"No," Tanhi whispered with certainty. "She will not look at another man that way again...not while he is alive."

Tom's body tensed against hers and he drew his own conclusions. "Tanhi, don't go there."

She couldn't resist a smirk as she craned her neck to look back at him. "My Tom, you know better. How could you think such a thing of me?"

He had the decency to look embarrassed. "Sometimes even _I_ can't read you accurately. You've been almost obsessed with pairing our daughter up with a 'pure blood'. Can you blame me for wondering how far you'd take it?"

She sighed, watching as Kato and Karyu finally instructed their mounts to go. The toruk and the ikran took to the air and flew off in different directions. They would both stay close and come at their riders' call when needed, like the other banshees residing in the forest surrounding Hell's Gate.

"Even if I were cowardly enough to consider it," Tanhi assured Tom in a low voice, "I would not do it. The marine has proven himself an ally. He saved your from the fire and until now, he has been very honorable. He does not deserve to die for wanting our daughter."

Tom rubbed her shoulders again. Now Emazu was talking with Karyu and Kato, along with a couple of other young hunters. "I'm glad to hear you say that. Does this mean you'll think about giving her your approval, or would you rather torture them both for a while?"

She gave him a sour look. "Your sarcasm is misplaced."

Her eyes went to her daughter again and she sighed when she noticed the way Baxter briefly took her hand and squeezed it. To their credit, both of them were trying to keep it low-key and to the eye that knew no better, it could appear as though they were just affectionate and perhaps playfully flirtatious at times. None of the other hunters seemed to think much of it, in fact. They had evidently accepted Baxter as one of the twins' few close friends and Karyu was known for giving her friends the odd poke, squeeze or pat of affection now and then. Only those that knew her well could see the hidden message behind each sidelong glance, crooked smirk or brief touch.

Tanhi made a hard decision. "If she truly loves him, then she must go to him."

Tom smiled and released a breath she didn't know he was holding. "Do you mean that? You'll tell her yourself?"

"I will," she promised, "but not now. Don't look at me that way, Tom. I have good reason for waiting."

"And what reason would that be?" he demanded with a frown.

Tanhi turned and smiled up at him a little sadly. "You cannot bear the thought of our _'ite_ being unhappy. You never could. This is what makes your sight fall short when it is important, mate."

He sighed. "Then why don't you explain it to me? What is there to gain by withholding your approval now?"

"Her safety," answered the chieftess simply. She turned and nodded at the girl; who was promising her friends that she and Kato would tell them all about how she got the toruk after they got cleaned up and had something to eat. "If she goes into this fight knowing that she must still impress me and the council to earn mating rights with her man, she will fight harder. She will have a better chance to survive."

Tom sighed. "Devious, yet logical. What about Kato, aren't you worried about him?"

Tanhi smirked. "Not as much as I would be, if he were fighting without his twin by his side. That was the one doubt I had when I ordered Karyu not to join the _wempongu_. Kato is a good hunter, but on his own, he is not so eager to shed blood in a fight—unless a loved one is threatened. They will protect each other and Karyu will be fiercer because she will believe she has more to lose if she fails."

"Can't you just be honest with her and tell her to fight well?" Tom suggested.

Tanhi sighed and looked at him in an almost pitying way. "For some, that would be best. You know how our daughter is, however. I want her to have no reason to be 'cocky'. Defeating me would do that."

Tom rolled his eyes. "You aren't 'defeated', Tanhi. You're just being reasonable...for once."

"Tell that to our daughter," insisted Tanhi.

He sighed. "Yeah, you're right. I just wish you two were both a little less complicated."

Tanhi managed a tired smile.

* * *

About an hour later, the twins were at Savanna and Kato's apartment along with Dustin, Andrew and Baxter. Savanna insisted on cooking an early dinner of Pandora fair for everyone, since Andy and Dusty were both in their avatars and could safely eat native food. Karyu hinted that she wouldn't mind some hexapede burgers and Baxter agreed to barbecue some. Karyu insisted that her brother shower first because he stank and once he was finished, she took her bag into the bathroom and enjoyed a steaming shower herself.

When she emerged from the bathroom again, there was nobody to be seen. Karyu paused in towel-drying her hair and she called out to her friends and family. "Guys? Where did everyone go?"

"In the kitchen," Baxter's voice called from down the short hallway.

Karyu followed his voice, draping the towel around her shoulders. She was surprised to find him standing by himself in the little kitchen. He had six raw, seasoned meat patties arranged on a tray sitting on the counter before him and he gave her a smile and a nod when she joined him. He went to the sink and started to wash his hands as she approached the shaped meat and sniffed at it with appreciation. Even raw, the burgers smelled good. The man could do wonders with spices when it came to barbecued meat.

"Hey, those aren't ready yet," Baxter warned, turning the water off. He hastily wiped his hands and grabbed the tray, eyeing her warily as he snatched the metal cover off the counter and put it over the tray. "Little pig."

She snorted and rolled her eyes. "I wasn't going to _eat_ it, dummy. I was just smelling it."

"Yeah, yeah. If I turned my back on you, they'd be gone in a second and you'd be standing there with puffed cheeks, trying to tell me a bird flew in and ate them. Hey! No poking."

She grinned at him, enjoying the way he yelped dramatically at her playful prod. "Whatever. So where are the others at?"

"Well, Sav didn't like the look of the produce she had in the fridge, so she took Dustin and Andrew with her to the gardens to get some fresh. Kato went for booze."

Karyu made a face. "I'm not touching the stuff."

Baxter laughed at her. "Aw, come on. It's not going to get out of hand like the night you guys threw Corporal Sully his 'welcome home' party. He's just picking up a couple bottles of wine and a six-pack of beer."

Her grimace didn't quite fade and an unwilling blush of remembered embarrassment rose in her cheeks. "We'll see. So far, every experience I've had with alcohol has been negative. The moonshine turned me into a ditz and the one beer I tried to drink tasted like moldy pee."

Baxter approached her and he spanned her slender waist with his hands, drawing her close. "There won't be any moonshine and the beer is just there in case anyone wants it. Either way, nobody will try to make you have a drink if you don't want to."

She relaxed and shrugged. "I guess a little wine won't hurt." She leaned closer to him, loving the feel of his hands around her waist. She looked at his throat and raised an eyebrow expectantly. "Where is the choker I made for you?"

He patted the vest pocket of his combat uniform. "Right here. I take it off in public, since you don't want anyone finding out about us. I don't know how it's going to keep the Na'vi chicks away if they can't see it, but I guess I can fend them off myself."

She started to make a witty comeback to that, but she detected something in his tone that gave her pause. She studied his face and she saw a touch of frustration. Maybe Baxter wasn't okay with keeping their relationship quiet, after all.

"After we've dealt with the RDA, we'll deal with our relationship and my clan," she promised, instinctively lowering her voice. "It's just easier to keep my mother and the council in the dark, for now."

Baxter lowered his bright eyes and shrugged. "I get that. You don't have to worry about me running off telling everyone about us, 'till you're ready. I guess I should be thankful you're even giving me the time of day."

Karyu frowned, half-annoyed and half saddened by his attitude. "What the hell is _that_ supposed to mean, avatar?"

He wouldn't look at her. "'Avatar'. You just said it. Do I have to spell it out for you, Princess? You're native royalty and I'm some mutt they grew in a tube. You made sure to let me know why this could never happen, up until it finally _did_ happen. You don't have to justify keeping it quiet to me."

Karyu was briefly stunned speechless. She had never, ever thought of him that way...not even when she was so afraid to let herself feel anything because of her people's expectations. Before she could stop herself, she reached up and thumped him in the forehead with her thumb and forefinger.

Baxter slapped a hand over the spot and stared at her accusingly. "Ow! What'd you do _that_ for?"

"Because you're a big dumb dummy, that's why." Karyu pulled away from him and put her hands on her hips. "Do you think I'm ashamed of you?"

He rubbed his forehead and shrugged. "I don't know...are you?"

"No," she answered immediately, shaking her head. She grasped his arm and held his eyes. "I am _not_ ashamed of you. If my situation weren't so complicated, I'd be strutting all over the place for having you all to myself. Don't pretend you don't notice the female attention you get."

He grinned. "I know _you_ think I get a lot of it, but there's only one female I want attention from, now."

Karyu reached up and cupped the back of his head, urging him to lower his head. He obliged and she kissed the spot where she thumped him on the forehead. "By the way, where is the armlet I made for you, if the choker is in your pocket?"

"I'm wearing it," he promised. He quickly unbuttoned his shirt and parted it, tugging it down over his left shoulder to reveal the beadwork jewelry around his upper bicep. "See? The only time I won't wear it is when I'm going to be in something that doesn't cover it up."

She nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Keep it that way, _ma nantang_." 

Baxter stared at her, his head tilting in a wolfishly inquiring way. "'_Nantang'_? What does that mean?"

She bit her lip and lowered her eyes. "It means 'viper wolf'. That's what you remind me of, sometimes. You're protective and loyal. I'm sure the viper wolf must be your spirit animal."

He put his arms around her and drew her closer. "Yeah? I never knew you felt that way. So when did you decide the...uh..._nantang_ is my spirit animal?"

She looked up at him again and she hesitated a moment before confessing. "The day I heard you howl like one."

He frowned. "I haven't howled since...oh, wait a minute..."

She read the grimace on his face to mean he knew exactly what howling incident she was talking about, but she came clean anyway to get it out in the open. "You were howling for that Jill woman. We all thought there was a real _nantang_ loose on the compound when we heard it...until we realized it was coming from you."

"Who is 'we'?" He looked wary.

Karyu shrugged and she straightened his shirt up absently and traced the "v" shape of his clavicle with her fingertips. "Kato, Sav and I. I can't remember where we were going together, but we saw you talking to that Jill on the way and you howled, just before she left."

Baxter's reaction wasn't quite what she expected. He blushed deeply and averted his eyes. "Uh...oh. You saw that, huh?"

"Yeah. What's wrong?"

He shook his head and pulled away from her, sighing. "Great. My girl saw me howling like a whipped mutt after being rejected by my ex _again_. Where's a paper bag when you need one?"

Karyu grabbed his arms before he could turn away and she forced him to stay put, facing her. "Hey, that...that _Jill_ is the one who made a mistake and she'll regret letting you go for the rest of her life; _count_ on it. The way you expressed your feelings in that howl was...was..."

She struggled for an adjective for what she was trying to say, but she couldn't think of anything that wouldn't sound corny. She threaded her fingers through his mussed hair and rose on her tiptoes to kiss him on the mouth. Evidently, it was the right move because his lips began to smile against hers and he held her again.

"You liked my pitiful howl, eh?" he murmured between kisses. "Wait 'till you hear my battle howl, then. That one I did for Jill was lame."

"Don't talk about that _Jill_ woman," insisted Karyu, tugging lightly on his lower lip with her teeth in warning.

"'_That Jill'_," he repeated bravely, chuckling. "You say it like she's a pile of shit you stepped in."

Karyu shrugged and pressed her nose against his, looking directly into his eyes. "To me, that's what she _is_. I dislike her enough for how she treated you. I don't want to be reminded that she used to touch you the way I do."

He gave her a soft kiss on the lips before staring into her eyes. "She's not a threat to you, baby. I never think about her anymore and I'm all yours."

Feeling the tension ease now that they'd gotten that out of the way, Karyu decided to satisfy her curiosity about at couple of things; starting with the howling. "So, when did the howling come in, anyhow? Is it something you've done all your life?"

He shook his head. "No. I didn't start doing it until combat training. We were supposed to learn how to make different birdcalls and other animal noises, so we could communicate in code on the field, if we ever needed to. The howling came up as kind of a joke, because our instructor was always calling me a mangy dog. I was getting chewed out because I couldn't make a convincing bird call, so I decided to howl instead. Turns out I was good at it, so that was my personal signal from that day on and I earned 'Howler' as a code name."

Karyu sighed as his fingers stroked her spine in that way that always sent a pleasant tingle through her body. She had one more question on her mind. "Why are you the way you are?"

He looked down at her with furrowed brows. "Uh...help me out, babe. What do you mean by that?"

"I mean with women," she explained, trying to be patient. She often forgot that other people couldn't guess her thoughts the way her brother sometimes could. She held his gaze with her own. "You're almost _too_ chivalrous sometimes. You're the extreme opposite of a misogynist. I want to know why."

Baxter was frowning in confusion. "You think its weird that I don't treat women like shit?"

She flicked his nose playfully. "That isn't what I meant and you know it. I know that not all Terran-born males are pigs, thank you. I just think you go overboard sometimes. Even when women aren't nice to you, you're nice to them. That's got to get tiring."

"Feeling guilty?" He grinned at her.

She snorted. "Dream on. You knew what you were getting into with me."

He reached out and tweaked a silky strand of hair that rested over her shoulder. "Yeah, I did. With you, a guy knows where he stands. The truth might be a little brutal at times but I'll never have to wonder if you mean anything you say to me. That's not a bad thing at all, Karyu."

"Drop the flattery," she insisted. "You're avoiding the subject."

He chuckled and shrugged. "I should work on toning it down some. I don't want you to feel smothered or anything."

Karyu frowned in disappointment. "So you aren't going to tell me."

"I'm not sure there's anything to _tell_," he said in a sincere tone. "Why do some guys hate women so much that the only way they can interact with them is to insult, abuse or rape them? I don't really have a complicated story, Princess. I've always liked girls—even when they were supposed to have 'cooties'."

She smirked. "I guess I just expected there to be a story behind it. Most guys don't bend over backwards for women 'just because', you know."

He scratched his chin in thought. "Hey, you're right. Now that I've gotten lucky, I can stop putting on the act. Go make me a sandwich, woman."

She glared at him. "Go fuck yourself."

"Well I can _try_, but I don't think my stuff is going to bend that way—"

Karyu pinched his bottom, hard enough to make him wince. "Baxter!"

"Okay, okay," he chuckled, giving in. "I guess if I had to pick something that made me extra protective, it was when I was going to follow in my old man's footsteps and become a cop. I did some volunteer security work for a local women's shelter while I was training at the academy. I was just doing it for the credit, but it's not possible to work with people in that situation without being influenced by it in some way."

His eyes lost focus as he recalled that time in his life. "Some of them were just homeless girls that needed somewhere safe to sleep at night, but some of them were hiding from abusive husbands or boyfriends. One lady even got tracked down by her ex and killed when she tried to move to the next state over. She had friends in Arkansas that were going to put her up and help her find a job, but she never made it out of Texas. I found out the next weekend when I came in for my last shift."

Karyu growled softly. "Did the killer ever get punished?"

"Well, they caught him and threw him in prison," answered the marine with a sigh, "but I couldn't tell you if he served his full sentence or got out on some technicality. I ended up joining the USMC after that."

It took her a moment to understand he meant the Marine Corps, being unfamiliar with military acronyms. "What did your father say about that?"

"Nothing," answered Baxter with a shrug. "He's been dead since I was ten. I was trying to honor his memory, but the more I went through the training, the more I realized it wasn't what I really wanted to do. It was close; but not close enough to satisfy me."

"So your mother raised you alone?" Karyu was surprised by how interested she was in his past. She thought once her initial curiosity was satisfied, she'd be content to just focus on his present.

"Yeah," he answered. He kissed her lightly on the forehead. "She passed away from a stroke the year before I shipped out to Pandora. I didn't have much on Earth to keep me there after that—except my dog. Ellis and I were two of the guys from our unit to be approached by RDA agents about a major job opportunity on Pandora. They were picking young soldiers with good medical records and no major family ties on Earth for the job—for obvious reasons. You know the rest of _that_ story."

Karyu nodded, on the brink of a scowl until it occurred to her that if it weren't for the RDA slugs recruiting Baxter, she never would have met him. "If you knew what would happen," she hedged, looking at him from beneath lowered lashes, "would you still have signed up for the job?"

"You mean if I knew our ISV would be sabotaged and half of my unit would get sucked into space?" He sighed and studied her quietly for a moment as she nodded. "Yes."

Her eyes snapped to his face and she blinked. "Be serious."

He smiled. "I am. I'd warn everyone else, but I'd _still_ get into that transference chamber and let them put my mind in this avatar body. I'd do it all if I knew I'd end up with a girl like you."

Karyu felt her throat tighten up and she rolled her eyes and snorted, trying to cover up the effect his romantic words had on her. "You really are the cheesiest romantic on Pandora. You should get a trophy for it."

"I'll take a kiss instead."

The corners of her mouth turned up in a dimpled grin despite herself as he lowered his mouth to hers to claim his "trophy". It began as a soft, tender kiss, but it quickly evolved into a lusty make-out session. Unfortunately for Karyu's pride, her brother returned to the apartment with his alcoholic goodies. She and Baxter were too busy devouring each other's faces to notice Kato's arrival until he was in the kitchen with them.

"Hey, can you please _not_ do that to my sister in front of me, Bax?"

Baxter released the young woman abruptly and she nearly stumbled. He gave Kato an embarrassed nod. "Welcome back, man."

Kato laughed and set a box full of assorted drinks on the counter. Karyu leaned against the opposite counter and glared at him when he gave her a cocky look. Her towel lay forgotten on the tiled floor. He nodded at it and smirked.

"You going to pick that up, Sis? Don't be a sloppy guest."

Karyu mumbled something incoherent and bent over to snatch up the towel. Thankfully, Kato resisted the urge to tease her about getting caught making out—but she could see it in his eyes every time he looked at her that he was saving it for later. When the conflict was over, her brother was going to tease her mercilessly and she knew she was due for a shit-load of "I told you so".

* * *

While the kids were enjoying a final get-together and trying not to think about any of them getting maimed or killed in the impending fight, Max and Trudy organized one last late meeting with their people and their friends from the Na'vi nations. When everyone was settled in, Max sighed and stood at the head of the table.

"I'd like to make this brief, because I know everyone has things they need to do. Tom, you remember our little talk with Agent Miller this morning?"

Tom nodded, his fingers interlacing together on the surface of the table. "Can I assume he's come to a decision?"

Max nodded. "That's right. I almost expected him to hold out until the last minute before deployment, just to make us squirm. He's agreed to give us the information we need and serve as a guide for the saboteur team."

"Wait a minute," Jake said with a frown. "You told me this guy could give us a layout of the place, but you never said anything about him going along for the ride."

"I don't like it," Norm said. Across from him, Joyce nodded in agreement.

"He's got no way to contact anyone," Trudy assured them, getting out of her chair to walk the room. "We don't trust the guy either, but according to the information we've gotten so far on this place, there could be some major firepower hidden in there. They could even have _nukes_, if we believe the information we've gotten so far. Now, maybe we're getting more smoke blown up our asses but think about it for a second; _what_ does Miller have to gain by lying to us now?"

"Or Selfridge, for that matter," added Max.

"Nothing but the satisfaction of making chumps out of us," Ramona sighed, "but I'm not a military woman. I'll leave the war strategies to the people that know how to make them. I just want to remind you all that we've got our _own_ nest to protect, and UNEC still has a nasty case of the clap right now."

Max almost choked on his coffee and he hastily put it aside as a round of chuckles swept through the room. "Thank you, Dr. Adams, for putting it _that_ way."

Mona shrugged. "I'm just keeping it real, Max. While everyone's out chasing down this phantom base, UNEC might come knocking and we'll do about as well as the piggy in his straw house when the Big Bad Wolf came and blew his house down."

"Oh my god," Norm groaned, "They _do_ have something to get out of lying to us! This could all be a maneuver to leave Hell's Gate vulnerable and—"

Jake nudged the anthropologist none too gently, interrupting his thoughts before he could go on a conspiracy tirade. He addressed Mona grimly. "Don't get Norm wound up, Mona. We don't have all night."

Max agreed and he looked around at the assembly. "I know how you all feel about the RDA and believe me, I feel the same. They've had us jumping at our own shadows for years now. It's good to be careful but we don't want to overdo it and invent scenarios that don't exist. We have evidence of activity around the location of this base up north. We've got satellite images. There is only so much the RDA is capable of fabricating."

"But that doesn't eliminate the possibility that our informants could be putting on an act," West announced. "Under that threat, it might be beneficial to tighten up security plans and look over the contingency protocols, in the event of a hostile takeover."

Max felt sick to his stomach over the thought that Selfridge might have really been playing them all to set them up. He was almost positive that he could trust the information he'd gotten from Selfridge, Archer and Miller, but his comrades' suspicions did plant a seed of doubt. "I think that's a good idea, General. I'll assist you in any way I can."

"But wait," objected Joyce, "if there's a chance this could be a setup, do we really want to leave this base vulnerable to military attack at all? Maybe we should—"

"The decision has been made," Neytiri said firmly. "The plan is in motion and last moment fears cannot be allowed to take us from our chosen path. If we falter now, we will never win against the enemy."

Jake agreed with his mate. "She's right about that. We can't get spooked out of this at the last minute by the slim chance that this was all a hoax to put Hell's Gate in a vulnerable position. I think West can handle fortifying this place while we're gone and if we don't take care of this RDA base now, we may not get another chance."

Trudy nodded. "Let's not blow it on paranoia, people."

Norm gave her an incredulous look. "Paranoia! You're usually one of the first people to put together conspiracy theories, besides me."

"Yeah, I'm the queen of conspiracies," agreed Trudy with a shrug, "but in this case, suspecting the sources of our info won't blow away the facts we've seen with our own eyes. It won't change what we've got to do, either. Our intel confirms what we've gotten from the goons. Our equipment is set up, our guns are loaded and our people are ready to move out. Do you want to sit around wringing our hands over what the boogey man's going to do to us next, or do you want to do something about it while we can?"

Norm deflated. Ordinarily, his mate would gently back him up but Ni'nat was at the avatar cabin with Emazu and the others, making final preparations for the morning. Jake patted the lanky scientist on the shoulder, offering him some measure of friendly support.

"Don't worry, Norm. Your conspiracy partner has been leading security on this base since we drove out the RDA the first time, remember? You've _got_ to know Trudy has it all covered, right? Plus, Max is going to be right here when it all goes down, working with us over satellite communication and helping General West around here."

Norm appeared to think about it for a moment. Max hid a smile behind his hand as he watched the anthropologist's cyan-striped features relax a little behind the clear visor of the exopack mask he wore. He decided to add his own incentive, even though his nerves were beginning to make his bowels feel unstable.

"Don't worry, Norm. If anything goes wrong here while the operation is happening up north, I'll get word out fast and we've been prepared for invasion emergencies for years, now. Trust us."

Norm looked at Trudy and he finally nodded. "All right. We've handled it in the past, so I guess I shouldn't get so worked up just yet."

Trudy smirked. "Now you're talking."

"I still need to get one thing clear," Ellis said, drawing attention his way. "Am I supposed to take Agent Miller _with_ my strike team when we deploy?"

Trudy grimaced and nodded. "I hate it too, but the schematics we've got aren't going to be much help for what your team is going to be doing. He's going to guide you."

"Right into a trap," Ellis argued with a frown. "General Chacón, we all trust your judgment but this is reckless. Do you have _any_ way to ensure he'll really cooperate, or are we just going on faith, here?"

She glanced at her betrothed. "Max and Tom made a deal with him that he couldn't refuse, if the man has enough humanity left in him to care."

There were some curious looks all around, but nobody asked for details. They each had bigger things to concern them than the personal life of one prisoner. Tanhi broke the silence that followed with the only question that truly mattered to her.

"Then our plan is still the same? We fight the Sky People together?"

Trudy gave a nod to the chieftess. "You bet."

"Does anyone have any other questions or concerns they want to address?" Max inquired. "This will be your last chance before everything is set into motion."

Everyone looked at each other expectantly. While nobody was entirely happy with the arrangement with the avatar prisoner and fears of an invasion were on everyone's mind, there was really nothing left to ask. The pieces were in place and the strike teams really couldn't be more prepared to move out than they already were.

After waiting to see if anyone else had questions, Max came up with one last concern of his own. "Okay, before I end this meeting, I need to ask about the participating Na'vi warriors. Tanhi, Jake, I think we've worked out a solution to get everyone safely across the sea without subjecting the banshees or their riders to a shuttle ride...but I'm sure it will still take some convincing."

"Well now we have a new, sassy little _Toruk Makto_ to help with the convincing," Jake said with a smirk. When Tanhi glared at him, he sobered a little. "So what do you have in mind, Max?"

"Barges," answered the biologist.

"We've got some 67-1B transports in storage," Trudy added. The RDA used to use them to transport any payloads they got from sea mining, before they nixed off-coast resource gathering in favor of bombing the natives to get at the land deposits. Guess it was too inconvenient for them to stick with mining uninhabited spots."

"How big are they?" Tom asked before Jake could say anything. The intrigued look on his face suggested the gears were already turning in his head.

Trudy shrugged. "They're deck barges, Tom Cat. The things are made to carry heavy equipment and big payloads over the water."

"About twelve meters wide by thirty meters long," Max provided when Tom didn't seem satisfied with Trudy's vague answer. "We've only got two of them, but that should be enough to provide resting points on the water for the Na'vi warriors. If any of the animals get too fatigued to make the rest of the trip, they can stay on a barge and be transported after the rest of the armies make it across."

"Is there going to be room to fit these barges in a Valkyrie" Jake asked. "You've got gunships and AMP suits to transport too."

"Sure," Trudy answered, unconcerned. "The RDA used to transport them to the sea all the time when they were in power. Don't forget, we're borrowing the Star Chaser's shuttles for this mission. We can dedicate one of them to transporting the barges. Don't worry, jarhead; we don't have as much heavy gear and firepower to haul as I'd like. There's going to be plenty of room."

"The shuttles are on their way in now, as a matter of fact," Max said, checking his watch. He covered his mouth on a yawn. "Trudy and I will go check on the progress once they've arrived. Officially, these are 'new' shuttles. If the question ever comes up, we traded with UNEC for them. We have to keep the ISV's presence classified—even if there's a chance the secret's already been leaked."

"Got it," agreed Jake, "but what's your excuse going to be for loading up two big sea barges?"

"Transporting supplies for a fault stabilizing facility off the shore of the Eastern Sea," Max replied evenly. He gave a nod Tom's way. "There actually _is_ one out there, in fact. It's computer manned and it relieves stress along the fault line out there, to lessen the chance of aquatic seismic events."

Jake looked at his brother with faint surprise. "How many of these plants does your clan _have_ around their territory, bro?"

"Just the two," assured Tom, patting Tanhi's hand gently when she frowned with distaste. "And they're only there to perform _necessary_ tasks to help prevent issues that could make the territory uninhabitable. Sulfur poisoned water and tsunamis caused by off shore quakes would make village life a bit hard for us."

Tanhi looked as though she wanted to say something unkind about the facilities, but Tom had already explained to her that the green facilities in their territory weren't the same as the old resource processors that had poisoned the land where her clan once dwelled. Having him nearly get blown up in the water purification facility obviously hadn't helped her think more kindly of human engineered "help".

Satisfied that there were no further questions, Max wrapped it up. "I think we've covered everything. We've all got our parts to play in this and I trust everyone to do their best. Try to get some rest, everyone. Tomorrow's going to be a very busy day for us all."

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_Mawey_** = Calm

**_Tsmuk_** = Sister

**_'Ite_** = Daughter

**_Wempongu_** = War party


	35. Chapter 35

**"Tiger's hunt"**

**Chapter 35: Baited breath**

* * *

**Author's note:** _See footnotes at the end of the chapter for Na'vi/English translations. On the subject of update speed, would like to remind readers that I posted a note at the very beginning of this story that I could not promise to update this story quickly or often, as I did with "Between Worlds". I had other projects on hold that have needed finishing for over a year now. I would also like to emphasize that this is a hobby. When I pause in a work project, it means I need a little space or I'm simply having difficulty putting my thoughts into text. It's part of being human. Sometimes the answer is to work on something else until the mojo comes back, and sometimes it's just to stop writing for a little while and do other things. I ask people to consider that, and to remember that I do have a life outside fanfiction and I write on my own free time. Thank you for your feedback, and I'd like to give special thanks to Koen, Gabriel, Marie, Ragnorok 666, anonymous Matt and anonymous Mark for being especially helpful and supportive. Apologies if I've missed anyone._

_Enjoy the half-assed, half finished chapter; which is what you seem to want. Don't complain when you get exactly what you ask for._

_-Tìran-hu Eywa._

* * *

***Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora and I make no profit from writing fanfiction based on the "Avatar" film.**

* * *

The complaints of their tiny daughter awoke Tsu'tey from nightmares of gunfire and explosions. For once, he was thankful for the interruption to his sleep and he quickly assured Grace he would take care of it when she lifted her head and mumbled. Climbing out of the hammock they shared carefully, he walked across the wide, sturdy branch to the baby's hanging cocoon. He smiled at her when she quieted at his approach and he purred unconsciously as he lifted her out of her bed and snuggled her. The sun was just creeping up on the horizon and the pink-orange light of dawn filtered softly through the forest canopy.

"_Sempu_ is here now," Tsu'tey promised in a whisper, patting the infant. "It's okay, Leyra."

The baby hiccupped and whimpered, beginning to squirm demandingly. Tsu'tey sniffed experimentally and upon detecting no scent of body waste, he guessed she was hungry. He carried the baby over to his dozing mate and climbed into the hammock with her. Gracie's eyes opened a slit at the disturbance in their bed and she rolled onto her side drowsily.

"Feeding time?" she guessed as Tsu'tey eased down with Leyra and positioned her close to her mother's body.

He nodded and rubbed her shoulder as Grace adjusted her garments and positioned the infant for feeding. "She doesn't seem to need it as often, now."

Grace nodded, looking down at the dark head nestled against her breast. "_Sa'nok_ and _Sempul_ told me her feeding schedule would smooth out and become less demanding as she matures."

He reached down to stroke the soft, downy hair on the baby's head. "She'll be weaned and eating solid food before we know it. You'll have more freedom then. If I could nurse her myself instead of waking you up, I would."

Grace smiled warmly at him and she leaned toward him to kiss him softly on the lips. "I'm sure you would. I don't mind the inconvenient schedules, though. I just want our little one to grow strong."

He nodded in agreement and he admired the way the dawn's light highlighted her features. Her eyes were a little puffy with sleep and her hair was mussed, but even with these typical symptoms of first waking, she was lovely. He would have liked to watch her and Leyra all morning long, but his transmitter unit began to beep insistently from its place in his nearby _p'ah s'ivil chey_. Grace looked up curiously as he kissed her on the forehead and climbed back out of the hammock.

He hurried over the branch to liberate the device from his rack of sparse belongings, hoping the noise hadn't disturbed too many nearby people. Village life always started early, however. Only a few Omaticaya were still in their hammocks, and most weren't immediately nearby. Ralu and Sylwanin were the exception, but the two of them had a late night and they were both sleeping like logs in the hammock directly across from his and Gracie's. Tsu'tey put the unit on and made a few adjustments before opening up the channel for direct communication. He'd been expecting contact soon, so he had a good idea who was on the other end of the transmission.

"_Sempul_? Is that you?"

"That isn't how I taught you to answer a transmitter frequency," Jake's voice replied. "Let's hear it, son."

Tsu'tey grinned and rolled his eyes. "This is Tsu'tey and I copy you."

"Close enough." There was a shrug in Jake's voice. "I'm not going to keep you long because we've got a lot of traveling to do, _'Itan_. We're going to be leaving the base soon and home is going to be our first stop, like we discussed. I need you to get the Omaticaya war party ready to move, because we can't spend a lot of time visiting if we don't want to lose daylight."

Tsu'tey nodded. "I understand. How is everyone?"

"They're fine," assured Jake. "Your Hell's Gate friends are doing good and they've asked me to say 'hi' for them. Both of your cousins are going to be coming with us and you're going to shit when you see what they've been up to."

"Uh...okay." Tsu'tey couldn't pretend not to be interested. "What did they do this time?"

"You'll see when we get there," Jake answered evasively. "Just worry about getting things set up for us in the village, in the meantime. How are the girls?"

Tsu'tey understood that 'girls' encompassed Grace, Sylwanin, Leyra and Ralu. He looked over at his mate and smiled. Sylwanin had gotten up during his conversation with their father and she had made her way over to his and Gracie's hammock to sit on the branch next to it. She and Grace chatted as the older female nursed her infant.

"They're great. Ralu's still asleep but Sylwanin's up and Gracie's feeding Leyra. Do you want to talk to them?"

Jake hesitated a moment before answering. "Nah, we'll get our chance to talk to them when we get there. Just tell your sister and Ralu we said not to get in your way while you're trying to organize the war party."

"Like they'll listen." Tsu'tey sighed with good nature, trying to ignore the tension he felt. He was about to prepare his people for war, and when his parents and the others came to collect the war party, it could be the last time he ever saw them alive.

"We'll see you soon, _'Itan_. Be strong for the clan. Your mother and I know you can do this."

Tsu'tey shut his eyes and nodded. "Yes, _Sempul_. The war party will be ready go to when you get here. See you soon."

* * *

Jake was surprised when Karyu broke flight formation and descended into the canopy a couple of klicks south of Hometree. Her banshee—flying a short distance behind the rider formation—loyally broke away to follow her. Jake twisted on his ikran and shared a confused look with Norm before whistling at Kato and frowning at him questioningly. The young man had been watching his sister's descent with an openly puzzled look and he looked up at Jake's call and shrugged at him helplessly. Tanhi noticed her daughter's abrupt departure and she called out to her clan-mates, preparing to halt their trajectory to the Omaticaya village.

"Jake, you should go," Neytiri suggested quickly, her gaze flashing beneath the wind visors on her headgear. "She did not call out for a reason."

Knowing his mate's insight was sharper than others, he thought she was onto something. Jake nodded and he called out to Tanhi. "I'll find out what's wrong and bring her with me," he assured the ikran chieftess. "You and the others go on ahead."

Tanhi parted her lips to argue but she saw something in his eyes that gave her pause. Flying beside her in full tribal wear, Tom also determined that something complicated was going on with his daughter.

"I think we should let him take care of it," suggested the biologist over the wind. "If it was an emergency, Karyu would have said something to someone."

Meuia disagreed. "Not even Karyu would break from the group at such a time, without offering a reason."

"Just let me go and see what's up," insisted Jake. "She might relate better to me."

Tanhi evidently understood his meaning and agreed. She gave him a curt nod. "Go. I will come looking if we see nothing of you by the time we land at your village, _Toruk Makto_."

Jake banked away without further comment. He cast a wink at Kato before descending in pursuit of Karyu, promising the concerned young man with his eyes that he wouldn't let anything happen to his sister. He directed his ikran through a break in the canopy and he spotted the vivid, familiar hide patterns of Karyu's ikran ahead of him within moments. The young woman landed her formidable mount near the stream that served as the Omaticaya's primary source of fresh water and her ikran landed a few feet away from her. Jake called out to her and when she whirled in alarm and reached for her bow, he hastily jumped off his banshee before the animal could land.

"Easy," advised Jake with his hands out. "It's just me."

Karyu immediately stopped her action and sighed. "Sorry Uncle Jake...it was reflexive. I guess the others will be coming to check on me too."

Jake shook his head. "Just me. We didn't want to crowd you."

He glanced at her two animal companions as he approached and his own ikran landed a couple of yards away to the left. A quick study of the girl's brittle stance and tense features assured him that Karyu wasn't likely to relax anytime soon. Her pupils were dilated and her ears were flattened nervously against her head. Jake tried to channel his brother's soothing voice and he approached his niece as if she were a spooked, wild animal.

"Why don't you tell me what's up, kid? I've never seen you this jumpy and you've got everyone worried. There's got to be a reason you broke away from the group like that." He thought he could guess what the matter was but with Karyu, one should never assume anything.

Karyu looked at her toruk—who was looking at the two ikrans nearby with calculating hunger. The only think keeping the animal from acting on his predatory instincts was the bond he shared with Karyu. Domesticated ikrans were not food, no matter how tasty they looked. Karyu approached Dragon and she patted him on the side of the neck, evidently noticing the way he was eyeing her other mount and Jake's.

"You can hunt soon," she promised the Toruk. To Jake, she said: "I didn't want to land at Hometree with Dragon. That's why I broke formation."

Jake found her answer strange, at the very least. "Why? I would have thought you'd love showing off for your cousin and friends at Hometree. Or were you planning on something more dramatic than flying in with the rest of us?"

Karyu shook her head and she murmured to Dragon before giving him a light slap on the flank. The beast retreated toward an opening in the canopy and spread his wings, preparing to take flight. The young woman watched with her uncle as the toruk caught the air currents and flew away to hunt until needed.

"I don't want to show off at all."

Jake looked away from Dragon to stare at her. "_You_? I don't believe it for a second. What's really going on here, Karyu?"

"It's true," she insisted earnestly. She approached her ikran and she stroked his muzzle when he lowered his head to hers. "Maybe it isn't like me but I really don't feel like dealing with the attention. Besides..." She lowered her gaze. "I've been thinking about it a lot since I caught him yesterday and I'm not sure I deserve any praise for this."

Jake couldn't look more surprised if he tried. "How do you figure? Karyu, you _earned_ whatever praise you get from this. I didn't grow up among the People, but I know how rare toruk riders are and I know from experience, it's sure as _hell_ not an easy thing to accomplish."

"But I didn't do it the way you did," she confessed. She looked up at the trees, watching a leaf float down on the warm breeze. "Kato had to distract mine for me, so I could get the jump on him. I had to use deception. The toruk didn't really 'choose' me."

Jake snorted. "How do you think I got mine? Shadow didn't exactly land at my feet and ask me to climb on his back."

She shrugged. "You'd be surprised what people say. But still, you didn't have to use sneaky tactics to get him."

"Want to bet?" Jake smirked at her. "I didn't challenge Shadow fair and square, no matter what people might say. I got him when he wasn't looking. I ambushed him from above, knowing he wouldn't look up. Just because you had someone else distracting yours doesn't make you any sneakier than I was."

She relaxed a little bit, but his confession still didn't boost her confidence much. "You still did it on your own."

Jake started to remind her again that he used deception to accomplish it, but he didn't think that would get through to her. He was beginning to understand her true reason for insisting that she wasn't worthy of her new title and it seemed less strange to him. She was scared, plain and simple. She wanted a way out, now that the thrill was wearing off and the reality of her situation was settling in. He chose to tread carefully, sympathizing with her in ways most Na'vi probably couldn't.

"You're getting cold feet," Jake reasoned. "What happened to all that self-confidence I'm used to seeing from you, kid?"

She grimaced, refusing to look at him. "I used it all up taming Dragon, I guess. I just keep thinking of why I did it in the first place and what _Sa'nok_ said to me when I came back with him. She said I've chosen a path I can't stray far from. I could barely 'stray' before, but now I'm really boxed in."

She sniffed and compressed her lips, finally meeting his eyes with a bitter challenge in her gaze. "Go on, tell me you're disappointed and get it over with."

Jake held her gaze steadily and shook his head. All the Sully kids had been forced to mature faster than their clan-mates, and Jake sometimes worried about the long-term impact such pressure could have on their young lives. Karyu had the highest expectations to live up to and whether she meant to do it or not, she had piled even more on her plate by taming the toruk. "I'm not going to tell you that. Uncle Jake here, remember?"

She wavered a little and Jake went on, trying to give her the encouragement and motivation she needed. "It's scary, isn't it? Suddenly you're an icon and you don't know what the hell to do with that. Maybe you never wanted it to come to this, but it has and now you don't have a choice. I'll bet you were only thinking of how you were going to pull this off. I'll bet you didn't cover the part where you've got to lead the people you were trying to impress."

Karyu nodded in agreement, unusually subdued and introspective.

"I'll tell you something, Starfish," Jake murmured, reaching out to put his hands on her slender shoulders. "You were already going to be dealing with this stuff as _Olo'eyktan_. It's on a bigger scale now but you've still been preparing your whole life for this. So what's holding you back now?"

She lowered her gaze again and frowned unhappily. "I guess I'm starting to question my reasons for doing it. It sounds noble and heroic, until I get to the part where all my motivations for taming that toruk were purely selfish. That isn't what _Toruk Makto_ is supposed to be about, is it? Like the _Tsahik_ and the _Olo'eyktan_, _Toruk Makto_ is supposed to put the People's needs first."

Jake sighed. "That's the official mission statement, but trust me when I say it doesn't always pan out that way. How about you tell me what these selfish reasons of yours were? A second opinion might help you figure things out."

She raised her eyes again and stiffened as she braced herself. "Okay, but don't judge me when I tell you this."

Jake shook his head solemnly. "You've got my word. Go on."

She looked at the swaying branches overhead thoughtfully. "I didn't want to stay behind while everyone else fought. As you know, _Sa'nok_ was going to make me stay behind while everyone else went into battle and I just couldn't bear that. I also know how inspiring you are to our people and I thought _maybe_ I could be that way, too."

Jake shrugged. "You wanted to defend your people. Sounds like a pretty reasonable motivation to me."

She shook her head. "It might sound that way on paper but it really comes down to me doing whatever I could do to get my way. You may not have noticed, but I do that a lot, Uncle Jake."

He smirked wryly at her. "No, _really_? I never noticed."

"Uncle Jake," Karyu sighed warningly.

"Okay, all kidding aside...you _still_ had an unselfish reason for doing it." He tweaked a glossy braid and tucked it behind her left ear. "You can't convince me that at the core, you didn't want to protect your people."

"Well no, but it's still not like when _you_ did it," she argued, "You went after your toruk to defend a race of people you weren't even born into! You risked your life to protect something that was basically just a big tree to you."

Jake shook his head slowly. "You shouldn't listen to rumors, Karyu. You want to know what my real motivations were for going after Shadow?"

She nodded and curiosity bled into her anxious expression.

"I did it to impress a girl."

Karyu slumped and rolled her eyes. "If you aren't going to take this seriously, let's just go."

"I'm serious," Jake insisted. "You wanted to hear the truth and I'm giving it to you, bullshit free."

She regarded him suspiciously, her eyes narrowed. "I can't swallow that. You aren't that shallow."

Jake chuckled and he leaned his back against a nearby tree trunk, crossing his ankles over one another. "Okay, that's not the _only_ reason, but it was part of it. What started the whole thing for me was desperation; just like you. I _needed_ Neytiri and the Omaticaya to give me another chance...or at least help me try to save someone I cared about. They were Grace's only shot, but to get them to listen to me, I knew I had to do something extreme."

"But Dr. Augustine died anyway," reasoned Karyu, remembering the story.

Jake nodded. "Yeah. She was too weak by the time we got her situated for the ritual."

"So after she died, you decided to fight for the Omaticaya in repayment for trying to save her," guessed Karyu.

Jake grimaced and shook his head. "Maybe that's what people say, but it's not the full truth. To be honest with you, I was _pissed_. I'd just watched a woman that had become sort of like a mother to me die and I knew my girlfriend and her family was going to be next. I did what came natural to me: I made plans to start kicking ass and taking names. There was nothing honorable about it when I first made the choice—I just wanted blood."

She regarded him with empathy. "I can relate."

He smiled a little and put an arm around her, drawing her into a loose embrace. "Listen Karyu; I'll tell you the same thing I told Neytiri when she was stressing over taking her mother's place as _Tsahik_. Everybody's selfish—even _Na'vi_. If you don't care about yourself, you don't survive. Just because you get something out of it doesn't make what you're doing dishonorable, okay?"

"I guess so," she agreed, "Will you tell that to my _sa'nok_ when this is all finished?"

Jake looked at her searchingly. "Is there something else you want to do with this new power of yours that's going to piss her off even more?"

She blushed a little. "Well...you know how you said part of the reason you tamed Shadow was because it was the only way you could have Neytiri?"

He hadn't exactly said _that_, but he got her meaning and he grinned. He knew exactly whom she was speaking of, but he chose not to speak his name. "So does this guy know how hard you're fighting for him?"

Karyu shook her head. "Probably not, and I'd rather keep it that way. I don't know how this is all going to work out, but I can't undo what I've done."

He considered her words and he watched her covertly for reactions as he responded. "Nobody can _force_ you to be _Toruk Makto_, Karyu. You could release that bird from the bond and go back to being the next chieftess in line."

"It's too late for that," she sighed, rubbing her arms as if chilled.

Jake shrugged, smiling quietly at her. "Not really. You could let Dragon go and nobody outside our travel group has to know about it. You could blow off anything the Hell's Gate witnesses say as rumors. I think your family might even be relieved. If you seriously don't think you're cut out for the job, let it go now while you still can. Your _sa'nok_ will get over any disappointment she feels, because you'll be doing what she wanted you to do in the first place. Your _sempul_ wouldn't judge you for all the moldy specimens in the world. You've got enough on your plate as it is."

She looked up at him suspiciously. "That would make me a coward."

"Only if you see yourself that way. You've never let what other people think of you get in the way before, Karyu."

She stared at him and he could tell by the way her eyes began to narrow that she was onto him. "I know what you're doing."

He pretended ignorance. "What? I'm just trying to help you out."

She shook her head and planted her hands on her hips, striking her customary stubborn pose. "You're offering me something that looks tasty on the outside, but has a big worm waiting on the inside if I bite down on it."

"Think so, huh?" Jake concealed his grin.

She nodded. "Stop being cute. You're like that snake in that garden that tricked what's-her-name into eating a piece of fruit that ended up getting both her and her mate kicked out of the _na'rìng_ so they could wander a barren wasteland for the rest of their lives."

"Uh..."

"Well, it won't work," Karyu said, losing what remained of her doubts and straightening her shoulders with determination. "You can take your apple and stuff it. I'm not giving up my toruk and I'll find a way to deal with my responsibilities, one way or the other."

"Good for you, kid," Jake approved, smiling. He ruffled her braids. "Now let's mount up and get to the village, before your mother sends people searching for us."

She nodded and her stance relaxed. She quickly rose on her tiptoes and planted a quick kiss on Jake's cheek. "Thank you, Uncle Jake."

He was endeared by the gesture and he chuckled, watching as she went to her ikran to climb onto its back. "So _that's_ how Tom does it," he muttered beneath his breath, impressed with himself for succeeding in using the reversed psychology method his brother so often employed.

He frowned a moment later, thinking of Karyu's choice of words. "Did she compare me to...Satan?"

* * *

When she and Jake caught up with the others just before reaching Hometree, Kato regarded Karyu with faint brotherly concern and a question in his eyes. "You're riding Thunder," he observed. "Where's your toruk?"

"I sent him off to hunt," she answered, glancing at her uncle as he returned to Neytiri's side up ahead. "He was hungry and I don't want to expose a grouchy toruk to a crowd."

Kato watched her suspiciously, suspecting that there was more to it than that. She looked back at him and told him with her eyes that she didn't want to discuss it out loud. He nodded, content with that. "As long as everything is okay."

"It is now," she assured him.

Kato looked ahead at the massive _keltural_ they were approaching. His thoughts went to his wife, staying behind in Hell's Gate. At least if a firefight happened like everyone expected, he knew Savanna would be safe—in theory. He tried not to think of what would happen if the RDA people at UNEC organized an attack on Hell's Gate while they were away. Not that Kato believed Savanna was incapable of defending herself, but it was comforting to know that Dustin would be there to get her to safety if something went wrong. He and Andrew were staying behind with her, though their avatars were apparently going to be traveling with the mission teams.

"Just take good care of her guys," Kato muttered under his breath. "No matter what happens."

* * *

_Meanwhile, at Hell's Gate:_

"Dustin, is it all set up?"

The young scientist looked up at the sound of his friend's voice and he nodded at her, taking note of the drawn expression on her lilac-striped face. "The system's all ready for you, Sav. You're here early, though."

He looked around the operations center and he got out of his seat to approach the hybrid. He spoke to her in a low voice, conscious of the other staff going about their business. "Are you okay?"

"You're the third person to ask me that since Kato and the others left this morning," she said wryly, forcing a smile for him. "I'm not going to fall apart without my mate nearby, you know."

"Yeah, but nobody would blame you for worrying," he countered gently. "You're stressed; I can tell. You should be resting up while you can. Our teams haven't even deployed for the journey yet and it's going to be a couple of days before you may have to do your part."

"I know," she sighed, rubbing her bare arms. The tank top she wore wasn't ideal for the air-conditioned environment of the command center building and she wished she had thought to grab a sweater or an over-shirt. "I just feel like I need to be doing things. I can't just sit at home thinking about it, or I'll drive myself crazy. I don't want to think of anyone getting hurt—especially the twins. I don't want to imagine Kato dodging bullets. Just give me something to do, Dusty. Please."

Dustin urged her into one of the interconnecting tunnel corridors, where they could speak with more privacy. "Okay, first I'm going to remind you _again_ that nothing's happening yet. All they're doing is gathering forces and traveling north. Secondly, we don't even know this is going to end in violence. Maybe the RDA will negotiate."

She gave him an exasperated look. "Really? Dustin, they planted a bomb in that plant near my father-in-law's village and when _that_ didn't work, they sent assassins after him at what _could_ have been my wedding. They tried to kill Jake while he was in jail and oh yeah...don't forget about the head of their own security! They tried to kill General West, too! Do you _really_ think they're going to muster the conscience to try for a peaceful solution, after everything they've done?"

He held his hands up in a pacifying gesture and shushed her, disturbed by the rising volume of her voice. "Okay, okay...you've made your point and I agree; those were all horrible things they tried to do. Still, you're forgetting one really important thing about all that."

She raised her eyebrows. "Oh? Like what?"

He reached up and put his hands on her shoulders comfortingly. "They're _cowards_, Sav. That's what. Cowards. Everything they've done has been sneaky and underhanded. They might lose their nerve when faced with a fair fight, or if the tables are turned on them and someone mucks with _their_ operations. That's where you and your father are going to come in. Even if they resist, we're talking about people that are used to _causing_ havoc—not being on the _receiving_ end of it themselves."

She relaxed a little, but her expression remained doubtful. "They may be cowards," she reasoned, "but they're tenacious cowards. They'll get desperate if they start losing and that's what really scares me."

He grimaced and took her hands in his. "Me too," he admitted, "but we can't let that distract us. Our folks trust us to do our part in this and we're the only people our age being allowed to participate. We can't let them down, Sav."

She chuckled without humor. "And you're telling me to relax."

He smiled and shrugged. "Well, you aren't doing any good getting worked up before anything happens. Why don't we go to your place and watch some movies? Andrew should be finished in the lab soon and I think we could all use something to take our minds off this."

Savanna didn't particularly feel like watching anything on TV, but being in the company of friends would at least bring her a measure of comfort. "Okay. We should see if Corporal Howell wants to join us before his team leaves, too."

"I already spoke with him earlier this morning, after the Na'vi left," answered Dustin. "He's going to be way too busy with inspections and preparations, unfortunately. We'll see him off when they go, if you want."

"Okay." She shrugged. There was no help for it and she supposed it was better for the military to be meticulous with their preparations. The fewer chances of things going wrong, the better off they were.

* * *

A couple of hours later, the Hell's Gate teams were ready to deploy. The plan was to travel to a remote facility near the northern shores and refuel there. They would camp overnight with their Na'vi allies, who should meet up with them by sunset if the timing went as planned. The journey across the sea would commence early the next morning and they should reach Mune'tsyal territory by mid-day.

Baxter Howell climbed into the Dragon gunship behind Darren and the handcuffed agent Miller. They were all part of the team that would be infiltrating the RDA base from beneath the icy water, should it come to a conflict. The group was composed of a mixture of Navy Seals and Marines. According to Miller, the base had a vulnerability in the filter system that could be taken advantage of from underneath. Provided they hadn't rectified the situation, the team could get in through there when their allies at Hell's Gate and the Star Chaser attacked the security system via hacking. Without their tracking sensors online, the deployment team should be able to breach the compound without detection.

That was the theory, anyhow. It all depended on the success of the hacking efforts and the reliability of Miller's information. They all knew they were taking a big risk and they would only have a short window to sabotage the defense system from the inside, should their allies even succeed in scrambling the mainframe.

"I feel like I'm in a spy story or something," Baxter muttered as he buckled up beside Ellis.

On the other side of the hangar, people were loading avatars and equipment onto one of the Valkyries. Only a few of the "remote control" avatars were coming along for the journey, including the two that belonged to Dustin and Andrew. Personally, Howell wasn't sure what good the latter and his parents could do in a conflict, except work with medical teams behind the line of fire. Dusty was a pilot and his mother agreed to send him out in his avatar if they needed extra firepower. Perhaps Andrew had enough training to copilot for him.

He looked at Patrick Miller with a frown. They were all dead meat, if he was misleading them. The black Ops agent noticed his stare and he gave the marine a crooked smile that women probably found charming.

"Something on your mind, Corporal?"

Baxter disliked the way the man always seemed to see into people and he berated himself for being too expressive. "Nothing much. Just wondering what the odds are that you're suicidal."

"Well, that's the rub of it," answered Miller while the others regarded him curiously. "You can never be too sure what's in a man's heart, can you?"

Baxter grumbled and decided not to engage in further conversation. One of the army officers came and took Miller away to a different area of the aircraft, where he could be monitored more easily. Baxter watched him go with narrowed eyes. "Smug bastard," he muttered to Ellis.

"Just remember, he's not the one in control here," advised the older marine softly. "Don't let him get into your head. He knows one wrong move will put him in the grave."

"But does he care?" replied Howell.

"He cares about his sister, even if he doesn't care about himself," murmured Ellis. "If he double-crosses us, she doesn't get her treatment and he may as well have killed her himself. The RDA won't keep sending it to her, now that he's in our custody. He's got more to lose than to gain for any deception he pulls off."

Baxter found the reasoning only slightly comforting. As a soldier, he was trained to follow orders and fight, not to think. It was too bad that didn't actually stop the thought processes, though. He didn't fear death but he wanted to live, and he wanted the people he cared about to live too and be safe. He wanted to raise a family someday—hopefully with a certain stubborn huntress. He didn't know how that would work out but he had never been the sort to give up until it was completely hopeless. Complicated and difficult did not equal hopeless in his eyes and he was determined to build a life with Karyu when this was finished. Thinking of kids got him thinking of his godson and Janet.

"I'm glad your wife stayed home with your son on this one," Baxter said to his companion. "It couldn't have been an easy choice for her."

"It wasn't," agreed Ellis, "but one of us needed to stay behind, just in case. Tim's too young to be on his own and we want to ensure that one of us is around to raise him, if possible."

Baxter grimaced. "That's kind of...grim."

"Realistic," corrected Darren with a sidelong smirk. "One day when you have kids, you'll understand. I don't expect to die on this mission but you never know what could happen. At least I know my wife and son are together and safe, no matter how this turns out for me."

Howell nodded, smiling a little. "Makes sense. I'd probably do the same, if I had a kid."

"Do you really think that wild girlfriend of yours would stay behind with a kid?" Darren chuckled.

Baxter immediately defended his love interest. "Karyu's a helluva lot more responsible than you think. Her situation right now is different from having a kid to think about. I think if she had to choose, she'd put her kids before a battle. She wouldn't _like_ it, but I think she'd do it. Hell, maybe it wouldn't come to that and I'd stay with our kids while she went off to war...but I'd rather it be the other way around. Guess I'm a little old fashioned that way."

Darren was looking at him in a curious, considering manner and Baxter found himself flushing under the scrutiny. "What? You think I don't think about these things?"

"I didn't realize it was that serious," confessed Darren. "You're talking about having kids—plural—with this woman and debating household politics that might arise in the future. I hope she's in the same place you are, man."

Baxter shrugged, unable to answer that with any certainty. He couldn't blame his friends for worrying and he knew he had a habit of getting his hopes up too high. "There's a chance, and I'm going to take it."

Ellis didn't look overly pleased, but he gave no further cautionary advice or arguments. There were more pressing things to worry about than his friend's love life.

* * *

_At Hometree:_

The arrival was predictably heralded by shouts of surprise and exclamations as they touched down at the outskirts of the _Keltural_. Neytiri was the one to suggest that they not land in the ikran nesting area, because of Karyu's toruk. The village had seen them coming and word spread like wildfire. People rushed out to greet the group before most of them could finish dismounting their banshees. Neytiri smiled and touched hands with her people, greeting them each in turn while she kept a quiet eye out for specific faces.

"Pardon me...excuse me..."

Neytiri smiled at the sound of her son's quiet, respectful voice. Tsu'tey was doing his best to wade through the crowd without offending anyone or pushing people aside. She reached for him the moment she saw him, and the crowd parted respectfully. No matter the situation, the Na'vi respected family and friendship. They watched as Neytiri, Jake, Emazu and the others greeted everyone. Jake was all too happy to hold his grand-daughter and Neytiri was loathe to pry her from his arms at the end of the night, but priorities could not be denied.

* * *

-To be continued

**Translations:**

**_P'ah s'ivil chey_** = Personal belongings rack. These are typically hung near sleeping hammocks and serve as a sort of closet for the Na'vi to hang and store personal belongings.


End file.
